Eastlake Designs on Books by Amelia E. Barr

 
The current exhibition of American Publishers' Bindings on the books of Amelia E. Barr 1882-1919 includes covers from Eastlake style through Japonism, Arts and Crafts, Art Nouveau, Poster style, and Text as Art. 

Charles Eastlake’s popular book Hints on Household Taste in Furniture, Upholstery, and Other Details was published in England in 1868, and in the USA in 1872. During the last quarter of the 19th century many book covers were produced that capitalized on the popularity of  “Eastlake style.” Although it was considered “modern” at the time, some of it looks more like a vestige of the Victorian era than a precursor to Modernism, while other elements are timeless. Here are some examples of Eastlake book covers on Amelia Barr’s early books.

Cluny MacPherson

by Amelia E. Barr

American Tract Society, n.d., ©1883

This was a uniform cover style, not specific to this title. Princeton's copy of this book can be read online via HathiTrust, and is in the same design on green cloth. That year ATS also issued a collection of her short stories:

Scottish Sketches

by Amelia E. Barr 

New York: American Tract Society, n.d., ©1883

 

The Hallam Succession

by Amelia E. Barr

New York & Cincinnati: Phillips & Hunt, and Cranston & Stowe, 1885

The Hallam Succession

by Amelia E. Barr

Toronto: William Briggs, 1887

 

The Lost Silver of Briffault
by Amelia E. Barr

 New York & Cincinnati: Hunt & Eaton, 1892, ©1885 Phillips & Hunt.

It's hard to photograph the amazing effect of the gold on this book, which changes depending on the angle you view it from, or light it from, or move it through. Here is a detail from a different angle.  The effect is achieved by engraving the stamping die at different angles to control the reflections.