Fantastic Find in the Lower Level
Ron Sims, MA, Catalog and Special Collections Librarian, rnsms@northwestern.edu
The gilded pages of Rush's
The Philosophy of the Human Voice
During the course of weeding the pre-1950 Dewey Decimal medical collection in the lower level stacks, a fantastic discovery was made! A wonderful text entitled The philosophy of the human voice: embracing the physiological history, together with a system of principles by which criticism in the art of elocution may be rendered intelligible, and instruction, definite and comprehensive, to which is add a brief analysis of song and recitative by James Rush, M.D., published in Philadelphia by J. Maxwell in 1827, was discovered and has now been relocated to Special Collections, Rare Medical Books, 612.78 R89 1827. The length of the title, while impressive, is not the feature that gives this text its historical significance. What makes this volume such an exciting find is a fore-edge painting hidden under its gilded pages!
Fore-edge painting, a curious art form cultivated by the British, which began in the middle of the 17th century and continued until the end of the 19th century, is a type of book decoration that has delicate watercolors painted on the edges of the leaves of a volume, concealed under gilding. The paintings usually adorn poetry books.
An artist hired by the bookbinder would fan out the pages of a book, holding them in that position with a vise, and paint the image or scene. Once it was dry, the artist removed the book from the vise and gold leaf was applied to the edge to hide the painting. When the fore-edge of the book is slightly fanned, the image appears; when the book is closed, the painting remains hidden.
A Curious History
C. Helard's bookplate
of Viscount Lascelles
In addition to the fore-edge painting the book contains the bookplate of Henry George Charles, Viscount Lascelles, who later became the 6th Earl of Harewood. He was born on September 9, 1882 in London and in 1922 married Victoria Alexandra Alice Mary Windsor, Royal Princess of the United Kingdom and the only daughter of King George V. The bookplate is a marvelous black and white rendering with coats of arms, a bear and unicorn, the Viscount's "K.G." (Knight Companion of the Order of the Garter) and "D. S. O." (Companion of the Distinguished Service Order) with the Latin motto: Ung roy, ung foy, ung loy (One God, one faith, one law, also translated as, One king, one faith, one law) designed by C. Helard, 1902.
Miss Helard, whose real name was Mary Ellen Blanche Crookes (b.1870, fl. 1895-1932), was the wife of Arthur Fox-Davies, an important herald and heraldry expert of the time. Following the fashion of the day, she engraved a large number of fine heraldic ex-libris ( a small printed graphic work of art, indicating the name of the owner of a book and pasted into a volume ) for British royalty and other dignitaries.
The Rt. Honorable
George Canning's name
on the book's spine
The full leather binding with gold tooling lends more romance to the volume, as the name The Rt. Honorable George Canning has been tooled on the spine below the short title, The philosophy of the human voice. Who was George Canning? He was, more than likely, the first owner of the book; however, the plot thickens. George Canning became Prime Minister in April 1827 and died in office on August 8, 1827 (shortest term on record, 119 days!) Canning was a Tory (Conservative) who was famous for his flowery orations and extended speeches, and was even nicknamed "The Cicero of the British Senate" and "The Zany of Debate." He is noted for his opposition to the French Revolution and Napoleon I and his success for leading a campaign against the French occupation of South America. Whether he would have been even more successful if he had had a longer tenure as Prime Minister can only be speculated.
A U.S. Connection?
The fore-edge painting
revealed
Are there other observations concerning the book?
Library markings include a date of purchase by the then Church Library dated September 8, 1934, from a London bookseller, Export Books and a purchase price of five pounds Sterling (about USD 25). No mention of the painting in the accession catalog; also, the author was the son of the only physician to sign the U.S. Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Rush.
Did I mention the subject of the watercolor? Slight hues of red, white and blue are seen through the gilding on the fore-edge, when fanned, a portrait of George Washington is displayed, with an eagle holding the shield of the United States and a banner, bravely announcing "The stars of North America," with thirteen white stars above it. Was this book a gift to George Canning or a purchase by the Prime Minister? How did Viscount Lascelles acquire the book? An American imprint such as this, let alone one with the American president's likeness, would not have been readily available in London bookshops, in a country that popularized fore-edge painting. What do you think?
Phototographs by Jim Brucker, Library Assistant
