Moby Dick; Or the Whale
- Hardcover
- San Francisco: Arion Press, 1979
San Francisco: Arion Press, 1979. Hardcover. Fine. Hardcover. One of 265 copies of which 250 copies were for sale. However, this spectacular copy is one of only five specially bound by the press in luxurious white leather. The owner of the press, Andrew Hoyem kept one copy and this copy was owned by a private collector. The whereabouts of the other three copies are unknown, and this special edition has never appeared on the market or at auction. This book has been described by William Everson as "a feat of craftsmanship unexcelled in modern printing," and named by the Grolier Club as one of the 100 most beautiful books of the twentieth century.
According to the 24 page prospectus for the book, this was the sixth publication issued by the press, which is described by them as "one of the most elaborate printing ventures ever to be undertaken by an American press, and nothing will be spared in the effort to make it the finest of books." There is a several page description of the making of this magnificent edition. They write: "Despite many editions -perhaps because of its length - it has not been accorded the full typographical treatment that a classic of its stature deserves"....in the early days of [the press] they considered the possibility of their printing a handset folio Moby Dick. It took ten years from the early discussions for the press to secure the capital for this long-planned venture. They go on to explain in detail the type and paper selection, followed by a section on the illustrations by the renowned artist Barry Moser of the Pennyroyal Press. It was decided from the inception of the project that there would be no dramatic or interpretive scenes that would imposed on the reader's imagination. Instead, the text would be interspersed with informative depictions of subjects mentioned by Melville.
It took 14 months to print this folio copy of Moby Dick. Bound in full white leather with the illustrated image of a whale debossed on the front cover and titling to the spine. With beautiful blue endpapers. The text was set by hand in Goudy Modern, with initial letters printed in blue at the start of each of the 135 chapters in Leviathan Capitals, a special alphabet designed for the purpose by Charles Bigelow & Kris Holmes. Printed on Barcham Green's handmade paper, which is watermarked with the outline of a whale. Very light occasional foxing to fore-edges, not affecting the text pages. Housed in a custom box covered with gray cloth bearing a title label printed on the same white leather used on the special binding. Accompanied by the prospectus. In fine condition. Measures 10 x 15 x 3 inches. 577 pages. PRI/091924.
According to the 24 page prospectus for the book, this was the sixth publication issued by the press, which is described by them as "one of the most elaborate printing ventures ever to be undertaken by an American press, and nothing will be spared in the effort to make it the finest of books." There is a several page description of the making of this magnificent edition. They write: "Despite many editions -perhaps because of its length - it has not been accorded the full typographical treatment that a classic of its stature deserves"....in the early days of [the press] they considered the possibility of their printing a handset folio Moby Dick. It took ten years from the early discussions for the press to secure the capital for this long-planned venture. They go on to explain in detail the type and paper selection, followed by a section on the illustrations by the renowned artist Barry Moser of the Pennyroyal Press. It was decided from the inception of the project that there would be no dramatic or interpretive scenes that would imposed on the reader's imagination. Instead, the text would be interspersed with informative depictions of subjects mentioned by Melville.
It took 14 months to print this folio copy of Moby Dick. Bound in full white leather with the illustrated image of a whale debossed on the front cover and titling to the spine. With beautiful blue endpapers. The text was set by hand in Goudy Modern, with initial letters printed in blue at the start of each of the 135 chapters in Leviathan Capitals, a special alphabet designed for the purpose by Charles Bigelow & Kris Holmes. Printed on Barcham Green's handmade paper, which is watermarked with the outline of a whale. Very light occasional foxing to fore-edges, not affecting the text pages. Housed in a custom box covered with gray cloth bearing a title label printed on the same white leather used on the special binding. Accompanied by the prospectus. In fine condition. Measures 10 x 15 x 3 inches. 577 pages. PRI/091924.