“For billionaire booklovers”: George D. Sproul’s St. Dunstan Editions

Abstract

This article introduces the St. Dunstan Illuminated Editions, a set of editions de luxe produced by New York-based publisher George D. Sproul between approximately 1901 and 1903, and attempts to place them within the history of other “deluxe” editions published around the turn of the century . It provides a brief history of the books’ publication plan, illuminators, and intended subscribers, as well as a short overview of legal actions during their initial publication phase. It finishes by looking at their shifting financial value since publication as seen through auction outcomes and booksellers’ pricing.