EXTREMELY RARE Original Woodcut print Alice n Wonderland Tenniel Tweedle Dee Dum

Description: Extremely Rare Proof of 250 prints of the Original Wood BlocksLimited Edition from Rocket Press Sir John Tenniel’s Illustrations of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland sequelThrough the Looking Glass and what Alice Found There Chapter IV Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee"They were standing under a tree, each with an arm round the others' neck..." From the 1988 Rocket Press proof run from the original wood blocks! One generation better image than in any copy of Alice in Wonderland / Through the Looking Glass you have seen - just look at the detail! 250 sets of the illustrations were printed, and to the absolute best of my knowledge, only one set of the illustrations was broken up to sell individually. I have never seen another of these on the market, for any price, This auction is for one copy of the Rocket Press print of Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee as Alice in Wonderland first meets them. Signed and dated by Jonathan Stephenson, embossed with the marks of both Rocket Press and Macmillan Publishers, London. The story of the prints: When Lewis Carroll decided to publish Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, he secured the talents of Sir John Tenniel to provide its iconic illustrations. Tenniel’s drawings were made into wood engraved blocks by the foremost commercial engravers of the Victorian age, George and Edward Dalziel. Wood block engravings were not considered suitable for repeated use, so the engravings were then electrotyped and used to print. The electros wore out after several thousand printings, after which they were melted down and recast. No complete edition of all 92 illustrations was ever printed directly from the original wood blocks. After Carroll’s death, the woodblocks were handed over by his estate to Macmillan Publishers. In 1932, they were displayed at the Lewis Carroll Centenary exhibition in London, after which they were thought to have been moved to a museum or library. 91 of the 92 the original wood engraved blocks were discovered in 1985 in deed boxes belonging to Macmillan in the National Westminster Bank in London, stored there in almost perfect condition. In 1988, it was decided to take one unique printing from the original wood blocks, which had never been printed from directly, so that scholars and collectors could see these famous illustrations printed with the detail and quality which John Tenniel, Lewis Carroll, and George and Edward Dalziel intended. Jonathan Stephenson at the Rocket Press was awarded the prestigious job of printing a limited edition of 250 copies of the 92 prints. No further sets will be printed. Rocket Press designed the edition, and printed the engravings using a hand-fed precision proofing press. Over two years of detailed, special preparation took place before printing; even the shade of the paper, for the prints and study, was chosen to match that used in the original edition. For the single block ("Alice and the Dodo") that was mislaid, a print was made from the electrotype. Description of the set that this print comes from: LIMITED EDITION, 250 SETS. Sir John Tenniel's Illustrations to Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass. Ninety-one prints from the original wood blocks engraved by the Brothers Dalziel from drawings by Sir John Tenniel & one print from an electrotype. 92 prints in 2 sets of 42 and 50 prints. 9.5" x 7" (240 x 175 mm, sheet size). Printed by Jonathan Stephenson at the Rocket Press on Zerkall halbmatt mouldmade for Macmillan Publishers, London. 1988. Please see the pictures for full details as they are of exact print you will be receiving If there is a shadow on the bottom left of any of the images - that would be my left wrist holding the camera. I momentarily forgot that glass reflects. Also, the framer attached the outermost fold of the protective duvet for the proof to the back of the frame. It shows the title of the piece and is also embossed with the Rocket Press seal. However, there is some cosmetic damage to the duvet, on the bottom left. Of course, this side will be hanging to the wall, but I want to give a thorough description! Smoke-free home and fast shipping! Items are always described as accurately as possible, and I will note in description and show in photos any flaws, wear, or defects that I am aware of. Enlarge the photos to see all of the details, as they are part of the description. Please email me any questions prior to bidding - I am happy to answer! Thanks so much!

Price: 576.2 USD

Location: Shelbyville, Kentucky

End Time: 2025-02-13T19:53:33.000Z

Shipping Cost: N/A USD