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New Treasure Seekers
E[dith] Nesbit
This is one of 11 dust-jackets designed by Blampied for new editions published in 1923 of novels and stories by E. Nesbit, a prolific and famous children's writer. The panels of nine jackets are pasted into Blamped's personal album of wrappers, two of which are known only from this album. Four more titles by E. Nesbit were later reprinted by Fisher Unwin, but not with a jacket designed by Blampied. At least two of these later titles, The Magic City and The Wonderful Garden, have a jacket signed Nick
, which is the diminuitive used by John Nicolson, a close friend of Edmund Blampied.
The 11 books with jackets designed by Blampied were reissued by T. Fisher Unwin until they merged with Ernest Benn Limited in 1928, who continued to use the same jacket design into the 1940s. While it would be nice to show the first use of the jacket design, the jackets of books for children do not always survive, so I have shown the jacket of the best edition, which may be the Benn edition, if that's all I have. It may not be exactly the same as the first impression, so I have shown the panel of the jacket from Blampied's personal album, which is assumed to be the first impression to use his design. According to notices in the Press the publishers issued a free illustrated booklet in 1923 to advertise the 11 titles in the uniform series.
E. Nesbit (1858-1924) was a writer and socialist. In 1880 she married Herbert Bland and with him was one of the founder members of The Fabian Society. Bland died in 1914 and she married in 1917 Thomas Terry Tucker.
Twelfth impression to 20th
Bibliography code: TFU-23.7
Publisher: T. Fisher Unwin, then Ernest Benn Limited
Series: E Nesbit's Children's Stories
Year: 1923
Format: 8vo
Pages: 328; 16 pp adverts
Binding: red cloth with title and author blind stamped on cover with image of man talking to a group of children; title, author and publisher in gold on spine; 6 imp had blue cloth decorated the same.
Size: 190 x 130 mm approx
Dust jacket: signed Blam at lower left of centre
Internal illustrations: Frontispiece and line drawings by Lewis Baumer in 5th imp; later impressions have colour frontispiece by Blampied
Price: 6 shillings in 1923 (from adverts); 6th imp, 1926, 3/6d; 11th imp, 1944, 4/6d
Printing history: First published 1904; 5th impression in 1923; 11th impression in 1944
Printed by: not known
Notes: The illustration from Blampied's album shows that the child at the top of the ladder has been cut from later impressions of the book.
Dust jacket of the 11th impression of 1944 (click to enlarge)
Panel of jacket from Blampied's personal album (click to enlarge)