Sunday, May 26, 2013

Margaret Wynne


Another Rand McNally title with a W. W. Denslow cover - Margaret Wynne, by Adeline Sergeant, published in 1898. Denslow's trademark seahorse signature can be seen at the lower right, outside the border of the title box. This is a rather worn copy, and the colors appear a bit dull. A fresher copy might be more striking!

This isn't one of Denslow's more imaginative efforts, and it uses elements seen in a number of his other cover designs - namely, the coat of arms crest and the decorative fleur-de-lis, as well as a wrap-around design.

Adeline Sergeant also wrote A Valuable Life, which received a much more evocative treatment from Denslow in 1897.

2 comments:

  1. CindyMay 27, 2013 at 11:37 AM

    My copy of Margaret Wynne has an equally uninspired color scheme. I do like the swan atop the knight's head tho!
    There is another cover design for A Valuable Life--it uses the same spine and rear cover but has a lily with thorns on the front. This one is from the Rand McNally archives though, so maybe they never released it?

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  2. Bill CampbellMay 27, 2013 at 10:24 PM

    I agree, the little swan does add a note of whimsy to the cover!
    The alternate cover for A Valuable Life is an interesting variant - possibly a little more generic... who knows what the reasoning might have been. I'd love to run across another copy of that version just to see if there are more out there!

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