"There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. "
— Oscar Wilde

Edmund Dulac (born Edmond Dulac; October 22, 1882 – May 25, 1953) was a French-born, British naturalised magazine illustrator, book illustrator and stamp designer. During World War I, Dulac produced relief books, as well as illustrating magazines. He is also known for designing banknotes during World War II, and postage stamps - most notably those that heralded the beginning of Queen Elizabeth II's reign.
Dulac was born in Toulouse, and studied law in his home town. However, he later turned to the study of art the École des Beaux-Arts. In the early twentieth century, Dulac moved to London because of the wider publishing opportunities. He received his first commission in 1905 to illustrate the novels of the Brontë Sisters, an event which coincided with the new genre of illustrated gift books, in which color plates, printed on special coated paper that accommodated the new printing process, were “tipped in”, or placed between pages rather than being bound into the spine.
See below our stock of Edmund Dulac First Editions, fine bindings, and signed copies.
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1911. [Illustrated children's classic]. FIRST DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION. Quarto (29 x 23cm), pp.viii; 250; [2]. Publisher's green cloth blocked in gilt to spine and upper board, illustrated endpapers. With twenty eight tipped in colour plates. Some light spotting to endpapers, preliminaries, and edges, a couple of..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1911. [Illustrated children's classic] FIRST DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION. Quarto (29 x 23cm), pp.viii; 250; [2]. With twenty eight tipped in colour plates. Smartly bound in green half calf over original gilt-stamped green cloth sides, gilt-lettered twin red title labels, spine in six compartments with raised bands..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, for The Daily Telegraph, no date [1915]. [Children's illustrated] FIRST EDITION. Quarto (28 x 22cm), pp.135; [1] advert. Twenty tipped-in colour plates, one tipped-in photograph of Dulac by E.O. Hoppé. Half dark green oasis, gilt titles and decoration to spine, raised bands, matching cloth sides, top..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, n.d. Circa 1915. Quarto. Pp.224. Illustrated with 23 stunning colour plates, mounted, with captioned tissues, text pages printed in two colours with geometric arabeque borders. Elegantly hand bound in blue half morocco, gilt, with matching cloth sides, top edge gilt, others untrimmed. Internally clean, binding unmarked..... More
London: Hodder & Stoughton, no date [1914]. [Children's Illustrated] FIRST DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION, trade issue. Quarto (29 x 23cm), pp.[2] 222 [2]. With 23 stunning colour plates by Dulac, including a frontispiece, each mounted with captioned tissue guards. Publisher's brown cloth, extensively decorated in green and gilt to spine and..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1938. FIRST TRADE EDITION illustrated by Dulac. 4to. pp.[xii]; 245; [3], blank. Publisher's decorated beige cloth. 12 full page colour plates, illustrated endpapers. Some edge spotting, cloth a little soiled/marked, spine ends just fraying, gift note to first leaf. Shows well; a very good copy. Hawthorn's..... More
Nottingham: Hodder and Stoughton for Boots Pure Drug Co., no date [circa 1930s]. [Illustrated Legends] FINE COLOUR PLATES, a later edition. Small quarto (26 x 20cm), pp.319 [1]. With 20 fine chromolithographic plates by Dulac, including a frontispiece. Publisher's brown cloth with gilt titles and decoration to spine and upper..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [1909]. [Metaphysical Poetry] FIRST DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION. Quarto, unpaginated. 110 quatrains, printed on the recto of each leaf with brown border decoration. Text reprinted from Fitzgerald's second edition. With 20 chromolithographic plates, including a frontispiece, by Edmund Dulac; each with a tissue guard. A...... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [circa 1910]. [Metaphysical Poetry] EDMUND DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION, a later printing. Quarto (28 x 23cm), unpaginated. With 20 tipped in colour plates by Dulac, all with captioned tissue guards; quatrains with green border decoration instead of the usual brown. Navy half morocco with raised..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [circa 1910]. [Metaphysical Poetry] EDMUND DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION. Text follows the second edition of Fitzgerald's English translation.Quarto (28 x 23cm), unpaginated. With 20 tipped in colour plates by Dulac, all with captioned tissue guards. Publisher's gilt-stamped red cloth, illustrated dust-jacket. Book is fine with..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [1910]. [Children's Illustrated] FIRST DULAC TRADE EDITION. Quarto (28 x 23cm), pp.[xviii]; 131; [1], blank. With 30 beautiful tipped in colour plates, including a frontispiece, each protected with tissue guard. Recent burgundy half morocco with raised bands, gilt titles to spine and matching cloth..... More