This stunning antique edition of British Butterflies by WS Coleman was published by Routledge, Warne and Routledge in 1860. So the book is from the earlier part of the Victorian era. It's bound in pebbled blue cloth with blind stamped detail to the boards and gilt to the spine. It's a really pretty book and in good condition. There is some dulling to the gilt on the spine, and crushing to the spine ends has caused some splitting and minor loss to the cloth. There is rubbing and splitting to the cloth at the spine edges; the corners are also worn and crushed. There is light rubbing and marking to the boards and shelf wear to the board edges.
Inside, the front hinge is cracked and there is a name written in pencil to the front free endpaper. The tissue guard for the frontispiece is missing and there is some loss to the paper of the title page ( near the gutter ). The pages show light age toning and sporadic foxing throughout. There are also cracks to the gutters in places but no loose pages. The book features stunning colour plates displaying multiple butterfly species per plate.
Dimensions approximately 17.7cm x 11.5cm x 2.3cm.
The book will arrive hand wrapped in patterned wallpaper and string.
I use a range of eco friendly, 100% recyclable jiffy bags and boxes, and whenever possible I use brown paper tape. The green bubble wrap is oxo-degradable and the clear bubble wrap is 100% recyclable. I also reuse boxes when I feel it's appropriate (if the boxes are sturdy enough).