YE JACKDAW OF RHEIMS

By Yvonne Gilbert

Some years ago, I was lucky enough to get hold of a copy of this rare and much sought after book. A large format volume 15 inches by 11 inches, with cloth spine and paper covered boards, illustrated by Ernest Maurice Jessop and printed in c1890.

The Jackdaw of Rheims is one of, and probably the most well-known of, a collection of fables titled the Ingoldsby Legends; written by clergyman Richard Harris Barham under the pen name Thomas Ingoldsby.

The fashion of the times for all things ‘gothic’ informed the design so that it has the appearance of a medieval document with hand drawn script and freeform layouts. The limited palette and myriad vignettes are particularly effective ways to suggest an ‘authentic’ period document.

I fell in love with it the minute I saw it in a little second hand bookshop and have treasured it ever since.

Printed and Published by Eyre & Spottiswoode, London.