THE THOUGHTS OF THE EMPEROR M. AURELIUS ANTONINUS by (BINDINGS - ZAEHNSDORF). MARCUS AURELIUS ANTONINUS - 1862

London: Bell and Daldy, 1862. First Printing of this Translation. 171 x 108 mm. (6 3/4 x 4 1/4"). 3 p.l., [v]-lxxviii, 224 pp.Translated by George Long.
ESPECIALLY BEAUTIFUL RED MOROCCO, HANDSOMELY GILT AND INLAID, BY ZAEHNSDORF (signed on front turn-in), covers with border strip of black inlaid morocco and with very broad and intricate frame (occupying all of the board except for a small portion at the middle) composed of much strapwork in the form of inlaid black and blue-gray morocco strips from which emanate many small azured floral and foliate ornaments (the strapwork with 34 intersections or overlappings on each cover); raised bands, spine compartments outlined with inlaid black morocco and containing azured foliate cornerpieces and central element of an eight-pointed star of inlaid olive green morocco; elaborately gilt turn-ins featuring antique stippled scrolling decoration, red morocco hinges, sky blue watered silk endleaves, all edges gilt (over marbling). Historiated headpieces, foliate initials and tailpieces, the latter sometimes taking the form of simple, charming botanicals. Verso of front free endpaper with the book label (or pasted-down business card) of George A. Payne, to whom, according to the inscription, this book was presented by Miss Meta (Margaret Emily Gaskell) in 1908; front flyleaf with signature in pencil of Julia Gaskell, with a notation of page numbers of "passages marked by Miss Julia." A little foxing and the faintest browning to flyleaves, but AN EXTREMELY FINE COPY IN A LOVELY AND ANIMATED BINDING, the morocco with no perceptible wear, and the text very fresh, clean, and bright.

This copy of one of the world's great Stoic classics has at least three very appealing features: it was beautifully bound by a leading English workshop, it has a very significant provenance, and it remains in outstanding condition. The 12 books of "Meditations" of the second century Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121-80) instruct us to obey the divine law that our reason leads us to understand, to forgive injuries, to treat all humans as equals, and to wait for death without fear. The work originally appeared in print in 1550, and the first edition in English was issued in a translation by Casaubon in 1634. The translator of the present version, George Long (1800-79), was born in England and educated at Cambridge, but spent the years 1824-28 in the United States teaching Latin and Greek at the new University of Virginia, where he became a friend of Thomas Jefferson. Returning to England, he was one of the founders of the Royal Geographic Society and contributed greatly to their publications, as well as teaching classics at the Universities of London and Brighton. One of many translations of Latin authors done by Long, this particular rendering, which DNB characterizes as "admirable," was immensely popular and often reprinted, but our first edition is quite scarce. The present binding, with its rich red morocco, its animated interlacing inlays, and its turn-ins and silk endleaves done in antique French style, represents an almost irresistible combination of visual pleasures. Hungarian-born binder Joseph Zaehnsdorf (1816-86) served his apprenticeship in Stuttgart, worked at a number of European locations as a journeyman, and then settled in London, where he was hired first by Westley and then by Mackenzie before opening his own workshop in 1842. His son and namesake took over the business at age 33, when the senior Joseph died, and the firm flourished under the son's leadership, becoming a leading West End bindery. Over the years, Zaehnsdorf employed a considerable number of distinguished binders, including the Frenchman Louis Genth (who was chief finisher from 1859-84), and trained a number of others, including Roger de Coverly and Sarah Prideaux. A family-run business until 1947, the Zaehnsdorf bindery continued to produce consistently attractive, tasteful, and innovative designs executed with unfailing skill. The provenance here provides a link to an important woman novelist. Julia Gaskell (1846-1908) was the youngest daughter of Mrs. Elizabeth Gaskell, author of such popular works as "Cranford" and "North and South." An intelligent woman, patron of the arts, and philanthropist, Julia never married, but lived in the family home in Manchester with her older sister Meta (Margaret Emily) until her death. Meta gave this volume from Julia's library as a memento to George Andrew Payne (1865-1950), Mrs. Gaskell's biographer and the author of "Mrs. Gaskell and Knutsford" (the latter being the Cheshire market town that was the model for Cranford)..