[Jugendstil High Point- DELUXE EDITION: von Freyhold, Karl Hofer, etc.] Der Buntscheck. Ein Sammelbuch herzhafter Kunst fur Ohr und Auge deutscher Kinder

Koln: Schaffstein & Co, 1904. First edition. First edition. Large 4to. 55pp. Original superb color pictorial paper covered boards, black cloth spine, color pictorial endpapers. THE RARE DELUXE EDITION, Signed and Limited (Liebhaber Ausgabe), inscribed by the author, Richard Dehmel, as its limitation, on the verso of front free endsheet: "Luxus Exemplar, Nr. 133, R. Dehmel." One of the greatest of all Jugendstil illustrated works, the Deluxe edition is rarely seen, printed on thicker paper and th resultant registration and color vibrancy far exceeds that of the trade edition. "From a historical point of view, "Der Buntscheck" is perhaps the most important book of modern children's illustration" (H.A. Halbey in Doderer, Muller, p. 252). Exquisite and creative color illustrations on nearly every page, many full-page, by Konrad F.E. von Freyhold, Karl Hofer, Ernst Kreidolf, Emil Rudolf Weiss and others. From Seebass, "[Buntscheck] is possibly the most outstanding example of Jugendstil art in the history of German children's book production." Slightly browned as usual, corners slightly worn, occasional finger-stained, internal joints reinforced with wihte line stripes. One of the very rarest and most sought-after of all Jugendstil books; moreso, this limited, Deluxe Edition, signed by Richard Dehmel. In 1910, a similar copy sold at auction in Germany for the then equivalent of $7,000.