"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. [Children's Illustrated] SIGNED LIMITED EDITION. Quarto (32 x 26cm), pp.viii; 250 [2]. With 28 colour plates illustrated by Dulac, including a frontispiece. An out-of-series copy numbered 0000, from a series numbered officially at 750 copies thus, SIGNED by the illustrator in black ink to the..... More
London: W. Collins Sons and Co., 1926. [Adventure Novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 15cm), pp.[8] 319 [1]. With nine in-text wood-cuts and a frontispiece portrait of the author by Dulac. Publisher's tan cloth with gilt titles to green label on spine, and a gilt and green device stamped to..... 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, no date [1913]. [Illustrated Folk Tales] FIRST DULAC EDITION, SIGNED LIMITED ISSUE. Quarto (29 x 23cm), pp.[8] 113 [3]. With 10 mounted colour plates by Dulac, including a frontispiece, each with a captioned tissue guard. Publisher's white cloth with elaborate pale blue and gilt decoration to..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1907. [Children's Illustrated] FIRST DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION. Quarto (26 x 19cm), pp.136. With 49 colour plates by Dulac, including a frontispiece, mounted on grey card and collected at rear, each with a tissue guard. Publisher's brown cloth, titled and decorated in gilt and dark grey to..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, [1907]. [Children's Illustrated] DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION, with 50 colour plates. Quarto (26 x 19cm), pp.136 plus plates. Publisher's original russet cloth pictorially stamped in blue and gilt. Original printed brown dust-wrapper with colour plate illustration laid down to upper. Contents clean, no names. Minor toning to..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [circa 1920]. [Illustrated Metaphysical Poetry] DULAC ILLUSTRATED, a later printing. Quarto (33 x 24cm), unpaginated. With 20 tipped in colour plates by Dulac, all with captioned tissue guards, and green border decoration. Publisher's red buckram, with gilt titles and decoration to spine and upper..... More
London: Hodder and Stoughton, no date [circa 1920]. [Metaphysical Poetry] EDMUND DULAC ILLUSTRATED EDITION, a later printing. Text follows the second edition of Fitzgerald's English translation. Quarto (28 x 23cm), unpaginated. With 20 tipped in colour plates by Dulac and green border decoration, all with captioned tissue guards. Publisher's gilt-stamped..... More
London: Hodder & Stoughton, no date [1910]. [Children's Illustrated] FIRST DULAC TRADE EDITION. Quarto (28 x 23cm), pp.xviii; 131 [1]. With 30 beautiful tipped in colour plates, including a frontispiece, each protected with tissue guard. Publisher's brown full pebble-grain leather-effect cloth, with titles and ornate decoration in gilt to spine..... More