Edinburgh and New York: R. G. Newbegin and T. and A. Constable, 1903. First thus. Letter G from a limitation of 26 lettered copies of the Connoisseurs' Edition of the Extra Illustrated Henley Shakespeare. Bound in full crushed red morocco with inlaid green morocco bands and brown morocco flowers. Full gilt and morocco doublures with a lovely portrait of Cressida. White silk floral end papers, with slight wear. Top edge gilt. Hand painted watercolor illustrations throughout, in addition to hand-colored plates. A truly lovely and extravagent production. With slight offsetting near the silk ribbon bookmark and a faint damstain near the bottom margin of a handful of leaves.

Drawing from Chaucer's narrative of Troilus and Criseyde, which presented readers with the tragic legend of a woman torn during wartime between her loyalties to her defector father and her princely lover during the Trojan War. While Chaucer's version of the romance emphasizes the impossible situation in which Criseyde exists and the way a woman's reputation and personal safety hinge on the men surrounding her, Shakespeare's drama was noted for casting Cressida as a manipulative and untrustworthy seducer responsible for weakening Troilus -- and therefore Troy's ability to defend itself against seige. Here, the work is beautifully bound with an exceptional interior portrait of Cressida. Near Fine (Item #5320)