Mansfield Park, 1875, Groombridge and Sons

Object name: Mansfield Park, 1875, Groombridge and Sons

Object number: CHWJA:JAHB154

Category: Books

Description: Mansfield Park, published in 1875 by Groombridge and Sons, 5 Paternoster Row, London. Maroon cloth covers, all edges in gilt; neat with gift inscription to front paste down.

Made: October 1875

Context: This was the first fully illustrated edition of a Jane Austen novel, featuring seven illustrations from drawings by A. F. Lydon.

The artist Joan Hassall described this edition in her address to the Jane Austen Society on 21 July 1973, reported in the Report for the year 1973:

‘MANSFIELD PARK, published by Groombridge 1875 with colour wood engravings by Fawcett from watercolours by A. F. Lydon, was charming, with the pictures printed in four depths of mauvish grey. There were several pleasing romantic landscapes with small figures and then—I turned the page and there stood Henry Crawford in a runcible hat and heavy black beard looking exactly like Dante Gabriel Rossetti, addressing Fanny in a pork pie hat and flounces! Groombridge was an interesting publisher, who seems to have specialised in handsome books.’

Mansfield Park, published in 1875 by Groombridge and Sons. Front cover: maroon cloth with gilt lettering.

Mansfield Park, published in 1875 by Groombridge and Sons. Title page

Mansfield Park, published in 1875 by Groombridge and Sons. Internal illustration showing Fanny Price and Edmund Bertram

Mansfield Park, published in 1875 by Groombridge and Sons. Internal illustration

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