DOI Heft:
Nr. 155 (January 1910)
DOI Artikel:Newbolt, Frank: Etched book-plates
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.19868#0386
Etched Book-Plates
ETCHED BOOK-PLATE BY D. Y. CAMERON
form ideal book-plates. They have no plate-mark,
and, when inserted in books, harmonise delightfully
with the printed pages. This may serve as a useful
hint to owners or would-be owners of large etched
examples. Sir Charles Holroyd's decorative plates,
on the other hand, are small and easily printed, so
that they preserve the character of original etchings.
One or two of them are reminiscent of Italy, and
all have the charm of marked individuality and
spontaneity.
Mr. Cameron's work, in this as in other fields,
is known to readers of The Studio. The present
specimens are also interesting, and worthy of their
fellows, fulfilling all the conditions suggested for
the execution of a useful and decorative label.
Take, for instance, that of Sir James Bell.
The name is easily legible (though perhaps not
quite so satisfactory as that of Mr. John A. Downie
in the other), the heraldic element, which we
should naturally look for in the book-plate of a
baronet, is introduced, though not obtrusively,
and the design and execution suggest the hand
of the well-known etcher. We are also reminded
that the late Lord Provost of Glasgow was the
owner of the Thistle when it challenged for the
America Cup. Mr. Cameron's book-plates are
small and somewhat typographical in character,
and their technical qualities are so fine that re-
productions cannot do them justice. All of them
give due prominence to the name of the owner;
some are very simple, and some purely heraldic in
treatment.
Mr. Eve, who designed and executed the King's
book-plates, of various sizes, and also those of
Queen Victoria, has brought the art of etching
these armorial plates to such technical perfection
that he seems to be throwing down the gauntlet
to the old engravers, and the peculiar richness of
his process gives a distinctive quality which can
never be obtained by the burin. His work is best
suited to the best books : for really fine printing,
for the books of a royal library, for instance,
ETCHED BOOK-PLATE BY GEORGE W. EVE, R.E.
where we imagine everything must be of the best,
nothing could be more suitable. The worst that
can be said of them is that in a democratic age,
which has witnessed this growth of popular taste,
they are undemocratic. When compared with
those of most artists they remind us of the deer-
hound in High Life and Low Life. There is a
blare of trumpets about them, a hint of polished
steel, of clanging arms and mantlets of ermine
They recall Jacquemart's matchless imitations.
Much has been written about ex-libris, an
expression, by the way, which has passed into
current slang, like omnibus. Societies are formed
for collecting the labels, and by exchange or
purchase some have secured large numbers of
them, but with this secondary and less noble use
of the book-plate I have nothing to do. For
ETCHED BOOK-PLATE BY D. Y. CAMERON
form ideal book-plates. They have no plate-mark,
and, when inserted in books, harmonise delightfully
with the printed pages. This may serve as a useful
hint to owners or would-be owners of large etched
examples. Sir Charles Holroyd's decorative plates,
on the other hand, are small and easily printed, so
that they preserve the character of original etchings.
One or two of them are reminiscent of Italy, and
all have the charm of marked individuality and
spontaneity.
Mr. Cameron's work, in this as in other fields,
is known to readers of The Studio. The present
specimens are also interesting, and worthy of their
fellows, fulfilling all the conditions suggested for
the execution of a useful and decorative label.
Take, for instance, that of Sir James Bell.
The name is easily legible (though perhaps not
quite so satisfactory as that of Mr. John A. Downie
in the other), the heraldic element, which we
should naturally look for in the book-plate of a
baronet, is introduced, though not obtrusively,
and the design and execution suggest the hand
of the well-known etcher. We are also reminded
that the late Lord Provost of Glasgow was the
owner of the Thistle when it challenged for the
America Cup. Mr. Cameron's book-plates are
small and somewhat typographical in character,
and their technical qualities are so fine that re-
productions cannot do them justice. All of them
give due prominence to the name of the owner;
some are very simple, and some purely heraldic in
treatment.
Mr. Eve, who designed and executed the King's
book-plates, of various sizes, and also those of
Queen Victoria, has brought the art of etching
these armorial plates to such technical perfection
that he seems to be throwing down the gauntlet
to the old engravers, and the peculiar richness of
his process gives a distinctive quality which can
never be obtained by the burin. His work is best
suited to the best books : for really fine printing,
for the books of a royal library, for instance,
ETCHED BOOK-PLATE BY GEORGE W. EVE, R.E.
where we imagine everything must be of the best,
nothing could be more suitable. The worst that
can be said of them is that in a democratic age,
which has witnessed this growth of popular taste,
they are undemocratic. When compared with
those of most artists they remind us of the deer-
hound in High Life and Low Life. There is a
blare of trumpets about them, a hint of polished
steel, of clanging arms and mantlets of ermine
They recall Jacquemart's matchless imitations.
Much has been written about ex-libris, an
expression, by the way, which has passed into
current slang, like omnibus. Societies are formed
for collecting the labels, and by exchange or
purchase some have secured large numbers of
them, but with this secondary and less noble use
of the book-plate I have nothing to do. For