5RR Christina G. Rossetti, London, 1897. ’Goblin Market’ Fore-Edge Painting
Notes
Christina Rossetti (1830-1894) was a Victorian poet known for her deeply emotional and often spiritual verse. Born into a literary and artistic family, she was the sister of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, a founder of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. Her poetry, influenced by themes of faith, love, loss, and female identity, ranged from the fantastical narrative of Goblin Market to the introspective and devotional Sing-Song and A Pageant and Other Poems. Though she was considered for the position of Poet Laureate after Tennyson, her deeply religious convictions and declining health limited her later work. Today, she remains one of the most important female poets of the 19th century, admired for her lyrical intensity and nuanced exploration of human experience.
Description
Bound in red Morocco leather with blind stamped panel, decorated gilt on boards and turn-ins; spine compartments with raised bands, decorated gilt, with gilt title. Gilt edges with ‘Goblin Market’ fore-edge painting concealed beneath the gilding, also the first poem in the book. the scene shows Laura surrounded by Goblins and Elves offering her magic fruit from their baskets and tempting her with delicious offerings. A miniature masterpiece with extreme detail. Illustrated with four wood engraved plates, after Dante Gabriel Rossetti including frontispiece. Slight signs of wear to the extremities but otherwise a fine copy.
