Item Details
Æthelwold Etc:. Twenty-six Letters Inspired by Other Letters and Non-Letters and Little Bits of Poetry.
New York: Editions Schlechter, 2013. Limited Edition. Original Wraps. An outstanding facsimile of the original, overseen by noted photographer Annie Schlechter and executed by 42-Line. Includes the content of both the "standard" and "deluxe" editions. Of the original: "Brilliantly conceived and perfectly executed. The masterpiece of Maret's generation." (Noted Special Collections librarian, when asked to describe Ætherwold). On the short-list of the most important fine press books of the modern age, marking Maret's emergence as the preeminent type designer of his age. "The 26 letters in Æthelwold Etc. are born partly of the belief that the communal form of the alphabet is as responsible for a letter's legibility as that letter's specific form. If, for instance, you were to come upon a basket weave pattern in the Duomo floor, your mind would not necessarily view it as an O even though it is circular. If you came upon the same basket weave pattern printed in a book, preceding a P and following an N, there would be no doubt that it was an O." (Russell Maret) "The standard edition is housed in a cloth covered drop-spine box. There are forty-four copies numbered 1-44. The deluxe edition is housed in a quarter leather and cloth covered drop-spine box. It is accompanied by a suite of unbound prints of the twenty-six letters and a diary recording every ink color used to print them. There are eleven copies numbered I-XI." (colophon) "Printed from 163 plates in 105 different colors on a hand-fed Vandercook Universal III proof press" (colophon). Fine. Tight, bright, and unmarred. Soft white wraps. fo. np. Illus. (color plates). Limited edition of 750. Item #8349
Price: $75.00