Cendrillon (Cinderella) / The French Limited Edition de Luxe / Signed by Arthur Rackham / 1919

By Charles Perrault

All lovers of the art of Arthur Rackham and the creator of Cendrillon, Charles Perrault, will welcome this French "Edition de Luxe" of Cendrillon (Cinderella), limited to 500 copies, signed by the illustrator Arthur Rackham (1867-1939), of which this is No. 122. This book is illustrated with black silhouettes; three are double-page stamped in three colors, tipped-in frontispiece depicting the titular character with a tissue guard. The covers are bound in white Japanese vellum boards with cover title and silhouette illustration stamped in gilt, spine lettered in gilt.

Why the silhouettes and not Rackham's trademark style of ink and watercolors?

After World War I, the demand for expensive books became uncertain, and Rackham feared that his illustration style was falling out of favor in the face of modern artistic developments. The response to this double challenge was a master-stroke – the 'Rackham' for 1919, a retelling of Cinderella, would be illustrated throughout in silhouette, simultaneously showcasing an unexpected dimension of his work and taking advantage of the lower costs of black and white printing. The book was an instant triumph, proving so successful that Rackham followed it up in 1920 with his second – and final – silhouette masterpiece, The Sleeping Beauty.*

This is a very good condition book in publisher's deluxe quarter vellum over Japanese vellum-covered boards, stamped in gilt; top edge in gilt.  There is some soiling and scratches to the vellum cover, a bump at the head of the spine with a consequent small crack to the rear joint, and a few minor chips to the rear free endpaper at the fore-edge.

Publisher: Paris, Librairie Hachette
Publication Date: 1919
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: VG
Signed: Signed by Arthur Rackham at limitation, as issued.
Edition: No. 122 of 500 | First French Rackham Edition
Language: French
Pages: 110pp
Size: Large quarto 28.5x22.5 cm (11¼x9")
Bibliography Reference: Latimore and Haskell pp. 49-50
History of Cinderella Reference: *Folio Society - Cinderella & The Sleeping Beauty