Book of nonsense
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Order PrintImage ID
5029490
Item data
Title
Book of nonsense
Names
Lear, Edward, 1812-1888 (Author)
Lear, Edward, 1812-1888 (Artist)
Evetts, Deborah (Binder)
Date / Origin
Date Created: 1850 - 1859 (Approximate)
Library Location
Spencer Collection
Shelf locator: Spencer Coll. Eng. 1850 99-37
Subjects
Limericks
Limericks, Juvenile
English wit and humor
Genres
Notes
Content: The drawing on leaf [1] reproduces the illustrated t.p. of the first ed. of the Book of nonsense, except for the book's imprint, which read: Published Feb. 10, 1846 by Thos. McLean, 26 Haymarket [London]. Statement of responsibility from label on spine.
Content: Each drawing accompanied by a limerick in the artist's holograph.
Content: Probably executed in the early 1850s for the children of Edmund Law Lushington. Cf. article by Nancy Finlay in Biblion, v. 7, no. 1 (fall 1998), p. 5-19 (includes reproductions of 7 of the drawings and the binding).
Physical Description
Ink drawings
Extent: 1 v. (46 drawings on [46] leaves : brown ink) ; 15 x 22 cm ; 5 5/8 x 16 1/2
Binding: Ochre morocco, black-stamped, by Deborah Evetts; image of a Lear bird on both boards.
Languages
Identifiers
NYPL Exhibition ID: TL 13.02.304
NYPL Catalog ID (bnumber): b14385861
Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 23034810-6285-0130-3af8-58d385a7bbd0
Rights
The New York Public Library believes that this item is in the public domain under the laws of the United States, but did not make a determination as to its copyright status under the copyright laws of other countries. This item may not be in the public domain under the laws of other countries. Though not required, if you want to credit us as the source, please use the following statement, "From The New York Public Library," and provide a link back to the item on our Digital Collections site. Doing so helps us track how our collection is used and helps justify freely releasing even more content in the future.
Type Of Resource
Cite this item
MLA format
Spencer Collection, The New York Public Library. "Book of nonsense" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1850 - 1859. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/23034810-6285-0130-3af8-58d385a7bbd0
APA format
Spencer Collection, The New York Public Library. (1850 - 1859). Book of nonsense Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/23034810-6285-0130-3af8-58d385a7bbd0
Chicago/Turabian Format
Spencer Collection, The New York Public Library. "Book of nonsense" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed December 15, 2025. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/23034810-6285-0130-3af8-58d385a7bbd0
Wikipedia citation
<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/23034810-6285-0130-3af8-58d385a7bbd0 | title= (text; still image) Book of nonsense (1850 - 1859) | author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library | accessdate=December 15, 2025 | publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations}}</ref>