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1 of 253523 objects
Poems 1922
Manuscript on paper in the poet's own hand | 4.5 x 4 x 1.1 cm (book measurement (conservation)) | RCIN 1171440
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Full leather bound in blue morocco, with gold tooling.
Robert Bridges (1844-1930) was a poet, but trained and worked as a doctor until 1882, when a lung condition forced him to retire. After this he devoted himself to literary research and writing poetry. He was appointed poet laureate in 1913 and held the position until his death in 1930. He was also a member of the Order of Merit.
Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House was a gift to Queen Mary from the nation; a showcase for contemporary craft and design, it preserved for history the ideal home of the 1920s, at a scale of one foot to one inch. Princess Marie Louise, Queen Victoria’s granddaughter and Queen Mary's cousin, conceived of the idea, and through her influence many famous artists, designers, authors and craftsmen contributed to the project.
The dolls’ house library contains, alongside standard works such as four tiny Bibles, miniature atlases and a complete works of Shakespeare, over 200 diminutive editions of contemporary British literature. Princess Marie Louise personally wrote to the most famous writers of the time to ask for either an original composition or a suitable passage from work already published, transcribed by hand or submitted for professional copying. Though most are manuscript, there are a few printed works. The bindings are mostly morocco leather or vellum, some with beautifully precise gold-tooled decoration. The majority of the volumes, including this one, were bound by Sangorski & Sutcliffe, with the remaining bound by Birdsall & Son, Hatchards, A. Loosely, R. Riviere & Sons and Zaehnsdorf. Each book contains a tiny bookplate designed by E.H. Shepard, the illustrator of Winnie the Pooh.
This volume is bound in blue morocco leather with gold tooling. It contains 22 poems by Robert Bridges, some written in pencil in the poet's own hand, and others written in red and black ink by a calligrapher.Provenance
Presented to Queen Mary by Robert Bridges, c.1922.
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Creator(s)
Acquirer(s)
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Medium and techniques
Manuscript on paper in the poet's own hand
Measurements
4.5 x 4 x 1.1 cm (book measurement (conservation))
4.4 x 1.1 cm (book measurement (inventory))
Category
Alternative title(s)
Poems / by Robert Bridges