Nov 21, 2024 - Sale 2687

Sale 2687 - Lot 169

Price Realized: $ 2,250
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 600 - $ 900
(LITERATURE.) Charles F. Lummis. Group of 4 birch-bark books. Each about 3 x 2½ inches, printed entirely on birch bark, stitched; minimal wear except as noted. Ohio and New Hampshire, 1883 and undated
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Additional Details

Charles Fletcher Lummis (1859-1928) published his first volume of "Birch Bark Poems" in 1878 while still a Harvard student; they helped launch a career as an author and activist. The books helped to popularize birch bark as a printing medium. Although popular as souvenirs in mountain towns, not many have survived due to their fragility. These two Lummis printings have held up very well; so have the two accompanying New Hampshire pirate printings.

"Birch Bark Poems, Vol. I." Ninth Thousand. [12] pages on birch bark, including illustrated wrappers. Chillicothe, OH, 1883.

"Birch Bark Poems, Vol. II." [12] pages on birch bark, including illustrated wrappers. Chillicothe, OH, 1883.

"Birch-Bark Souvenirs: Poems." [11] pages on birch bark, including wrappers. Not credited to Lummis, but featuring some of the same poems. North Conway, NH: James Riley, undated.

"Birch-Bark Souvenirs: Views." [10] pages on birch bark, consisting of wrappers and 8 full-page views of tourist sites in northern New Hampshire; partial separation on title page. No apparent connection to Lummis. North Conway, NH: James Riley, undated.