Jan 28 at 12:00 PM - Sale 2556 -
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Sale 2556 - Lot 23

Estimate: $ 1,500 - $ 2,500
CLEMENT HURD (1908-1988)
"Running Away." Illustration published on the first page of the 1972 edition of Margaret Wise Brown's The Runaway Bunny, revised, with new illustrations (New York: Harper & Row, 1972). Ink on board. 215x75 mm; 8 1/2x3 inches, image, on 6x10-inch board. Signed "C.Hurd" in ink, lower left image, "p7" penciled in upper right corner, and caption in unknown hand on verso. A copy of the 1972 edition is included in the lot.

Accompanied by an Autograph Letter Signed by Hurd, 1 page, 8vo, dated 24 March 1976 on his Mill Valley, California letterhead, explaining to the recipient that a few of the originals were in his possession and could be purchased directly from him. This image is the first listed. The mailing envelope and a brief Easter greeting are also included.

Hurd and Brown collaborated on two of the most enduring and beloved children's books of all time: Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny. The famous tale of a verbal hide-and-seek game which describes a mother's enduring love for her curious little bunny was first published in 1942, has never been out of print, and sold millions of copies worldwide. In 1972, Hurd republished the iconic work with revised illustrations that kept the spirit of the original and was embraced by a new generation of readers.

As far as we are able to determine, no original illustration for either edition of The Runaway Bunny has come to auction previously. Hurd's papers and most of the original studies for this and other works are housed in the Clement Hurd archive at University of Minnesota Libraries Children's Literature Research Collections.
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