New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1954. First thus. Limited to 1,500 numbered copies (this copy being No. 671). A fine copy. Quarto (10 3/8 x 7 7/16 inches; 263 x 189 mm.). [8], 57, [2], [1, blank], [12, music], [1, blank], [1, colophon] pp. Six color plates, including frontispiece, Barcham Green hand-made paper. Original quarter parchment over marbled boards. Spine lettered in gilt. Top edge gilt. In the original black cardboard slipcase with spine lettered in gilt.

The Masque of Comus was the last book illustrated by Dulac, left incomplete at the time of his death in 1956. After missing out on a few projects due to his heart attack in 1949, Macy offered Dulac a choice of titles, eventually commissioning him to paint 10 pictures for Comus. “His pace was slow. He did not get started until June 1952. By October he had finished two illustrations. By April 24, 1953, he reported to Macy that he had completed 4 more for a total of 6. A few weeks later, on May 30, Helen Beauclerk wrote Macy of Dulac’s death on May 25th. She told Macy that as recently as May 21st, Dulac had been working on his 7th Comus illustration…Comus was the 250th book Macy had made for his Limited Editions Club…Like all his books, Macy’s Comus is a beautiful production” (Hughey). John Milton’s Comus (A Masque Presented at Ludlow Castle, 1634) was a type of courtly theatrical performance, that saw its heroine use her power of mind and virtue to debate Comus, the god of revery, and resist temptation.

French-born anglophile Edmond Dulac (1882-1953) was one of the most prized artists of the “golden age” of book illustration. A gifted artist, especially in the medium of watercolor, Dulac’s ability to render luxurious detail and subtle emotions is otherworldly. He is best known for his illustrations for books and magazines, although he also designed for the stage and wrote music; in moments of financial insecurity he produced serialized cartoons and became an authority on postage stamp design (White).

Hughey 103. LEC Bibliography 250. Fine (Item #6268)