On the occasion of the Jane Austen classic's anniversary, here's a selection of covers from years past up through the present — the good, the bad, the jaw-droppingly gorgeous, and a few that pale in comparison to the book's contents.

2 v. : 27 cm

Kinfolk Stories: Year in Year out

Orchids: Their Culture and Management. London, 1903. Call No.: 584 .15 W343 Location: The George Peabody Library

Rare antique book, Rare Find, Poetry Book 1880 “The Poetical Works of Jean Ingelow,” Published by Roberts Brothers, Boston, Author’s Household Edition Beautifully bound in quarter brown leather with marbled boards and gilded designs and lettering on spine. Page edges marbled. Inside is beautifully set marbled endpapers and with a black and white frontispiece next to the title page. Some small black and white illustrated chapter ornaments present as well. This charming edition is perfect for any collector or lover of old and rare poetry books! Condition: Cover boards and spine show color fade, wear and tears, missing material, markings, stains, and scratches; spine, edges, and corner bumps with material loss and fraying due to shelf wear; leather rubbing and loss; spine material rubbing along hinges; moderate foxing and yellowing due to age; very minor writing may be present; binding and hinges feel mostly tight but some areas feel slightly loose and slightly wobbly; some pages have creases, bends, and tears; page edges show marring, color fading, and scratches; gilding loss present **Due to lighting, photos appear “shinier” or more vibrant in photos than in real life” **Some photos have been enhanced to show as much detail as possible** Check out other rare and antique books at my shop www.blackdiamondpeach.etsy.com *****PROPS (DIAMOND, SCULPTURES, OTHER BOOKS, FLOWERS, ETC.) NOT INCLUDED******

Safavid art Leather Binding-1500/1550 http://www.dia.org/object-info/a01cd63f-ea41-45f6-b721-299664b388a3.aspx

Оригинал взят у katia_lexx в Beautiful Old Books Twenty Centuries of Paris, New York, 1913 The Red Owl, 1927 The Mysterious Island. The Modern Robinson Crusoe, 1876 Things Will Take a Turn, 1889 The Children of the Castle by Mrs. Molesworth, illustrator Walter Crane, London, 1890 A Lady of King…

Each issue illustrated with chromolithographs

1924 Hispano Suiza H6C Tulipwood Torpedo

Flowers and lacework pull my heartstrings. For more of the same, check out AbeBook's list of 30 books to buy for their covers alone.

Following day twenty-three’s post about cordiform manuscripts, I’ve started looking into other uniquely-shaped manuscripts. Manuscript historian extraordinaire Erik Kwakkel wrote a grea…