[GUEULLETTE, THOMAS-SIMON; SMITHERS, LEONARD C. (editor)]. The Transmigrations of the Mandarin Fum-Hoam (Chinese Tales). London: H. S. Nichols and Co., MDCCCXCIIII. [1894].
FIRST ENGLISH EDITION. One of seventy-five copies specially printed on hand-made paper; leather-bound; hardcover with slipcase; royal octavo (24.5 x 15.5 x 3 cm); pp. viii, 252, [18, publisher's catalogue], [1]. English text, translated from the original French. Beautifully bound in full vibrant crimson morocco by *Donnelley of Chicago, with gilt rules to covers and subtle fleuron design that extends from the bands around the second compartment of the spine onto the front and rear covers. Five bands to spine with title to second compartment. Gilt-ruled turn-ins with star and crescent moon tooled corner-pieces. Top edge gilt, other edges unevenly cut. Plain gray endpapers. Half-title. Title-page printed in red and black. Advertisements bound in at rear. Housed in its original red cloth flannel-lined slipcase. Condition: FINE. An immaculate copy.
Notes: The Transmigrations of the Mandarin Fum-Hoam is a classic 18th-century collection of stories originally written by French author Thomas-Simon Gueullette and later edited and translated into English by Leonard C. Smithers. The book is structured as a series of interconnected "Oriental tales," being heavily influenced by the style of The Arabian Nights. It revolves around a Mandarin named Fum-Hoam who recounts his numerous reincarnations to the beautiful Princess Gulchenraz. His journey involves diverse characters, including treacherous court officials, wise sages, and royalty like Malik Al-Salim, the King of Georgia. The tales weave in elements of Confucianism and Taoism, offering a Western "Orientalist" perspective on ancient Chinese culture, magic, and moral wisdom. While Gueullette wrote the original French version in the early 1700s, Leonard C. Smithers published this English version in 1894. It is limited to six hundred and eighty copies only, seventy-five of which are on Arnold's unbleached hand-made paper, and five of which are on Japanese vellum. This copy is one of the seventy-five on Arnold's hand-made paper, and is specially bound by Chicago firm Donnelley.
*“For thirteen years [1923-1935], the Extra Bindery [at Donnelley] was headed by the distinguished English bookbinder Alfred de Sauty, who was recruited by T. E. Donnelley from the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London. De Sauty immediately set the standard for American bookbinding when he hired three European-trained bookbinders, William Anson, Basil Cronk, and Leonard Mounteney. As was the European tradition, hand-binding at RR Donnelley was a team effort. The head of the bindery generally established the design and specified the materials. From there, a book passed through the hands of several staff members, each responsible for a particular aspect of the process; sewing, backing, tooling, and finishing” (University of Chicago Library).
