During 1844 and 1845 London printer and publisher Charles Knight issued Old England: A Pictorial Museum in ninety-six fascicules in small folio format containing 24 plates printed by his patented color printing process, and a total of 2,488 numbered wood engravings. When the set was complete title pages were issued for two volumes, and Knight offered the set for sale in publisher's cloth bindings, blind-stamped and gilt in 1845. Knight was the first English book publisher to offer printed color plates at a low price for wider market. Old England must have been a success since copies were readily available in 2012.
Filed under: Book History, Book Illustration, Printing / Typography, Publishing
