Channel: Confessions of a Bookplate Junkie

Another Letter From Audrey Arellanes

July 26, 2018, 11:40 am

Audrey Arellanes wrote many letters to notable people asking for bookplates .
Aldous Huxley took the time to respond.

I have always wanted the Huxley bookplate designed by Bruno Bramante.

An article about his bookplate appeared in the November 1947 edition of House and Garden Magazine. I already had a smaller Huxley bookplate which I suspect was posthumous.

The late Richard Schimmelpfeng sent me a signed copy of the Bramante bookplate before he died.

Small bookplate is probably posthumous

In 1961 Aldous Huxley wrote to Audrey "I don't have a bookplate and wouldn't have time, if I did to strike it into all my books. "

Interesting, Was Mr Huxley on a trip when he wrote the letter or was the bookplate never sent to Mr. Huxley ? Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Incidentally,Today, July 26th is Mr.Huxley's birthday.

Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

Happy New Year

January 8, 2019, 10:30 am

≫ Next: This Week in Bookplates 1/13/2019

≪ Previous: Another Letter From Audrey Arellanes

My last posting was in July of 2018 and I have finally returned.

Let's start with some good news. If all goes according to plan I will have a bookplate book published this fall. Details are sketchy but papers have been signed and money will soon be forthcoming.
My publisher is The Princeton Architectural Press . Updates will be posted as the book progresses.
=======================================================================

Musings of a Jewish Bookseller by By I. Mizrahi

Mizrahi Book Store

3114 Quentin Rd

Brooklyn NY 11234

347-492-6508

antique, used, rare &

out of print Jewish Books

http://judaicaused.com/

An apparently healthy customer ended a general email with book requests with the following curt and morbid request: I have many boxes of Judaica ... Can my children just ship them to you when I die?

A fellow who got irritated at hearing a noted speaker wrongly date R. Eliyahu Hacohen (1640-1729) as a 19th century author, had me ship a 17th century copy of his book Shevet Mussar to the speaker's home, in order to prove a point

A six foot tall visiting customer, had me promise that there were no mice in the store basement before he headed in to the shop, explaining that he had an intense fear of mice

Completing an order of books that she was gifting to her husband, the woman remarked, "that should get him off my back for a few weeks"

After viewing a fine library of a Rabbi and scholar, the son of the deceased Rabbi remarked to me, "my father was a nice fellow, but unfortunately a Kofer (heretic)"

An elderly customer was too weak to make his weekly visit to the store, so he hailed a cab and had me bring out ten books at a time to the car. He made his selections, which I mailed to his home

After a customer completed a large purchase, I received a plea from a friend of his that I should not sell him any more books, as his family was nearly starving for food, and the book addict can't control his impulses

Looking for a listening ear, an old customer called to tell him that his wife has kicked him out of his house and is holding his collection of 10,000 books hostage
============================================================

BOOK HOARDERS

Follow this link about ten famous book hoarders

https://lithub.com/10-famous-book-hoarders/

It is nice to be back. See you again next week

↧

This Week in Bookplates 1/13/2019

January 12, 2019, 4:49 am

≫ Next: Judaica Bookplates for possible exchange Part 1

≪ Previous: Happy New Year

This article appeared in the January 11th edition of

The Adirondack Enterprise

Mr. Will H. Low, the well-known American artist, was an intimate of Robert Louis Stevenson in art student days at Barbizon. As a tribute to the memory of his gifted friend he has made for members of the Robert Louis Stevenson Society a special bookplate.
The following from “The New International Encyclopedia” affords a survey of Mr. Low’s achievements: “Low, Will Hicock, An American illustrator, figure and genre painter. He was born May 31, 1853, in Albany, N.Y. His early education was interrupted by his ill health, but in 1870 he went to New York and for two years illustrated for different magazines. He went to Paris in 1873 studying with Gerome at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, and later with Carolus Duran. His work was also influenced by association with Millet and other painters at Barbizon. Returning to America in 1877, he was elected member of the Society of American Artists in 1878 and Academician in 1890, and for a time was instructor of the life classes at the Academy and in schools of Cooper Union. In 1910 he delivered the Scammon lectures at the Arts Institute, Chicago, published under title ‘A Painter’s Progress’ (1910). He worked with a John La Farge in glass painting, and received a second-class medal at the Paris Exposition in 1889 and medals at Chicago in 1893 and Buffalo in 1901.”
“Low is best known by his illustrations for periodicals, his decorative work for public buildings and private houses, and for his stained glasses. He was one of the first to introduce light tones of the open-air school in American art. His work shows grace of line, delicate color, and good composition. His ideal subjects of gods and nymphs are painted with great charm of color reflections in light and shade. Among his works are ‘Portrait of Albani’ (1877); ‘May Blossoms’ (1888, Smith College, Northampton, Mass.); ‘My Lady’ (Lotus Club, New York); ‘Aurora’ (1894, Metropolitan Museum, New York); ‘The Orange Vendor’ (Art Institute, Chicago); ‘Christmas Morn’ (National Gallery, Washington); Among his decorations are ‘Mother and Child,’ stained glass windows (Rock Creek Church, Washington); 10 stained glass windows for St. Paul’s Methodist Episcopal Church, Newark, N.J.; decorative panels in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, New York; and mural paintings in the Essex County Court House, Newark, N.J., the Lucerne County Court House, Wilkes-Barre, Pa. (1908), the Federal Building, Cleveland, and St. Paul’s Church, Albany, N.Y. (1910); In 1914 he was engaged on mural paintings for the rotunda of the New York State Educational Building and for the Legislative Library in the Capitol at Albany. His best known illustrations are those for Keats’ Lamia and Odes and Sonnets. He is author of ‘A Chronicle of Friendships’, 1873-1900 (New York, 1908), a book of reminiscences, and many magazine articles on artistic subjects.”

Writing to the Stevenson Society of this design, Mr. Low has this to say: “You will see that I have been somewhat inspired in my design by that charming book, ‘The Penny Piper of Saranac,’ although it really goes further back than that, for I made it up of elements from my drawings for Keats’ ‘Louisa,’ which was dedicated to R.L.S. in 1885. The piping figure I then used for the colophon of the book and the escutcheon with Stevenson’s monogram formed part of the dedicatory drawing. I have thus, pardonably, I trust, sought to interweave my own personality with the design, and the background of Adirondack woods localizes it sufficiently. Will H. Low."
========================================================================

William Cameron Menzies , Bookplate Designer

Note from Lew: The Film critic Jimmy Starr liked the Valentino

bookplate by Menzies and had it altered for his own use.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cameron_Menzies

"Menzies joined Famous Players-Lasky, later to evolve into Paramount Pictures, working in special effects and design. He quickly established himself in Hollywood with his elaborate settings^{[citation needed]} for The Thief of Bagdad (1924), The Bat (1926), The Dove (1927), Sadie Thompson (1928), and Tempest (1928). In 1929, Menzies formed a partnership with producer Joseph M. Schenck to create a series of early sound short films visualizing great works of music, including a 10-minute version of Dukas's The Sorcerer's Apprentice, and created the production design and special effects for Schenck's feature film The Lottery Bride (1930).
Menzies's work on The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938) was what prompted David O. Selznick to hire him for Gone with the Wind (1939). Selznick's faith in Menzies was so great that he sent a memorandum to everyone at Selznick International Pictures who was involved in the production reminding them that "Menzies is the final word" on everything related to Technicolor, scenic design, set decoration, and the overall look of the production.
"Production designer" (which is sometimes used interchangeably with "art director") was coined specifically for Menzies, to refer to his being the final word on the overall look of the production; it was intended to describe his ability to translate Selznick's ideas to drawings and paintings from which he and his fellow directors worked.^{[citation needed]}
Menzies was the director of the burning of Atlanta sequence in Gone with the Wind. He also re-shot the Salvador Dalí dream sequence of Alfred Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945).

In addition, Menzies directed a string of dramas and fantasy films. He made two sci-fi films: the 1936 film Things to Come, based on H.G. Wells' work that predicted war, the search for peace and technical advancement; and Invaders from Mars (1953), which mirrored many fears about aliens and outside threats to humans in the 1950s. "
I recently purchased William Cameron Menzies The Shape of Films to Come by James Curtis and I look forward to reading it.

Bookplate by Mr. Menzies for the producer John W, Considine Jr.

John W.Considine Jr,

Mr, Menzies' Daughter Suzie

Mr. Menzie's Cipher

I want to thank Edward Sotto III who sent me information about Mr,Menzies,

This is how a checklist begins, If you know of any other bookplates Mr. Menzies designed

please send information or a scan. Thanks,

Lew Jaffe Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

Judaica Bookplates for possible exchange Part 1

January 19, 2019, 10:28 am

≫ Next: Judaica bookplates for exchange Part 2

≪ Previous: This Week in Bookplates 1/13/2019

I have accumulated many duplicates which I would like to trade with other collectors.
If you wish to trade please send your scans to Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com
More images will be scanned on Monday

↧

Judaica bookplates for exchange Part 2

January 21, 2019, 8:38 am

≫ Next: Errors in Bookplate Design

≪ Previous: Judaica Bookplates for possible exchange Part 1

Part one has generated inquiries from Israel, Luxembourg, and The United States.
Here is part two. If you have duplicates for exchange send scans to
Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

Errors in Bookplate Design

January 25, 2019, 10:58 am

≫ Next: Three New Arrivals

≪ Previous: Judaica bookplates for exchange Part 2

Even the most accomplished artists make mistakes when sending out proofs to clients .

Here are a few examples:

Mr. Hopson knew how to spell Connecticut but he misspelled in on the first try

Dorsey Potter Tyson (1891-1969) was an etcher who lived in Baltimore and designed a powerful plate for William E. Bauer .His original proof had the middle initial A.

Timothy Cole's wood engraved bookplate for Elizabeth Bancker Gribbel was misspelled and corrected.

If you have any error plates or proofs to share please send jpeg scans to

Bookplatemaven @hotmail.com

and they will be added to this blog posting.

↧

Three New Arrivals

February 28, 2019, 11:25 am

≫ Next: Upcoming New York City Book and Ephemera Shows in March

≪ Previous: Errors in Bookplate Design

John Cabell (Bunny ) Breckinridge

Does anyone out there recognize the artist's signature ?
It looks like it might be H T Pri ?? L

Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

"Breckinridge was born in Paris, France to Adelaide Murphy and John Cabell Breckinridge Sr. (1879–1914), a wealthy Californian family. He was the great-great-great-grandchild of U.S. Attorney General John Breckinridge (and the great-grandchild of both U.S. Vice President and Confederate general John C. Breckinridge and Wells Fargo Bank founder Lloyd Tevis). He spent time at Eton College and Oxford University in England.

Bunny Breckinridge in Plan 9 from Outer Space

In 1958, Breckinridge agreed to play the role of an alien leader in the film Graverobbers from Outer Space (later retitled Plan 9 from Outer Space), directed by his friend, Ed Wood. Wood and Breckinridge were introduced to one another by their mutual friend Paul Marco, who played Kelton the Cop in three Wood films.
Breckinridge and Marco were living together in the latter's modest home at the time, despite the fact that he was a struggling B-movie actor and Breckinridge was an independently wealthy socialite. David Demering, who played the airplane co-pilot in the film, also lived with them.
Breckinridge's previous stage experience convinced Wood to cast him as the alien ruler who oversees an attempt to take over the Earth using an army of reanimated corpses. Indeed, his background made him one of the few truly experienced actors in the entire cast. Dressed in a pajama-like outfit which is curiously less ornate than those worn by his underlings, he sports very visible mascara and lipstick, and constantly rolls his eyes and mugs for the camera. Breckinridge continued his theatrical career throughout the 1950s, but in small local productions, such as playing the role of The Inquisitor in Richard Bailey's production of The Lark in Carmel.
By 1980, Plan 9 from Outer Space had amassed a cult following among B-movie buffs as the "worst film ever made", making Breckinridge's name known to a new generation. Meanwhile, he returned to stage acting, appearing mostly in local productions in San Francisco.
In 1994, Breckinridge was surprised to find himself portrayed as a character in a major motion picture, played by Bill Murray in Tim Burton's 1994 biopicEd Wood. His advanced years and failing health, however, prevented him from participating in any of the publicity surrounding the film."
Ref: Wikipedia

HARLEY M. KILGORE

Here is another bookplate ( probably a woodcut) with an unknown artist.

I purchased it from Norman W. Johanson in Lancaster Pa.
He has a few more copies for sale .

His contact information is

nwjbooks@gmail.com

Emily W. Noyes

Some times I have to make educated guesses about the bookplates added to my collection.

I studied this one for a while and decided to put it with my punning bookplates.

Perhaps that was not the owner's intention .

The artist might be Annie Blakeslee Hooper (another educated guess)

Ref Journal Of The Ex Libris Society , Volume XI P.147

↧

Upcoming New York City Book and Ephemera Shows in March

March 2, 2019, 10:43 am

≫ Next: My Favorite Bookplates

≪ Previous: Three New Arrivals

The Manhattan Vintage Book & Ephemera Fair and Fine Press Fair
St. Vincent Ferrer Church
869 Lexington Avenue, New York City 10065

Marvin Getman’s New York City Book and Ephemera Fair
The Sheraton Times Square
811 7^th Avenue, New York, New York 10019

The 59th Annual New York Antiquarian Book Fair
643 Park Avenue [between 66^th and 67^th Streets
New York, New York 10065

I plan to visit all three shows.
If you have bookplates for sale or trade please let me know.

Lew Jaffe
Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

My Favorite Bookplates

March 11, 2019, 10:24 am

≫ Next: Bookplate Book Update From Lew Jaffe

≪ Previous: Upcoming New York City Book and Ephemera Shows in March

Perfect Ten
Rating Bookplates

BY

Katherine Peach

In the late Middle Ages, books were costly and rare—even after the invention of the printing press. Owning a small personal library of volumes was no doubt a source of great pride, but how could a fifteenth-century bibliophile assert ownership over his collection and ensure that borrowed books found their way back home?

The ever-resourceful Germans came up with a solution: the bookplate. Whereas once book owners relied on writing their names inside the covers (which easily could be scratched out), now they could paste a printed slip of paper into a book that not only proclaimed its ownership but also was a status symbol in and of itself.

The earliest known bookplate belonged to Hilprand Brandenburg of Biberach and can be dated to c. 1480. It’s a simple, hand-colored woodcut print of an angel holding a shield. There are more than 450 books known to contain Brandenburg’s plate.

Over the ensuing centuries, bookplates evolved beyond simple woodcuts to intricately engraved or etched designs that could be either mass-produced for book owners who would fill in their own names or custom-made for specific bibliophiles. They were commonly known as ex libris, Latin for “from the books of.”

Bookplates tended to epitomize the fashionable styles of the day, from fussy baroque to streamlined art deco. Famous artists, including William Hogarth and Aubrey Beardsley, got into the bookplate-designing game, and ex libriswere commissioned and used by all manner of people, from everyday book lovers to world leaders, to the Hollywood elite.

Beardsley Bookplate

Needless to say, bookplate collectors are keenly interested in collecting plates that belonged to notable individuals. They eagerly buy, sell and trade detached bookplates, as well as those that are still pasted into volumes.

One such self-described “bookplate junkie” is Lew Jaffe of Philadelphia, who has been seriously collecting these slips of paper for more than three decades and maintains an informative and exhaustive blog (bookplatejunkie.blogspot.com).

When asked to pick his three favorite bookplates, Jaffe likened the task to “choosing which of your kids you like the most.” However, here are three from his collection to which he feels particularly drawn.

Rated “10,” best, is Jaffe’s own bookplate. “I decided I really liked my own bookplate, and it’s one of my favorites.” Jaffe commissioned the design from a young American artist named Daniel Mitsui (danielmitsui.com), who specializes in bookplates in a style that harkens back to their earliest woodcut days. “There really aren’t many bookplate designers in America,” Jaffe said. “There aren’t that many artists who have enough of a following to make a career from bookplate design. He’s one of the few; he’s the most active.” Measuring 3-1/2” by 4-1/2”, Jaffe’s plate features a dragonfly against a background of varied sea life—starfish, frogs, snails, fish and flowers, along with bones. “I love mine,” Jaffe said. “It’s humorous and funny.” Jaffe has used his plate as it was intended—pasted into books in his personal library—but he has also traded it with fellow bookplate collectors. Perhaps one day this will be a hotly desired collectible.

Rated “9,” better, is a woodblock bookplate that belonged to classic Hollywood director Cecil B. DeMille. “I chose that one because, really, it’s a striking image,” Jaffe said. “It’s in very bright colors—orange, gold and black. Very striking.” Jaffe explained, “In general, color enhances anything,” adding to this plate’s collectible value. The DeMille plate measures 3-1/4” wide by 3” high and was designed in 1924—at the height of his success in silent films—by French artist Paul Iribe. This ex libris depicts the phoenix, a symbol of knowledge that is appropriate for a bibliophile’s library. “It is a beautiful plate,” Jaffe said. DeMille is known to have had an extensive library in his Hollywood mansion, including volumes on history and design that he would have consulted for the making of his epic motion pictures. This is one of two DeMille bookplates in Jaffe’s collection.

Rated, “8,” good, is a bookplate that was designed for enigmatic Swedish-born movie star Greta Garbo. This glamorous plate measures 3-3/4” wide by 6” high and features Garbo’s iconic profile. It was created by artist A. Herry in 1939. “This one is really good because it captures her image sort of as a caricature,” Jaffe said. There’s a lot of crossover appeal to this particular plate; as with the DeMille ex libris, it would easily be treasured by both bookplate collectors and fans of classic Hollywood. Garbo retired from the screen in 1941, at the age of 35, having acted in 28 films and having been nominated for an Academy Award on three occasions. Notoriously private, Garbo lived out her later years in a seven-room Manhattan apartment, which she filled with her enormous art collection. Because she was an aficionado of art, she likely would have been charmed by this pleasing, spare design.

Note from Lew

Katherine Peach is a writer, editor, and record store owner based in Baltimore, Md.

She wrote this article for an antique journal which went belly up. With all the time and effort
involved in preparation I thought the article deserved to be published.
Thank you Katherine.

↧

Bookplate Book Update From Lew Jaffe

August 2, 2019, 10:54 am

≫ Next: A Message from Anthony Pincott

≪ Previous: My Favorite Bookplates


Ex Libris A Journal $16.95 Not yet published Reserve a copy (we will email you when the book is published)		4.75 × 6.5 IN (12.1 × 16.5 CM) 216 PAGES PUBLICATION DATE: 09/24/2019 RIGHTS: WORLD ISBN: 9781616898632

This lightly lined notebook features sixty full color vintage bookplates. Perfectly sized to toss in your bag for book group or to take to your favorite cafe, this journal is as appealing to the lover of ephemera and graphic design as it is to the lit lover. Bookplates featured include those of luminaries such as Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Greta Garbo, Bing Crosby, Harry Houdini, Jacqueline Onassis, and Edith Wharton. A tipped-on bookplate on a cloth cover and a ribbon marker complete this bibliophile's dream notebook. Note From Lew Jaffe - On September 24th the book which I mentioned several months ago will be published.

↧

A Message from Anthony Pincott

August 21, 2019, 8:49 am

≫ Next: A Message From James Keenan

≪ Previous: Bookplate Book Update From Lew Jaffe

Date: Tue, 20 Aug 2019 11:16:03 +0100
From: "Tony Pincott"<tonypincott@waitrose.com>
Subject: ["EXLIBRIS-L"] PRINTED AND ENGRAVED BOOKPLATES

1. The latest issue number 60 of Illustration magazine, published by the
Cello Press, includes a 7-page article on bookplates. You can download and
read this at
<http://www.bookplatesociety.org/documents/IllustrationArticleSummer2019.pdf>
www.bookplatesociety.org/documents/IllustrationArticleSummer2019.pdf .

2. Gathering together a historical collection of bookplates is a great
encouragement to their study. Notwithstanding the extensive literature, this
is a field wide open to further research. It is adjacent to such other areas
of interest as family history, book provenance, graphic art, heraldry,
biography and more. The Bookplate Society holds three members auctions each
year. For the next one on September 9, 2019, the auction list and images are
viewable online. Go to <http://www.bookplatesociety.org>
www.bookplatesociety.org and click on Members Area at top right.

3. The home page has a link to a flyer giving details of the Society at
<http://www.bookplatesociety.org/images/FlyerLR.pdf> www.bookplatesociety.org/
images/FlyerLR.pdf .

4. Cash prizes for newly created bookplates: Bookplates continue to be
made today, and competitions for contemporary work are held frequently. Visit
<http://www.bookplatesociety.org/2020competitionLondon.htm>
www.bookplatesociety.org/2020competitionLondon.htm for details of the
competition that is being run by The Bookplate Society as part of its hosting
of the 38th FISAE International Exlibris Congress in Central London on 12-15
August 2020. This is an open competition for artists worldwide, but to
encourage young artists one of the prizes is restricted to students in the UK
and Republic of Ireland, and another will be awarded to an artist aged under
35 at the deadline entry date of 31 March 2020. The website also includes
entry details for the Australian Bookplate Design Award. The deadline for
entries for this is 15 November 2020. If you can think of useful ways to reach
potential participants, do please write to me.

5. This 38th FISAE International Exlibris Congress will take place at
the Royal National Hotel, Bloomsbury, in the same meeting hall where the
monthly Etcetera Book Fair is held. Visitors buying 2-hour or 1-day tickets
will be able to (1) view an exhibition of contemporary exlibris, selected from
entries to the competition, (2) meet artists who will display their work, (3)
attend talks on the morning of Thursday, 13 August 2020, and (4) attend the
international auction of high quality exlibris on the morning of Friday, 14
August 2020, hosted by a celebrity auctioneer.

6. Please send offers of material for that auction to me at
members@bookplatesociety.org

> members@bookplatesociety.org . Only
exlibris can be accepted, minimum lot value $50 and only items likely to
appeal to collectors worldwide. Bidding is open not only to congress
participants but to anyone worldwide whose registration (sent to this same
email address) is approved. The webpage for the auction is currently work in
progress, with several dozen lots already entered, and will become visible in
about March/April 2020.

Anthony Pincott

The Bookplate Society

London N1

↧

A Message From James Keenan

September 18, 2019, 9:48 am

≫ Next: Update and New Contest

≪ Previous: A Message from Anthony Pincott

G'DAY LEW,

You might suggest to your tribe of followers that they purchase your new book through the ASBC&D on Amazon Smile (link provided below). They will pay no more for any Amazon products, but Amazon makes a small donation to the Society. If you sell a million copies (and I hope you do), Amazon’s small donation could make a difference.

A new book from Lew Jaffe! Ex Libris is a lightly lined notebook featuring sixty vintage and historic bookplates. Bookplate images include those of luminaries such as Albert Einstein, Sigmund Freud, Greta Garbo, Bing Crosby, Bette Davis, Harry Houdini, Jacqueline Kennedy, Edith Wharton, Robert Frost, and Salvador Dali. A tipped-on bookplate on a cloth cover and a ribbon marker complete this bibliophile’s notebook. Ex Libris is available wherever books are sold, including the Princeton Architectural Press website and Amazon.

On Amazon, be sure to visit the American Society Of Bookplate Collectors And Designers at “Amazon Smile”. Same products, same prices, same service, but Amazon donates a small percentage to the Societyhttp://smile.amazon.com/ch/95-3568489

Here is a link to the book page on the Princeton Architectural Press website: http://www.papress.com/html/product.details.dna?isbn=9781616898632

MY BEST!!

James P. Keenan

American Society of Bookplate
Collectors & Designers

Post Office Box 14964

Tucson, Arizona USA 85732-4964

Please visit us: www.bookplate.org

↧

Update and New Contest

October 3, 2019, 11:06 am

≫ Next: And The Contest Winner is

≪ Previous: A Message From James Keenan

It has been far too long since I updated my blog so here we go.
For those of you who save book tickets fellow collector /dealer
Gabe Konrad has started a new Facebook page. A job well done.

For those of you interested in contests I have begun a new one.

Date: Wed, 2 Oct 2019 11:50:00 -0400
From: Gabor Konrad
Subject: Bookseller Labels and; Marks

I’d like to invite anyone who’s interested in bookseller labels to join our
Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/255807868673068/.

This project originally started as a website (www.booksellerlabels.com),
and eventually, most of the information was transferred to Facebook so
everyone could post and take part.

We hope this page will evolve into a resource for collectors, bibliophiles,
and researchers, and those interested in booksellers’ marks and related
ephemera. Bookseller labels have a long history and are richly entwined
with the history of bookselling worldwide, and we hope to offer a glimpse
of their history.

Thanks for checking it out, Gabe

Gabe Konrad

Bay Leaf Books, ABAA

books@bayleafbooks.com
========================================================================

NEW CONTEST

I recently obtained a copy of this delightful bookplate for my own collection.

It lends itself to a new contest. The rules are simple :

In twenty words or less make a caption for the bookplate.

Only one entry per person.

All entries must be received by 12 A.M. (E.S.T.)Friday November 25th.A.M.

The winner will receive a signed copy of my recently published ExLibris Journal

↧

And The Contest Winner is

December 21, 2019, 5:38 am

≫ Next: Bookplate Therapy

≪ Previous: Update and New Contest

Hi Lew,

Thanks for the contest. I'm going to take a shot at parodying the snooty descriptions seen in some auction catalogs. I'm certain this is not what you were expecting, but that is part of the fun!

---------------------

Although originally untitled, this masterful woodblock print has become known as "Perhaps a Cat, Maybe a Fish" and is considered one of the quintessential unknown prints of its genre, truly one of the masterworks of contemporary design. It is believed to have been created before the death of the artist, and thus scholars theorize it to be rare lifetime impression, possibly an artist's proof.

The richly-inked cobalt background symbolizes both earth and sky while dramatically contrasting the robust quasi-zoological central figure. The deep carmine of this ambiguous creature becomes ever more intense as it fills the frame, creating not only classic ambiguity in its identification but also a dynamic push-pull of the planar space. The limbs, legs, or wings are constructed entirely of sharp angles, thus more reminiscent of the architecture of Frank Ghery than a polymorphous Anton Gaudi.

The leading caption is cryptic and enigmatic. Read vertically, it is believed to be an acrostic for the phrase "EXhibit LIBeration RISing" though some scholars have put forth other interpretations. The lower phrase "Jan Rhe her gen." continues to baffle linguists, as it has since its creation. There may arise a singular opportunity to acquire this iconic masterpiece, or perhaps not.

------------------------------------

All the best,

Jeffrey

Jeffrey Price

↧

Bookplate Therapy

March 24, 2020, 11:07 am

≫ Next: Punning and Rebus Bookplates

≪ Previous: And The Contest Winner is

Hello again.
I am back after a long hiatus.
If you are locked down and climbing the walls I have listed some bookplate diversions.
If you have additional suggestions please send them to me .
bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

The members auction of The Bookplate Society will be offered to non members.

A listing plus images of the 200 lots can be found at www.bookplatesociety.org/membersarea.htm . The second section (lots 201-490) is largely of bookplates and book labels by Leo Wyatt, Leslie Benenson and Derek Riley. The bidding status will be updated as bids are sent in. There is a bidding list to be completed and returned. This section is open to non-members, who will pay a buyer’s premium of 10% in lieu of a membership fee. They must pre-register, supply details of themselves and proof of good faith.

send your email if you wish to bid to members@bookplatesociety.org

I am always pleased to chat with my readers ,exchange or buy duplicates and share information

Here are just a few of my permanent wants:

Bookplates from the libraries of notable people (loose or pasted in books)

18th century American bookplates (loose or pasted in books)

I invite you to chat with me about your collecting interest.
If you send me your Skype number
I will respond quickly.
Your number will not be published nor shared with anyone else

How you can get bookplates quickly

If you have a relationship with any older hand bookbinders they often have an an accumulation
of bookplates . If time permits it might be worth following up. If has worked for me many times.Let me know if you get any treasures.

In any event, good luck in this strange new world we live in.

↧

Punning and Rebus Bookplates

March 28, 2020, 10:00 am

≫ Next: Comments Received Punning and Rebus Bookplates

≪ Previous: Bookplate Therapy

These postings are several several years old .
They are a perfect diversion during our virtual bookplate therapy sessions.
Send me more please and they will be published.
Rebus bookplates are particularly wanted .
This is intentionally longer than my normal postings.
I look forward to hearing from you.

Lew Jaffe Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

These two are in a new category I have started.

The category is called WRETCHED EXCESS

Click on Images

To Enlarge

WHO IS MR. (MRS.) Rebus ????

Mr.Rebus

Click On Image To Enlarge

Bookplates can offer a glimpse into the window of someone's mind. Sometimes; , the shades are drawn.Such is the case with Mr.? Rebus. Was he a sadist out to torment future generations with his rebus name? There are a gazillion permutations and combinations.

Could he be the infamous Kingbush Smithy or his cousin Royaltree Anvil. Under magnification the date 1931 can be seen at the bottom of the plate along with two sets of initials ,M.C.C. and I.M.S

If any of you out there have any thoughts on whose bookplate this is , I would love to hear from you.

1/6/2014 Jos Swiers sent a number of Dutch punning plates

Dutch punning bookplates

Name owner	Designer	Year
La Chapelle (chapel)	Anton Pieck	n.k.
Koopman (merchant)	Anton Pieck	n.k.
Hahn (cock)	Albert Han	1904
Valk (falcon)	Nico Bulder	1932
Eyck (oak)	Engelien Valença	1913/14
Brugmans (bridgeman)	Pam. G. Rueter	1950
Schutter (marksman)	Nico Bulder	1962
B.H. Vos (fox)	Nico Bulder	1945
Visser (fisherman)	Ank Spronk-Feenstra	1983
Dijkhuizen (houses on a dyke)	Jan Batterman	1957
Kiewiet (pewit)-de Jong	Simon Moulijn	1944
Rotgans (brent-goose)	Georg Rueter	1928
C. Vos (fox)	Henri Jonas	ca 1920
Boer (farmer)	Dirk van Luijn	1945
Mol (mole)	P.J. Franken	1937
Kramer (pedlar/packman)	Pam G. Rueter	1981
Dorrenboom (dry tree)	Lou Strik	1985

1/7/1014- I just found two more in my bird bookplate album

Vogler is German for bird watcher

Punning and Rebus Bookplates

Punning bookplates are like Tribbles . They keep breeding until they take over your album.

I am not sure when I started collecting punning and rebus bookplates. It just sort of happened.I had one or two near each other in an album and they started reproducing . Gloria Swanson's rebus plate is one of the most innovative ones I own.

Hettie Gray Baker worked in Hollywood for most of her adult life and built a world class collection of celebrity bookplates.The collection is at the Hartford(Conn.) Athenaeum and well worth a visit

George H. Bell was the Governor of New Hampshire

Mr. Bookman's bookplate is illustrated in The Art of the Bookplate by James Keenan

Robert O. Foote's plate was designed by Ruth Saunders

Most of the punning and rebus plates in my collection are in the English language.If you have the time and are so inclined please send me scans of examples in other languages and I will add them to this posting.
Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com
By the way, I have added a bookplate search engine to the blog .It is located on the upper left side and will enable you to find information I previously wrote about. It always amuses me when I do a search about an artist or owner and come up with something I wrote about and had completely forgotten. See you next week.

↧

Comments Received Punning and Rebus Bookplates

March 30, 2020, 2:57 pm

≫ Next: severed heads

≪ Previous: Punning and Rebus Bookplates

I do not recall ever receiving so many comments so quickly.
Thanks to all of you for the interesting responses.

Kurt Zimmerman has left a new comment on your post "Punning and Rebus Bookplates":

I also have encountered my own previously researched blog information during searches and didn't recall it. One dealer offered me an item with a possibly interesting provenance. I inquired. They referred me to my own blog a few years previously where I mentioned meeting the person. Sigh.

Tom Boss
Writes about a special sale on his website during these days of confinement.

https://www.bossbooks.com/

Hi Lew,
I can give 20% off on any order up to $50 and 25% above $50.

J.Lawrence Mitchell
Submitted the following:

Yes--it's a good idea to have a bookplate diversion in these unsettling times. I append one I found laid into a book--not pasted for STUMP. I also have two (related?) BAERS--see attached. He was, I know, a big collector himself. And I include John Fowles too. My reproductions may not be of the best quality--though done with my MAC--because I am not very good with fancy technology.

Penelope Cline
Writes :Re. the Rebus bookplate, the character on the lower left of the card is surely the King of Cups from the, or a particular, tarot, although it doesn’t look like any tarot king of cups I’ve seen before. I’m not sure how or if this can help with identification, unless the initials below the king refer to an actual person connected in some way with the tarot or the initials KOC form part of the person’s name.

Last but not Least here is a mystery bookplate from My own collection

Ropes End sounds like the title of a mystery novel. I'm guessing Mr .Richardson was a reporter or a mystery writer. I came up with this information while searching Google.
"The Los Angeles Examiner paper was from 1903 to 1962 when it then became the Los Angeles Herald Examiner. In the 1940s city editor James H. Richardson encouraged and promoted his reporters to bring to light the scandals and crime in Hollywood."
Let's call this a mystery bookplate until I verify with certainty who the owner was.
You input would be appreciated.

Lew Jaffe

Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

severed heads

April 4, 2020, 5:08 am

≫ Next: Rabbits and Bookplate Therapy

≪ Previous: Comments Received Punning and Rebus Bookplates

Scroll to the bottom of this posting to see bookplates from the libraries of famous people which are currently available for sale or trade

If I heard about someone who has a collection of bookplates with severed heads I would most certainly would think he or she was a weirdo.
Having said that here is a bookplate I purchased on Ebay this week.

More Severed Heads

For quite some time I have been fascinated by bookplates with severed heads and exposed brain matter. I call it my Donovan's Brain collection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KnlJ1Lrr3IU

If you are turned off by this topic do not click onto this memorable link from the movie
Underwater awakening

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrVc_8vbZP8

If you want similar bookplates from your own collection added to this posting send jpeg scans to
Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

This bookplate was designed by Roberto Buonacconsi

I see no artist's signature on this plate but the previous owner noted that it was done by Pavel Simon

This bookplate shown above is a gift from fellow collector James Keenan.

It was etched by Matthew Collins

Okay, this is not a bookplate. It is a magazine cover which reflects my own fears about our current president - his misguided , and very muddled mindset.
As a nation we survived the civil war , two world wars and the great depression
Hopefully we will also survive the very sad turn of events we are currently dealing with.

I missed out on this one l. It sold for $15.50 on Ebay.

Mr. Lombardo's plate ( below) was designed by Remo Wolf

Don't Mess with the Montgomery clan

Aubrey Beardsley's illustration for Oscar Wilde's Salome with the head of John the Baptist was selected for her bookplate by Wylly Folk St. John

Dr.Arthur Ward Jr. was the chairman of the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Washington

Pacher, August [also Augustin] (1863-1926): Monast Schäftlariense [Schäftlarn in Upper Bavaria].

1913. 152 x 94 mm, letterpress
beautiful leaf - Witte, Bibliography 2, 264; Thieme-Becker

Some duplicates of bookplates used by famous people for possible exchange or sale.
These items are allsubject to prior sale.

Cecil B. DeMille - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Cecil_B._DeMille

Cecil Blount DeMille (/ˈsɛsəl dəˈmɪl/; August 12, 1881 – January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker. Between 1914 and 1958, he made a total of 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of the American cinema and the most commercially successful producer-director in film history. Cost $50.00 plus postage

Dennis Yeats Wheatley (8 January 1897 – 10 November 1977) was an English writer whose prolific output of thrillers and occult novels made him one of the world's best-selling authors from the 1930s through the 1960s. His Gregory Sallust series was one of the main inspirations for Ian Fleming's James Bond stories.^[

Cost $90.00 plus postage

"Rear Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd, Jr., USN (25 October 1888 – 11 March 1957) was a naval officer who specialized in feats of exploration. He was a pioneering American aviator, polar explorer, and organizer of polar logistics. Aircraft flights, in which he served as a navigator and expedition leader, crossed the Atlantic Ocean, a segment of the Arctic Ocean, and a segment of the Antarctic Plateau. Byrd claimed that his expeditions had been the first to reach the North Pole and theSouth Pole by air. His South Pole claim is generally supported by a consensus of those who have examined the evidence. Byrd was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the highest honor for heroism given by the United States."

The Byrd bookplate was originally engraved by E.D.French in 1899 for Admiral Byrd's father or grandfather.Admiral Byrd had electrotype copies made for his own use by the firm of Demsey and Carroll.

Cost $50.00 plus postage

Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, 1st Earl of Midlothian, KG, KT, PC, FRS, FBA (7 May 1847 – 21 May 1929), was a British Liberal politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from March 1894 to June 1895. Between the death of his father, in 1851, and the death of his grandfather, the 4th Earl of Rosebery, in 1868 he was known by the courtesy title of Lord Dalmeny.

cost $50.00 plus postage

↧

Rabbits and Bookplate Therapy

April 12, 2020, 8:48 am

≫ Next: Heraldry Question

≪ Previous: severed heads

When I began the bookplate therapy blog postings it was my intention to create a new posting every week.

Unfortunately, the creative juices are not flowing today so I have decided to revisit some old postings

about rabbits. They are cute and the images might make you smile

The Birth of a Rabbit Bookplate


I have always wanted a Rabbit bookplate so I asked Daniel Mitsui to

 create one for me  and track its progress from start to finish.

4/12/2020 I never got around to printing this bookplate

The original artwork is framed and hanging on mt living room wall.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notes From Lew


A group of Rabbits is known as a colony, or nest (and occasionally a warren, though this more commonly refers to where the rabbits live). A group of young rabbits with the same parentage is referred to as a litter, and a group of domestic rabbits is sometimes called a herd.
Rabbit - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RabbitIn 2011 I ran a three part series of blogs about Rabbit Bookplates


They still make me smile.


http://bookplatejunkie.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-herd-of-rabbits-part-one.html


http://bookplatejunkie.blogspot.com/2012/10/a-herd-of-rabbits-part-2.html

http://bookplatejunkie.blogspot.com/2012/11/a-herd-of-rabbits-part-three.html
5/18/2017

Rabbit Owner Nancy McClelland sent this additional information.

Cool.  I was told that a conglomeration of bunnies like the "Rabbit Island" pic can be called a Fluffle--sounded strange but appropriate to me.
Here are a few recent additions to my rabbit collection.

If you would like your rabbit bookplate added to this posting

send a scan to

Bookplatemaven@hotmail.com

↧

Heraldry Question

April 13, 2020, 5:15 pm

≫ Next: The Royal Moel and Mighty Mouse

≪ Previous: Rabbits and Bookplate Therapy

Dear Lew Jaffe,

My nephew, suggested that I get in touch with you. He says you may be one of the few people in the world able to answer my questions on a particular book plate.

The book plate in question is the personal book plate of Bishop Philip R. McDevitt when he was Bishop of Harrisburg.

Note From Lew
I am always pleased to assist readers .Unfortunately, heraldry is not one of my strengths
Perhaps one of you can assist Dr. Rempe.
Please respond directly to him.
His email is rhrempe@comcast.net

BOOK PLATE

EXPLANATION OF BOOK PLATE

The pioneer Conestoga wagon moving up-state through

the diocese of Harrisburg into the wilderness, the modest

school, and the more becoming house of prayer that grad-

ually followed, adumbrate and symbolize the historical,

scholastic, and church leanings and tastes in books and

reading which a Bishop should manifest.

The quotation is from the beloved Philobiblon, chapter XV

by Richard Aungerville (Richard de Bury): “You, O

Books are golden vessels of the temple, the arms of the

clerical militia with which the missels of the most wicked

are destroyed: fruitfull olives, vines of Engaddi, fig trees

knowing no sterility: burning lamps to be ever held in the

hand.”

The lamps that are kept burning suggest the “aptate

lampades” of the Catholic Girls’ High School, Philadelphia.

I was a member of the faculty of Bishop McDevitt High School, Harrisburg, PA for some 44 years and never realized that the shield shown on the book plate was the official seal of the high school, when it was Harrisburg Catholic High School and when it was re-named as Bishop McDevitt High School. Said shield is NOT taken from Bishop Philip's episcopal arms, but seems to be a portion (about one-third of the bottom part) taken from his book plate:

TAKEN FROM FROM THE PERSONAL BOOK PLATE:

THE SCHOOL SEAL:

THE EPISCOPAL ARMS OF BISHOP PHILIP R. MCDEVITT, AS BISHOP OF HARRISBURG:

I seek the answers to many questions , especially the following questions:

1. Who do you think may be the artist or etcher for the bishop's book plate? Could it have been Pierre de Chaignon la Rose? (la Rose is most probably the originator of the episcopal and Diocesan arms).

2. Do you know what the bishop used as his symbolism for his book plate?

3. Why did he use part of his book plate for the seal of the high school which would later bear his name?

Thank you for any help,

I remain,

Sincerely yours,

Robert H. Rempe, Ph. D.

↧

The Royal Moel and Mighty Mouse

June 3, 2020, 8:52 am

≫ Next: Weekend in New York City

≪ Previous: Heraldry Question

Staying at home is a pain the ass but it does have some rewards.
I dig deeper on Ebay America ,Ebay U.K. and Ebay Germany
It is an investment in time which sometimes pays off.
Here is something that pleases and amuses me.

If your eye sight is excellent you might see some Hebrew script in the center of the bookplate.
Frankly I do not know how I spotted it. My eyesight is not so good.
Here is a better scan.

I Googled the owner Jacob Snowman M.D.and found this:

"Jacob Snowman (24 November 1871 – 28 February 1959)^[1] was a British medical doctor and mohel, notable for having circumcised Charles, Prince of Wales in December 1948, and possibly other members of the British nobility and Royal Family.

Snowman was the son of Abraham Snowman (1849–1918), a picture dealer, and his wife Rachel, both of whom were born in Poland. He was the older brother to both painter Isaac Snowman (1873-1947) and jeweler Emanuel Snowman (1886-1970), who married into the prominent Wartski family of jewelers and became the company chairman. Wartski has enjoyed generations of Royal patronage, supplying the Welsh gold wedding bands for Charles and the former Camilla Parker-Bowles, as well as the bands worn by Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and the former Kate Middleton.^[4]

John Cozijn and Robert Darby, who is an historian of the British circumcision movement, have suggested that the British Royal Family invited Rabbi Snowman ("rabbi" is an honorific commonly afforded to mohels) to circumcise the infant Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace most likely because of his extensive experience with circumcision, and perhaps because non-Jewish family physicians were deemed less familiar or adept with the procedure (which was widely performed on British middle- and upper-class male infants from the 1890s through the 1940s).^[Darby and Cozijn have cast doubt on claims, arising in the 1990s and widely reported after the birth of Prince George of Cambridge in 2013, that a Royal Family "circumcision tradition" extends back to Queen Victoria's era, or even to George I in the early 18th century,^[2]^[6] grounded in secretive Davidic or British Israelist religious tradition.^[3] It is unknown whether this putative "circumcision tradition" was continued with the birth of William in 1982, as Diana, Princess of Wales is believed to have disapproved of it.^[2]^[6]

Snowman wrote specialist articles and at least four books, including Jewish Law and Sanitary Science (1896),[1] Clinical Surgical Diagnosis (Second English Edition, 1917),[2] Lenzmann's Manual of Emergencies, Medical, Surgical and Obstetric: their Pathology, Diagnosis and Treatment (1919, based upon Emergencies in Medical Practice by Richard Lenzmann [de]), a revised Manual of Emergencies, Medical, Surgical, and Obstetric (1926),[4] A Short History of Talmudic Medicine (with thirteen editions between 1935 and 1974), and The Surgery of Ritual Circumcision (1904). The latter book was published in at least three distinct editions, the last appearing posthumously in 1962 under the co-authorship of his son Leonard Snowman (1900-1976)."

I collect Judaica bookplates and ephemera but I am illiterate so I often seek help from friends

I contacted Israeli Mizrahi my prime source for Judaica bookplates and got this response.

Hi Lew

it is actually a verse from Ecclesiastes שמר רוח לא יזרע

"Whoever watches the wind will not plant"

          Mizrahi Book Store
             3114 Quentin Rd
             Brooklyn NY 11234
             347-492-6508

antique, used, rare &

out of print Jewish Books

http://judaicaused.com/

In a follow up he sent this message

Hi Lew

Just postulating, but it is likely that the verse alludes to his profession:

the full Hebrew verse is שמר רוח לא יזרע וראה בעבים לא יקצור

the word יזרע is the same word used to denote offspring and יקצור can also mean to snip or cut, being the act of circumcising.

Here is another recent Ebay find:

Terry was raised in San Francisco and in 1904 he began working as a news photographer and began to draw cartoons for newspapers. He contributed, along with his brother, John, to a weekly comic strip about a dog titled "Alonzo" for the San Francisco Call. He later transferred to the New York Press, a newspaper in New York City.

In 1914, Terry became interested in animation after seeing Winsor McCay's Gertie the Dinosaur. While still working for the newspaper, he made his first film, Little Herman, which he completed and sold to the Thanhouser film company of New Rochelle, New York in 1915.^{[citation needed]}

Later that year, he completed his second film, Down on the Phoney Farm. There is a story, perhaps apocryphal, that Terry attempted to sell his cartoon to a producer who made a small offer for the film. When Terry told him that the offer was less than his production costs, the producer supposedly replied, "I'd had paid more if you hadn't put those pictures on there!"^[

J. R. Bray Studios

In 1916, he began working at Bray Productions, directing and producing a series of eleven Farmer Al Falfa films.^[Before the end of the year, Terry left Bray, taking the rights to Farmer Al Falfa with him.

Paul Terry Productions

In 1917, Terry formed his own production company, "Paul Terry Productions" and produced nine more animated films, including one Farmer Al Falfa film. Terry closed his studio to join the United States Army and fought in World War I.^{[citation needed]}

Fables Pictures

In 1920, Terry entered into a partnership with Amadee J. Van Beuren, and founded Fables Pictures. During this time, he began producing a series of Aesop's Film Fables as well as new Farmer Al Falfa films under that banner. Terry experimented with the sound process in a Fable Cartoon called Dinner Time after pressure from Van Beuren, released in September 1928, two months before Walt Disney's Steamboat Willie was released in November 1928.^[

Terry's partnership with Van Beuren lasted until 1929, when Terry and Van Beuren disagreed over the switch to producing films with sound. Terry started up the Terrytoons studio in the "K" Building in downtown New Rochelle, New York, where the Thanhouser film company, purchasers of Terry's first films, was also located. Van Beuren retained "Fables Pictures" and renamed it "Van Beuren Studios".^{[citation needed]}

Terrytoons

Terry's Terrytoons produced a large number of animated films, including Gandy Goose, Mighty Mouse, Heckle and Jeckle, and many other lesser-known characters.^[Theatrical distribution was at first through Educational Pictures and then, after it was acquired in 1937, through 20th Century Fox. One of his works produced during this time, called The Three Bears, gained internet fame almost 70 years later when one of its scenes became an Internet meme.

Terry was quick to adopt techniques that simplified the animation process, but he resisted "improvements" that complicated production. He was one of the first to make use of "cel animation", including animation of separate body parts. His studio was slow to switch to synchronized sound tracks and to color. He managed to keep his studio profitable while others went out of business. Terry was once quoted as saying, "Disney is the Tiffany of animation. I'm the Woolworth."^[

↧

Weekend in New York City

April 15, 2019, 11:08 am

≫ Next: Article 12

≪ Previous: The Royal Moel and Mighty Mouse

Bookplate of famous book designer Margaret Neilson Armstrong. Dated 1903

Margaret Neilson Armstrong was born on September 24, 1867, in New York City , the daughter of American diplomat and stained glass artist Maitland Armstrong and his wife Helen, who was a descendant of Peter Stuyvesant and a niece of Hamilton Fish . [1] [2] Her six siblings included Helen Maitland Armstrong (1869-1948), who followed in her father's footsteps to become a stained glass artist, and Hamilton Fish Armstrong , a magazine editor.

She began her career as a designer in the 1880s, working initially for A.C. McClurg and later for other publishers as well. [3] She designed more than 270 book covers and book bindings, about half of which were for Scribner's . [4] She worked in the Art Nouveau style and favored plant-related motifs, bold colors, gold stamping, and often slightly asymmetrical designs--an unusual combination that helped to distinguish her among her peers. [1] [3] Authors for whom she designed several covers include Frances Hodgson Burnett , Florence L. Barclay , George Washington Cable , Charles Dickens , Paul Laurence Dunbar , Robert Louis Stevenson , Henry van Dyke , and Myrtle Reed . [3] She has been called "the most productive and accomplished American book designer of the 1890s and early 1900s." - fro m Wikipedia

↧

Article 12

September 18, 2019, 9:37 am

≫ Next: Recent Purchases

≪ Previous: Weekend in New York City

bookplate.org

Wed 9/18/2019 11:31 AM

You;

LEW JAFFE

G'DAY LEW,

NEXT TO THUMBNAIL OF COVER & SPECS, THE TEXT BELOW WILL FOLLOW. You might suggest to your tribe of followers that they purchase your new book through the ASBC&D on Amazon Smile (link provided below). They will pay no more for any Amazon products, but Amazon makes a small donation to the Society. If you sell a million copies (and I hope you do), Amazon’s small donation could make a difference.

Here is a link to the book page on the Princeton Architectural Press website: http://www.papress.com/html/product.details.dna?isbn=9781616898632

MY BEST!!

James P. Keenan

American Society of Bookplate
Collectors & Designers

Post Office Box 14964

Tucson, Arizona USA 85732-4964

Please visit us: www.bookplate.org

Advancing the interest in "ex libris" art since 1922!!

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/bookplate.org

LINKED-IN: www.linkedin.com/in/bookplateorg

TWITTER: www.twitter.com/bookplates

↧

Recent Purchases

October 28, 2019, 9:00 am

≫ Next: Article 0

≪ Previous: Article 12

"Eva Roberts was born in 1865 in Washington D.C. to James Roberts. She was first married to a Cromwell but he then died. While on a cruise she met Edward Stotesbury and they soon married. Edward Townsend Stotesbury was the head "the resident senior partner" of Philadelphia's most, famous and prestigious, banking house, Drexel & Company. He was also senior partner of J.P. Morgan & Company in New York. Stotesbury, the very model of success his income for 1919 was $5,585,000, and he was known to be "the richest man at Morgan's" by 1927 when his wealth reached $100,000,000. One may question the quality of his intelligence, he never read a book, but as has been noted, he had a remarkably keen mind for the complexities of finance. Together they built three magnificent homes A country manor in suburban Philadelphia named "Whitemarsh Hall", a home in Bar Harbor named "Wingwood"and "El Mirasol" (The Sunflower) in Palm Beach, where Eva entertained in the style of her mentor, Mrs. Astor. Her husband's birthday parties at the Addison Mizner-designed estate were especially memorable, with the guest list often topping out at 1,200 and featuring her husband, who had been a drummer boy in the Civil War, playing the drums and singing.Stotesbury died at eighty-nine on May 21, 1938. Wall Street insiders as early as 1927 had known him to be worth $100,000,000. Stotesbury was spending $1,000,000 a year to maintain Whitemarsh Hall. (In the opinion of Augusta Owen Patterson of Town & Country, who wrote with authority on such matters, Whitemarsh Hall may have been the best-maintained estate in both America and Europe. At one time, Marcel Deschamps, Greber's assistant supervised the daily work of seventy gardeners there.The mosaic is confusing. Stotesbury withdrew $55,000,000 from his account at Morgan's between 1933 and his death – a rate of withdrawal of more than $10,000,000 a year. His stepson, James H.R. Cromwell, who was then married to Doris Duke, had become a devoted New Dealer. One day in 1936 Stotesbury told him, "It's a good thing you married the richest girl in the world because you will get very little from me. I made my fortune and I am going to squander it myself; not your friend Roosevelt."

But where did the money go? What did he squander in on at so incredible a rate?

Two years after his death, a probate inventory revealed the estimated net value of his estate to have been $4,000,000. Stotesbury, had he lived another two years, would have been broke with three unmarketable palaces on his hands. He had, in fact, been on a financial suicide course.

He left Eva the lifetime use of Whitemarsh Hall, but the total income he provided for her from an estate trust was only about one-quarter of what it would cost to run the palace. She immediately moved out and sadly dismissed her staff of forty, most of whom had followed her through the seasons from palace to palace for almost two decades. Fiske Kimball watched angrily as Eva, trying to sell the famous Stotesbury collection of English Portraits and the fine furniture, realized little more than ten cents on the dollar. Since she had been offered a petty sum for her famous Art collection, Eva donated it all to a museum. From the sale of the estates and their contents plus the sale of a substantial part of her famous jewelry collection, Eva received enough to live quite comfortably and was even able to still keep "El Mirasol".

↧