Bookplate

Presumed First Edition, First printing thus. Bookplate. Good. Format is approximately 3.25 inches by 3.5 inches. The image is a circle with a diameter of approximately 2 inches. This bookplate does not appear to have been affixed to a book. This is a bookplate with a quotation from Moliere on the outer band ("Que Pensez--Vous de Cette comedie" [What do you think of this Comedy] Moliere. Then there is the image of an American Indian (Iroquois, Mohawk, some Eastern tribe) holding a mask or totem, and the initials B and M on either side of the Indian. The name/initials of the artist are at the bottom of the circle's outer ring and in script below the circle. A bookplate (or book-plate, as it was commonly styled until the early 20th century), also known as ex-libris (Latin for "from the books (or library) of"), is usually a small printed or decorative label pasted into a book, often on the front endpaper, to indicate ownership. Simple typographical bookplates are termed "book labels". Bookplates typically bear a name, motto, device (coat-of-arms), crest, badge, or another motif that relates to the owner of the book, or is requested by the owner from an artist or designer. The name of the owner usually follows an inscription such as "from the books of..." or "from the library of...", or in Latin, "ex libris". Bookplates are important evidence for the provenance of books. In the United States, bookplates replaced book rhymes after the 19th century. The earliest known marks of ownership of books or documents date from the reign of Amenophis III in Egypt (1391 1353 BCE). However, in their modern form, they evolved from simple inscriptions in books which were common in Europe in the Middle Ages, when various other forms of "librarianship" became widespread (such as the use of class-marks, call-numbers, or shelfmarks).