PALGRAVE, Francis Turner; The Golden Treasury 1891 | Riviere, Fine Binding.

Description and Condition

• Description
• Fine Binding | Leather. Fine binding by Riviere and Son in full green polished calf with gilt floral stamped boards and five ridged spine. Elaborate gilt dentelles and gilt all edges. Blue endpapers with gilt leaf outline design. Language: English. Size: 15.5 cm by 10 cm. Pages: 340.
• Book Condition
• Near Fine
• Light wear to corners, edges and spine ends. Very fine fly rubbed with toned spine. Tightly bound with clean intact endpapers and strong hinges. Spotting to front and rear fly pages and halt title. Previous owners name to fly page.
• Dust Jacket Condition
• No DJ

Notes

• Bookbinder
• Riviere & Son (Robert Riviere, 1808–1882).
• Robert Riviere was a preeminent British bookbinder of Huguenot descent who founded one of the most successful and prolific binderies in London’s West End. Born into an artistic family in London, he initially apprenticed as a bookseller before establishing himself in Bath in 1829. It was there that he began bookbinding in a small capacity, but finding the local market limited, he moved to London in 1840. His commitment to craftsmanship, noted for high-quality materials and exceptional delicacy in tooling, quickly earned him a reputation among elite connoisseurs. Riviere's talent led to prestigious commissions, most notably for Queen Victoria and the royal family, as well as the landmark restoration and rebinding of the Domesday Book. In 1880, he took his grandson, Percival Calkin, into partnership, and the firm was renamed Robert Riviere & Son. Following Robert’s death in 1882, the bindery continued to flourish as a leading name in the 'classic English tradition,' becoming famous for its magnificent leather and goatskin bindings with ornate gilt spines. The firm remained in operation until 1939, when it was acquired by the George Bayntun firm of Bath. Today, the Bayntun-Riviere bindery continues his legacy as the last of the great Victorian trade binderies still binding entirely by hand.
• Resume
• The Golden Treasury, first published in 1861, is arguably the most successful and influential anthology of English lyrical poetry ever assembled. This 1891 edition is part of the 'Second Series,' which expanded the collection to include poems from the generation of Victorian poets who followed the initial 1861 cutoff. The work is organized chronologically, moving from early Elizabethan lyrics to the heights of Wordsworth, Keats, and Tennyson. Palgrave’s unique and highly selective approach defined what middle-class Victorian readers considered 'great' poetry, creating a foundational text for educational curricula and personal libraries that endures to this day.
• Author
• Francis Turner Palgrave (1824–1897) was a British poet, critic, and academic known primarily as the editor of one of the most enduring anthologies in the English language. Educated at Eton and Oxford, he was a close friend of Alfred, Lord Tennyson, the Poet Laureate, whose advice heavily influenced the selection of poems for his famous treasury. Palgrave served as Professor of Poetry at Oxford University and was a man of impeccable literary taste and classical scholarship. His aim was to provide a collection of the 'best songs and lyrical poems in the English language' that met a rigorous standard of excellence. Despite criticism in his lifetime for omitting contemporary works, his meticulous curation shaped the poetic canon for over a century.

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