MALORY, Thomas. The Birth, Life & Acts of King Arthur, of his noble knights of the round table, their marvellous enquests and adventures, the achieving of the San Greal and in the end Le Morte Darthur. Embellished with many original designs by Aubrey Beardsley, London: Dent, 1893-94, 2 volumes, 4°, first edition in book form, limited to 1800 copies, this one of 1500 on ordinary paper, photogravure frontispieces, plates, illustrations, decorations and opening initials from line-blocks, all after Beardsley (some light browning), original cream cloth gilt, front covers and spines blocked with designs of water-lillies after the artist (front inner hinge to vol. I split) [Gallatin p. 33] -- Aymer VALLANCE & Rainforth ARMITAGE (editors). Reproductions of Eleven Designs from the First Edition of the Morte Darthur, London: J.M. Dent, 1927, 4°, number 145 of 300 copies on hand-made paper, plates and illustrations, original vellum with calf back, front cover with design of clematis stamped in gilt, spine lettered in gilt, t.e.g. [Gallatin p. 36]; together with the second and third editions of Beardsley's Morte Darthur (1909 and 1927). (5) The Morte Darthur was Beardsley's first professional undertaking, for which he gave up his post at the Guardian Life Insurance Company. Over 350 drawings, reproduced by the line-block process, were required for the book. This photo-process limited him to what became a characteristic style of drawing in black and white, without intermediate tones.