Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, The by DICKENS, Charles; DICKENS, Charles; SAMBLANX, binder

London: Chapman and Hall, 1837. Charles Dickens Pickwick Papers in a Superb Art Nouveau Binding by Charles de Samblanx

DICKENS, Charles. The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club. With Forty-Three Illustrations, by R. Seymour and Phiz. London: Chapman and Hall, 1837.

First edition in book form. A tall early issue with the frontispiece and the vignette title-page in first state and the errata uncorrected.

Octavo (8 11/16 x 5 3/8 inches; 221 x 137 mm.). [i-v], vi, [vii], viii-ix, [x-xi], xii-xiv, [xv] Directions to the binder, [xvi] errata, [1]-609, [610]. Forty-three inserted engraved plates by Phiz and Seymour, including the second state of most of the Seymour plates, the Phiz replacement plates for the Buss plates (with captions instead of page numbers below images), and mixed early states of the remaining Phiz plates, all prior to Phiz's major re-engravings, with the early page numbers instead of the later captions and imprints below the images, including simultaneous steels of the frontispiece and vignette title. The errata is uncorrected, however it has been corrected in ink in an early hand. The plate facing page 453 with a neatly repaired marginal tear not affecting image. A few plates with marginal browning but far cleaner than is usually seen.

Elaborately bound ca. 1910 by Ch. De Samblanx (stamp-signed in gilt at foot of spine). Full navy blue calf, covers bordered in gilt and elaborately decorated in gilt and blind, smooth spine similarly decorated in gilt and blind and lettered in gilt, decorative gilt board edges and turn-ins, marbled end-papers, tope edge gilt, others uncut. A very fine and attractive binding. With the armorial bookplate of Robert & Jeanne Percheron on front blank leaf.

Charles de Samblanx (1855-1943). The Belgian Belle Époque master, Ch. De Samblanx began his binding career at the age of eleven, as an apprentice to Coppens. He eventually established his own firm (though from 1889-1909 his gilder Jacques Weckesser, his cousin by marriage was in partnership with him). His binding career extended over several decades, and he worked in a variety of period styles, sensitively reproducing the bindings of past centuries. His work, often involving great complexity of design, is invariably executed with the highest degree of skill.