KIPLING, Rudyard. The Five Nations. (1903 - SECOND EDITION AND A PRESENTATION COPY FROM THE BINDER CEDRIC CHIVERS)

AUTHOR: KIPLING, Rudyard. 

TITLE: The Five Nations. London: Methuen & Co., 1903.

DESCRIPTION: SECOND EDITION AND A PRESENTATION COPY FROM CEDRIC CHIVERS. 1 vol., 7-5/8" x 4-15/16", inscribed on the front blank endleaf "To Mrs. Bowker from Cedric Chivers May 1924", bound in full vellum with painted and gilt decoration, the front cover composed of a roundel depicting a sailing ship at sea at sunset within a border of fish, and two fish with entwined tails, both covers with mother-of-pearl insets and gilt linear and pointille tooling, similarly decorated spine, gilt dentelles, vellum doublures, top edge gilt, by Chivers of Bath.

CONDITION: Inner and outer hinges fine, head and foot of spine fine, some minor foxing to blank endleaves, rear cover slightly cupped, we have seen other copies of this binding and they are often found in quite shabby condition, this one is overall a VERY GOOD+ copy and a presentation copy which we have never seen before. 

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: Included with this volume is a 1 page ALS dated 7/12/24 on Chivers Book Binding letterhead in the hand of Chivers which reads "Dear Mrs. Bowker Please accept this volume of Kipling with my best wishes.  The color of the decoration is underneath the vellum & the design is by Mrs. D. Crlihon (sic) Smyth of Glasgow School of Art.  Yours very sincerely. Cedric Chivers".

Safe to assume that Mrs. Bowker was the wife of R. R. Bowker.  Both Bowker (Bowker being the publishing house founded in 1868 and still operating to this day) and Cedric Chivers were both members of the American Library Assoc. of which Chivers had a close relationship with, submitting papers and such.  We were also able to find a reference to Mrs. Bowker and Chivers in the Friday June 27, 1919 NJ Asbury Park Press.