Wookey Hole Handmade Paper

Thomas, Dylan (1914–1953)

Fern Hill [Number 1 of 12 Copies] [Signed/Inscribed by the Printer] [Waseley Hills Press Edition]

The Waseley Hills Press, Harvington, UK:, 1998.

A towering rarity of the modern British private press movement, being the premier copy of a mere 12 produced. This edition of Dylan Thomas’s lyrical masterpiece is a triumph of traditional craft, printed by hand on a Farley proofing press using the last remaining stocks of Wookey Hole handmade paper. 

Featuring exquisite hand-colored ornamentation and genuine gold-leaf highlights, this Number 1 copy represents the pinnacle of the Waseley Hills Press output and serves as an essential archival specimen for the study of 20th-century fine-press poetry.

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL FEATURES
+++ Visuals: Features two elaborate hand-colored decorated initials (an 'N' and a 'T') highlighted in genuine gilt, plus two additional hand-colored floral decorations. The coloring is vibrant and precisely applied.
+++ Typography: Hand-set in 12-point Baskerville Roman, providing a crisp, classical contrast to the heavy texture of the paper.
+++ Paper: Comprised of four leaves of Wookey Hole Handmade Paper. This legendary Victorian-era mill in Somerset is famed for its high cotton content and distinct, ragged deckle edges, visible throughout this copy.
+++ Binding: Housed in tan stiff-paper wrappers, secured with a brown silk ribbon tie. Protected by a matching wraparound jacket with a hand-pasted paper title label.
+++ Specs: Approx. 10.5 x 7.5 inches; [8] unnumbered pages (Four Leaves).
+++ Rarity: Two institutional holdings Swansea Univ and The National Library of Wales

CONDITION: Fine. Pristine and 'as-issued.' The ribbon tie is crisp; the wrappers are free of the common 'sunning' or edge-wear. Internally flawless; the hand-coloring and gilt remain bright and undisturbed. A collector's state specimen.

SCHOLARLY & HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
+++ The 'Alpha' Copy: As Number 1 of 12, this copy holds the highest bibliographical status in the run. It is the primary reference point for the edition, likely the first copy pulled and finished by the printer.
+++ The Wookey Hole Legacy: Printing on Wookey Hole paper in 1998 was a deliberate act of preservation, as the mill's traditional handmade production for the book trade was nearing its end. This volume serves as a physical record of the mill's final functional era.
+++ Poetic Reclamation: Dylan Thomas’s 'Fern Hill' is widely considered one of the greatest poems of the 20th century. This private press treatment elevates the text from its commercial 'Penguin' origins back to the tactile, liturgical experience Thomas’s lush language demands.

HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
The Waseley Hills Press, founded by printer and artist Paul G. S. Osborne, represents a late-century pinnacle of the British private press tradition. This edition of Fern Hill is a quintessential example of the Neo-Romantic influence on English fine printing, reclaiming Dylan Thomas’s lush, pastoral imagery from mass-market commercialism and restoring it to the tactile, liturgical experience of the book-as-art.

The choice of Wookey Hole Handmade Paper is critically important; by 1998, traditional Victorian-era vats for handmade book stock were rapidly disappearing. This volume acts as a primary specimen of the mill’s final functional era, preserving the physical materiality of a dying craft. Furthermore, as Number 1 of 12, this copy holds the highest possible bibliographical status.

It serves as the master archival reference for the entire edition, likely the first copy completed and finished by the printer’s hand. For institutions documenting the Pioneer Valley or UK Fine Press movements, this artifact provides a rare look at the intersection of Welsh literary heritage and traditional English hand-press craftsmanship.

SUBJECTS: British Poetry, Fine Press, Dylan Thomas, Wookey Hole Paper, Hand-Gilding, Harvington Printing, Limited Edition, Private Press, Signed, Poetry, Illustrated, Pioneer Valley, UK Fine Press movement

Item #21700

Price: $385.00