Jewelled Binding.- Sangorski (Alberto).- Keats (John) La Belle Dame sans Merci..., illuminated manuscript on vellum, magnificently bound in morocco elaborately tooled in gilt & inlaid with 137 jewels, 1928.

Jewelled Binding.- Sangorksi (Alberto, calligrapher and illuminator, 1862-32).- Keats (John) La Belle Dame sans Merci and other poems [Ode on a Grecian Urn & Ode to Psyche], illuminated manuscript in black, gold and colours on vellum, 21pp. including title, title in gold with miniature watercolour portrait of la Belle Dame within large gold initial "L" and miniature portrait of Keats initialled and dated 1928 within frame, 4 large full-page watercolours as frontispiece/titles/tail-piece (knight, Grecian urn, tail-piece of Erechtheion, Psyche with peacocks), 5 smaller watercolour illustrations in text (knight leading la Belle Dame on horseback, the Acropolis, woodland path, naked Psyche on her bed, Cupid & Psyche), text written in semi-gothic script in black ink with 14 illuminated initials and richly decorative borders in colours and gold, with colophon at end stating "...designed, written out, and illuminated by Alberto Sangorski. This manuscript will not be duplicated" and signed by him at foot, all mounted on stubs with ivory silk or tissue guards, one silk guard torn and frayed, magnificently bound in terracotta morocco elaborately tooled in gilt and inlaid with 137 jewels, by Rivière & Son, upper cover with oval panel of six white morocco Tudor roses each set with 6 small red stones (?garnets) and gilt-tooled onlaid branches & leaves in red, green & brown, around a gilt-tooled oval of green morocco surrounding a circular recessed panel of turquoise morocco mounted with entwined metal initials "JK" and studded with 79 small pearls, the central oval panel against a background of green morocco intricately tooled with gilt leaves & small white morocco flowers and small onlaid turquoise morocco hearts at corners and larger purple heart at head & foot of oval panel, all within inner border of terracotta morocco lettered in gilt with first lines of 'Endymion' by Keats "A thing of beauty is a joy for ever: Its loveliness increases/It will never pass into nothingness: But still will keep a bower quiet for us, and a sleep/ Full of sweet dreams and health and quiet breathing", and outer border of onlaid green morocco with 22 Tudor roses of white morocco set with dark blue stone at centre and interspersed with sprigs of gilt leaves, each portion divided by strip of turquoise morocco and gilt rules, lower cover with onlaid design of Grecian urn in dark blue & tan morocco and decorated in gilt within border of two strips of turquoise morocco, the inner one wider and tooled with Greek key pattern and overlaid with 14 gilt-tooled palmettes of tan morocco, spine in six compartments with five raised bands, title and author in gilt in three compartments and date at foot, the others with small panels of gilt-tooled green morocco leaves edged in turquoise, doublures of grey morocco elaborately tooled with overall pattern of flowers, lyres and other decorations within gilt-ruled border of terracotta and turquoise morocco strips, ivory watered-silk flyleaves, g.e., signed at foot of front turn-in, some very slight rubbing to lower joint at head and foot, with silk-lined black straight-grain morocco case with hinged lid and brass clasps, spine titled in gilt, slightly rubbed at edges, a few scuffs, 4to (c.315 x 260mm.), 1928.

⁂ A superb and unique work of art, indeed "a thing of beauty" and "a joy forever".

Alberto Sangorksi was the elder brother of Francis Sangorksi who established the famous bookbinding firm with partner George Sutcliffe. He worked for Sangorksi & Sutcliffe, who became known for their jewelled bindings, and also for Rivière & Son from 1910. He produced for both many such highly-decorated illuminated manuscripts, the most famous of which, "the Great Omar", was lost when the Titanic sank in 1912.