Triumphal March of the Elf-King – lithographed illustration by R. Doyle 1870 from a book: In Fairyland: A series of Pictures from the Elf-World

Description

Triumphal March of the Elf-King. This important personage, nearly related to the Goblin family, is conspicuous for the length of his hair, which on state occasions it requires four pages to support. Fairies in waiting strew flowers in his path, and in his trains are many of the most distinguished Trolls, Kobolts, Nixies, Pixies, Wood-sprites, birds, butterflies and other inhabitants of the kingdom. – An iconic lithographed wood-engraved print from famous Victorian children’s book “In Fairyland: A series of Pictures from the Elf-World”, illustrated by Richard Doyle and published by Longman in London for Christmas 1869 (dated 1870).

Richard Doyle (1824 – 1883) was a British illustrator of Victorian era, most known for his work for Punch magazine and children’s fantasy books. He was one of seven children of Irish cartoonist John Doyle and received all his art training in his father’s studio. Richard was always fascinated by fairy tales. After working for Punch and a string of commissions to illustrate fantasy books, Doyle was given a free hand by publisher Longman, London, to work on colour plates and other illustrations for a fairy themed book. A poem was written by William Allingham, engraving and printing done by Edmund Evans. The book was published in time for Christmas 1869 and became a beautiful example of Victorian colour printing and one of the finest books for children ever produced.”In Fairyland: A Series of Pictures from the Elf-World” is considered as Doyle’s masterpiece where in elaborate detail he reveals secret world of fairies and elves at its most enchanting. The book was printed in two thousand copies as an expensive and extravagant gift and became a rarity and a collector’s item. Richard Doyle is also known as the uncle of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories.

This poster is a high quality “giclee” reproduction of the antique original, custom-printed on Standard Single-weight Matt Coated art paper 140gsm or  Heavyweight Matt Coated art paper 230gsm (more of a thin card density), or superb Epson Matt Canvas 320gsm, according to your choice. We use the latest UltraChromeHDX pigment inks which guarantee 60 years of colour  permanence (up to 200 years fade-proof for colour prints).  This poster is suitable for mounting and framing, as well as direct display on a wall.

IMPORTANT: If you are going to frame this print we thoroughly recommend art paper 230gsm or canvas 320gsm – both will make framing job easy. The 140gsm art paper option makes sense if you wish to tack the poster on a wall without framing, due to it being lighter and more flexible. All three options are giclee prints of same high quality.

POSTER PRINT QUALITY

Please note that our reproduction posters are made to order and every print is checked before posting. The images we use in most cases are scans of the antique originals, professionally restored in order to remove the most evident stains, folds, tears and other damage.  We strive to balance the restoration and saving the overall integrity and antique look of the original.

There will be no watermark on your image but there might be a white border depending on aspect ratio of the original. Please note that when a large antique original is reduced to a smaller size print some text may not be readable. Please check our measurements: every poster has its own aspect ratio same as original and printed exactly as pictured.