[Fine Binding | S. Barnard & L. Hay Cooper] The Hollow Land

Morris, William. The Hollow Land and Other Contributions to the Oxford and Cambridge Magazine. London: Published by Longmans, Green & Co and printed by the Chiswick Press, 1903. Printed on handmade paper using Morris's Golden Type in black, with the titles and shoulder-titles printed in red. Bound in dark green morocco by Sibyl Barnard and Lilian Hay-Cooper, featuring an incredible Arts & Crafts design made up of ten red inlaid flowers in two rows on the covers, surrounded by curving and intertwining branches created with gouges, culminating and dotted with three sizes of leaves. Gilt fillets divide the design into 24 smaller panels as a border around the edges of the covers, which contain 24 larger panels featuring the bulk of the design. Small inlaid red dots in two sizes accent the entire cover, with 70 small inlaid dots included in the border design, and 75 of the larger dots included in the large central panel. Five bands to spine, with similar design to four of the six compartments, and the title and author in the second and third compartments. Turn-ins feature a similar design as the outer border on the covers, again with the small leaf tool and this time accented with 80 inlaid red dots (77 on the rear turn-in to make room for the binder's initials). Signed "SB & LH-C / 1903" on the rear lower turn-in. Japan vellum endpapers. All edges gilt. Measures approx. 6" x 8.25". A few spots of minor rubbing on the spine bands. An incredible example of turn-of-the-century A&C bookbinding.

According to Tidcombe, Lilian Hay-Cooper designed the bindings produced at their studio in Haslemere, Surrey; these were then executed by Sybil Barnard with assistance from Hay-Cooper.

Along with the other Hay-Cooper and Barnard volume featured in this list (Herodias), this volume was exhibited at the Ninth Exhibition of the Arts & Crafts Exhibition Society. (These volumes were displayed in a case alongside work by Sybil Pye, Alfred De Sauty, and Charles McLeish.) A review of the exhibition by "The International Studio" (1910) featured an image of this volume, as well (included here).

This volume was also included in Great Britain's exhibit of "Original Objects of Art Workmanship" at the Universal Exposition in St. Louis in 1904.

One of the duo's books is illustrated in The Studio's legendary The Art of the Book (1914), mentioning the design and tooling was by Hay-Cooper, with the binding executed by Barnard. (Another volume that was finished by Hay-Cooper is also included in the volume, with forwarding by W.H. Smith & Son.)