CRANACH PRESS. SHAKESPEARE (William). ~ Die Tragische Geschichte Von Hamlet Prinzen Von Daenmark.
Wood engravings by Edward Gordon Craig, and wood-engraved lettering by Eric Gill, typeface designed by Edward Johnston, after that used by Fust & Schoeffer in their Mainz Psalter of 1457. The hemp and linen fibre paper was made by Maillol. No.115 of only 230 copies of the German edition. Folio, original vellum backed, salmon pink paper covered boards with lettering in red on spine and upper cover. Housed in the original card slipcase. A superb copy with only a little browning pp.14-18.
Intended by Count Kessler as the crowning glory of his private Cranach Press, Hamlet was 17 years in gestation from when he had seen Gordon Craig’s black figures for his Moscow Hamlet and decided that spectacular woodcuts could be printed from them. The result is one of the most important and spectacular works of the private press movement.