Estimated Price:

$1,000 - $1,250

Realised Price:

$475

What is this symbol? This symbol indicates that this auction house has NOT verified this price result.

This lot is part of a collection of rare and antique Beatrix Potter items including books, figurines, puzzles and other pieces, that we are selling during this auction. Review the rest of the catalog to see additional Beatrix Potter items.

Title: The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit
Author: Beatrix Potter
Publisher: Frederick Warne & Co.
Printing Year: 1906 First Printing

Condition/Details: Bound in pale green cloth wallet-style case with tuck-in flap and pastedown showing rabbit on front cover, this antique volume is a scarce original edition of this work by English author Beatrix Potter (1866 - 1943), who was best known for her best-selling children's books that featured animal characters, such as Peter Rabbit.

Potter was planning "some stories for very young children. Each story contained 14 pictures and 14 pages of simple text. The pictures and text were arranged in pairs and were in panoramic form, mounted on a long strip of linen, and folded concertina-wise into a wallet with a tuck-in flap. Three stories were written in this form: The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit, The Story of Miss Moppet, and The Sly Old Cat; but only the first two were published. The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit was written specially for Harold Warne's little girl, Louise, who had told Aunt Beatrix that Peter was much too good a rabbit, and she wanted a story about a really naughty one!" (Linder, 183). This accordion style of book was not popular with booksellers; customers tended to leave them unrolled and the books were inconvenient to re-fold. Consequently, these titles went out of print after the first two printings. They were not reissued until 1916, and then in book form only. (Quinby 12. Linder, 426.)

This work contains 14 pages of text printed in green alternating in accordion folding panorama which is mounted on linen and measures when opened 97 inches. The names of London and New York on back cover indicate this edition to be a first printing of this work. The volume shows light external age/wear, most visible on tab and slot. The book is solidly bound with clean pages. Final page shows three creases running diagonally from top edge to side (affecting approximately a third of the page). Some cracking and small tears appear at folds. Previous owner's name and date appear on initial panel (above boxed caption that reads "Uniform with this booklet: The Story of Miss Moppet"). This unpaginated book measures approximately 3 3/4" x 4 1/2". Shipping cost (within the U.S.) for this lot will be: $4.50