Folio Society Limited Edition - THE WILLIAM MORRIS MANUSCRIPT OF THE ODES OF HORACE

The vision behind William Morris’s entire output hinged upon a vehement aversion to what Walter Benjamin described as ‘the age of mechanical reproduction’. His illuminated manuscripts typify this belief. Beautifully calligraphed and intricately ornamented, they stood in defiant opposition to what Morris perceived to be the drab and souless fruits of modern labour. He believed in the assiduous creation of beauty, both for its own sake and as a path to wisdom; and the delicate art of illumination was, for him, a means of pursuing this ideal. 

Between 1869 and 1875, Morris produced 18 illuminated books, resurrecting a tradition that had faded with the invention of printing at the end of the 15th century. Among these were A Book of Verse and the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám and two of the greatest Latin texts: The Aeneid and The Odes of Horace. Morris included all four books of The Odes, the last of which, in its unfinished form, provides a fascinating record of his creative method.

Each of the four books of the Odes opens with a display page in a markedly different style from the rest of the book. These pages – which are in varying degrees of completion were created in collaboration with Edward Burne-Jones and Charles Fairfax Murray, and are among the most elaborate illuminations Morris ever created. Profusely decorated, they combine glistening floral patterns with images of idealised human faces and figures. The calligraphy is a version of Renaissance italic, while the floral decoration is closest to the Persian model, prefiguring the tapestry Morris would create five years later at Kelmscott Manor, and the foliated borders of the Kelmscott Press books. However, this gem-like private volume has an ethereal quality quite unlike those later creations.

The Odes consist of more than 100 short poems adapted from the lyric verse of Greek poets such as Pindar and Sappho. Their themes are diverse – from love and friendship to patriotism and religion – and they often have a strong moral vein. Alfred Tennyson described them as: ‘jewels five-words long, that on the stretched forefinger of all Time / Sparkle for ever’. Today they are widely quoted: ‘carpe diem’ (‘seize the day’) and ‘dulce et decorum est’ (‘sweet and fitting it is’) are but two famous examples.

This Folio Society edition, reproduced from the original held in the Bodleian Library Oxford, was the first facsimile of this exquisite manuscript. It is accompanied by an elegant commentary volume which contains an incisive introduction by Clive Wilmer which explores Morris’s illuminations in relation to his artistic ambitions, his politics and his personal life. It also contains a full verse translation by William Gladstone, classical scholar and one of Britain’s greatest prime ministers. Gladstone embarked on his translation at the age of 82, during his fourth term as prime minister. Published in 1894, it is almost contemporary with Morris’s work. The translation matches the Latin text line by line, making the facsimile easy to follow. Gladstone’s original preface is also included.

Production Details:

Facsimile volume

• Limited to 980 numbered copies

• Printed on Tatami paper in coloured inks with gold and silver foil by Castelli Bolis, Bergamo, Italy

• Bound in Indian smooth-grain goatskin with 5 raised bands on the spine by Smith Settle, West Yorkshire

• Gold blocked on spine, edges and doublures

• Shuffled pages

• 192 pages

• Book size: 6¾" x 5" 

Commentary volume

• Bound in Freelife Merida Forest paper

• Printed on Munken Wove

• Typeset in Poliphilus

• Frontispiece portrait

• 64 pages

• Book size: 11 x 8¾"

Solander presentation box

• Bound in buckram with a resplendent design by David Eccles

• Cloth lined recess

• Title blocked in gold foil on spine

• Size: 12½" x 9¾"

CONDITION: Both book and commentary volume appear UNREAD and in FINE condition. Internally pages are clean and bright throughout. Binding is tight and square. Solandar box is in FINE condition with very light shelf wear.  (See Photos)

Due to the weight of the book (Approx. 3 kilos when packed) postage will be via the Parcelforce express48hr service at a cost of £9.50

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