Folio Archives 413: The Herefordshire Pomona LE by Henry Graves Bell 2014

The Herefordshire Pomona; Coloured Figures and Descriptions of the Most Esteemed Kinds of Apples and Pears by Henry Graves Bull – LIMITED EDITION 2014

“Pomona” - from the Latin word pomum, "fruit", specifically orchard fruit.

The Herefordshire Pomona sat unloved in the Folio Society catalogue for more than a decade before selling out. Who wants a book about of apples and pears? But in some ways, this should be considered an art book rather than a botanical reference book as it contains 77 plates of beautiful still life paintings of every variety of apple and pear known in the British Isles.

I grew up in Tasmania, which has the nickname “The Apple Isle” due to its many orchards. In Tasmania the fruiterer had a selection of a dozen different types of apples used for different purposes (eating fresh, baking, stewing etc.), while in sub-tropical Brisbane where I have lived since I was 13, you can get red or green apples, and that’s about it! As a result, I have a slightly higher interest in pomona than the average person, so purchased a copy soon after it was released.

The Pomona was first published in 1884 in an edition of 600 copies. The illustrations were painted by Alice Ellis and Edith Bull. Original copies in good condition are rare and have sold for £10,000 at auction.

430 different varieties of apples and pears (I certainly did not know there were so many) are illustrated in the facsimile volume, and then described in detail in the text volume.

The plates (facsimile) volume of 176 pages is quarter bound in green Indian goatskin with gold blocked title on the spine, with gilt fruit pictures on the front of the green canvas sides. It has plain dark green endpapers, a gilded top page edge, and a green ribbon page marker. The colour plates are all on the recto page with the verso page being blank in all cases (thus not included in photos below).

The 176 page text volume has essays by Michael Twyman and Jim Arbury, integrated line drawings and a detailed description (with anecdotes about some) of every species of apple and pear illustrated in the facsimile volume. It also has dark green endpapers, a green ribbon marker, and is bound in green canvas with a gold blocked pear picture on the front cover.

A green card sleeve contains four loose colour plates suitable for framing selected from those in the facsimile volume.

The two volumes and plates sleeve are all housed in a green cloth Solander case that is gilt blocked with the title on outer edge and front. It measures 42.2x32.5x13cm. and weighs with books included a substantial 7.3Kg.

This edition was limited to 980 copies and cost £395 when released by the FS.





























































































An index of the other illustrated reviews in the "Folio Archives" series can be viewed here.

An illustrated catalogue of all my Folio Society books can be seen here.

Thank you very much for this - beautiful photos.

I know this is the butt of many jokes on FSD, but it's actually one of my favourite LEs.

>1 wcarter: Thank you, this is wonderfully informative!

Truly a beautiful work -- I know it's not for everyone, but I think we can all agree it's beautiful! Warwick, do you have a favorite of such nature-art books?

Cor.

>4 astropi:
Birds drawn by John Gould for Edward Lear is by far the most gorgeoous and luxurious FS book of art.
See https://www.librarything.com/topic/343920

I so like the old limitation wording where acknowledgement was afforded to 'members' of the Folio Society.

>6 wcarter:
As the proud and poorer owner of multiple Folio Society LEs, most from the Joe Whitlock Blundell era, I have to agree that Birds Drawn is the most sumptuous release. Unfortunately due to its enormous dimensions, it remains wrapped in towels under my couch and so I don’t get to preview it often enough.

>6 wcarter: I remember that. David Attenburough's signature almost made me pull the trigger, but alas it was not to be. Happy people are enjoying it, and as always appreciate the lovely pictures :)

>6 wcarter: >8 UK_History_Fan: >9 astropi: I have mentioned before that I have a No LE pledge, which I have never broken. That volume is the closest I ever came to breaking it - it looked magnificent.

>10 coynedj:
Why such a pledge? You are denying yourself ownership of some magnificent books.

I just look at the cost of those LEs and conclude that I can live with SEs instead. Of course, some never get an SE, but that's life. And some are books I'll never read (like the Herfordshire Pomona, or the South Polar Times), some are books that I already have previous editions of (Shakespeare, Gormenghast), and some are books I'm unable to read (there were some written in latin, as I recall). And that's not even mentioning the Bayeux Tapestry or the Mappa Mundi. Believe it or not, I have other things I spend money on!

Edit: And then there's the question of shelf space.

>12 coynedj: Is this no LE pledge only for the FS or other publishers as well? Other wonderful publishers today, many of which do letterpress, only release LEs -- so you would be denying yourself beautiful works of art! Also, some FS standard editions are more expensive than other publishers LEs which is crazy... but, at the end of the day, I respect what you're doing.

>12 coynedj: Believe it or not, I have other things I spend money on!

You can't say such things!


Ahem... psst... so what 'other things' :) ?