This lovely little pocket edition of The Emblems and Poetry of Flowers was published by Thomas Nelson and Sons in 1863. So the book is from the earlier part of the Victorian era.
It's bound in blue cloth with pretty blind stamped decoration to the boards and gilt detail to the front board and spine. All edges gilt. It's in good condition but there is wear to the corners and minor marks and rubbing to the boards. The spine is more rubbed, with dulling to the gilt and crushing to the spine ends which has caused minor splitting in the cloth. There is shelf wear to the board edges and one page segment from the text block sticks out from the edge of the text block.
Inside, the hinges are cracked and the binding feels a little shaky. The front free endpaper has been removed. There is a stunning, illuminated frontispiece. The pages show age toning throughout, with sporadic foxing and marking. There are some cracks to the gutter throughout but no loose pages.
Dimensions approximately 12.5cm x 8.5cm x 2cm.
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).