Les Ballades de Maîstre François Villon.

Hacon & Ricketts, [Eragny Press], London, 1900

The first book of ballads and rondeaus by François Villon published by the Eragny Press, and the companion volume to the ‘Autres poésies de Maîstre François Villon’. One of 222 copies on paper, from a total edition of 226.

Description: Quarter grey paper, gold stamped on upper left cover, white paper boards with repeat pattern of small five-petalled flowers printed in pink, gilt spine titling and ornamental trefoils. Octavo: 20 × 13 cm; pp. 88, [4]. Printed from ‘Vale’ type in black and red on Arnold’s unbleached hand-made paper with Vale watermark. The Eragny Press printer’s mark placed before the title-page; opening page with wood-engraved illustration ‘Dames du temps jadis’ by Lucien Pissarro, in black and white, border printed in black and red and one large initial in red; with thirty-eight initials in red.

Provenance: Small contemporary bookplate of T. A.[shley] D.[odd] [of] Godinton.

Ref.: Genz: EP6

Condition: Slight spotting to spine and a little browning to endpapers. A very good copy.

Notes: A typical feature of the Eragny Press was the reuse of decorative elements. For example, the title page of the ‘Ballades’ uses the same border decoration as the ‘Autres poésies’, but printed in different colours: green throughout in the ‘Autres poésies’, and in two colours, red and black, in the ‘Ballades’.