1859 Dean's Moveable Books: History of the Three Little Kittens Who Lost their Mittens

Description

Colour Plates, Folding Plates, Illustrated, Publishers' Original Binding, Scarce

Publisher Dean & Son pioneered the production of moveable books on a large scale, using lithographs and moving tabs to create what they termed 'living pictures' from the late 1850s onwards.

This work provides illustrations to accompany American poet Eliza Lee Cabot Follen's humorous poem about three kittens.

Illustrated with eight hand-coloured plates, with moving parts. 

Plate I retains only one of the three cats heads required, with the mother cats head moving correctly but lacking an arm, and the three kittens entirely lacking.

Plate II in full working order, with all parts present, and with the arm of the kitten neatly repaired.

Plate III moving mechanism not functioning, with tabs renewed. Retaining the two cats heads called for.

Plate IV lacking moving rat's tail and tab, with moving mechanism not working.

Plate V with two cats and in full working order, and with third cat detached and loosely inserted. Neat repair to tab with thread.

Plate VI lacking one kitten's arm, with moving parts all functioning, but with tab torn and therefore not penetrating to verso of plate.

Plate VII complete, with three kittens moving, but with mother cat detached from tab to rear.

Plate VIII lacking one moving part, with tab torn and therefore not penetrating to verso of plate.

Dated 1859 via publisher's code to the tail of the rear board. Montanaro's bibliography notes that this work was produced a number of times by the publisher between 1857 and 1864, p.307.

Advertisements to endpapers and pastedowns.

A charming Victorian-era children's work.