HAMPSHIRE

London: Adam and Charles Black, 1909. First Edition. With 75 exquisite colourplates reproduced from paintings by Wilfred Ball. Larg, thick 8vo, publisher's original green cloth, the upper cover lettered in gilt within gilt rules surrounding the borders and with a lovely arrangement of pink roses and leaves in the central panel, the spine gilt lettered with matching flower pattern below. xi, 316 pp, folding map,4 ads. An attractive copy in its elaborately decorated cloth binding, the textblock shaken a bit and with some occasional mild spotting, less than is typical, the cloth a little age mellowed but still very handsome. FIRST EDITION AND A CHARMING A. & C. BLACK ILLUSTRATED PUBLICATION. This book conjures up English country life and architecture perfectly. Wilfred Ball was one of the most respected Edwardian painters of landscape and marine subjects, especially in the counties of Buckinghamshire, Surrey, Norfolk, Sussex, Wiltshire, and Hampshire. He exhibited frequently at the Royal Academy. This, and another A. & C. Black title called SUSSEX, were the only two books he illustrated. They are both part of Black's "20 Shilling" series, the publisher's most lavish.