***SPECTACULARLY BOUND IN FINE FULL LEATHER BY WORLD RENOWNED BINDER, BAYNTUN-RIVIERE***

Marie Antoinette by Stefan Zweig

Published in 1933 in London by Cassell and Company. First British edition. 461 [pp]; Chronological Table [4]; Postface [7]; Index [4] . Octavo. 9” x 5.5” One tissue-guarded frontispiece and nine full-page illustrations.

Rebound by legendary Bayntun of Bath, England’s Bayntun-Riviere Bindery in exquisitely fine, purple, full calf leather with two-line gilt panel borders (double fillets). Five gilded lightly raised spine bands with full gilt compartments - tooled gilt borders and decoration, including a portrait of Marie Antoinette, in four compartments. One red and one green gilt-lettered leather spine label in compartments two and four, respectively. All edges gilded by hand in 23.5-karat gold leaf. The head and tail of book with gilt scrollwork and interior leather borders tooled with decorative gilt floral scrollwork (gilt inner dentelles). Handmade marbled endpapers. A luxurious copy for collectors of fine books! Bayntun binder mark on front flyleaf.

OVERALL CONDITION: VERY GOOD+

This is a first British edition of Stefan Zweig’s critically acclaimed “Marie Antoinette: The Portrait of an Average Woman” published by Cassell and Company, London in 1933. From the publisher, “Stefan Zweig based his biography of Marie Antoinette, who became the Queen of France at the age of fifteen, on the correspondence between her and her mother, and her great love the Count Axel von Fersen. Zweig analyzes the chemistry of a woman's soul from her intimate pleasures to her public suffering as a Queen under the weight of misfortune and history. Zweig describes Marie Antoinette in the King's bedroom, in the enchanted and extravagant world of the Trianon, and with her children. And in his account of 'The Revolution', he describes her resolve during the failed escape to Varennes, her imprisonment in the Conciergerie and her final tragic destiny under the swift blade of the guillotine. Zweig's account has been the definitive biography of Marie Antoinette since its publication.” The following are some of the reviews:

'Stefan Zweig's remarkable study of Marie Antoinette; A full-bodied biography which bids fair to be the definitive life of that tragic queen' - The New York Times

'The most influential biography of Marie Antoinette' - The Guardian

Stefan Zweig (/zwaɪɡ, swaɪɡ/;[1] German: [ˈʃtɛ.fan t͡svaɪ̯k] 28 November 1881 – 22 February 1942) was an Austrian writer. At the height of his literary career, in the 1920s and 1930s, he was one of the most widely translated and popular writers in the world.

ABOUT THE BINDER:

George Bayntun is one of the world's most famous bookshops and home to the Bayntun-Riviere bindery, which dates back to 1829. Robert Riviere founded his bindery in Bath in 1829, and George Bayntun followed his example in 1894. Bayntun-Riviere is now the last of the great Victorian trade binderies still in family ownership and prides itself on continuing to bind entirely by hand.

The bindery has the largest collection of hand tools and blocks in the world (over 15,000) - some dating back to the eighteenth century and all still usable. They insist on binding in the traditional manner, using the highest quality materials. The page edges of all of their bindings are gilded by hand using 23.5 karat gold and the bindery has a range of over 40 colours of premium quality goat and calf skins, and a vast selection of hand-marbled papers.

***As one could imagine, having one’s books bound or rebound by Bayntun-Riviere is very expensive but results in the highest quality finish and craftsmanship in the world of modern book collecting.***

CONDITION DETAILS:

The book is in VERY GOOD+ antiquarian condition - light rubbing to spine tips, board edges, corners and panels. Thin line of paint on lower right front cover corner area. Some gilt blemishes. Square spine, firm hinges and joints and tight, clean pages. Just a hint of foxing in a few of the leaves in both the beginning and end of book. No writing. Slightly toned half-title page. Decorative former owner bookplate on front pastedown. Collated and complete.

A lovely 1st edition in exquisite purple full-calf.

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