This two volume set of the Poems of William Cowper was published in 1814 by William Lewis and Co. So the books are from the Georgian era. They are bound in half calf leather, with marbled paper boards. The spines feature five raised bands and the text block edges are marbled.
It's interesting to note that the spines have been mislabeled - Volume Two has been labelled as Volume One and vice versa.
The books are in good condition for their age but there is significant wear to the leather, with chips and loss to the surface of the leather. The corners are worn through to the board beneath, and there is peeling to the paper at the board edges. The boards are marked and rubbed, with some loss to the paper. The spines are faded, and as mentioned above, there is significant wear and scuffing to the leather with some loss to the surface of the leather.
Inside, the pages show age toning and foxing throughout, with occasional marking. There is slight cracking to the front hinge of one volume.
Both volumes have beautiful black and white illustrations plates which add to the charm of this 210 year old set!
Dimensions of each volume approximately 21.8cm x 14cm x 2.5cm.
The books 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 biodegradable and the clear bubble wrap is 100% recyclable. I also reuse boxes when I feel it's appropriate (if the boxes are sturdy enough).