DEUTSCHE WIEGENLIEDER [German Lullabies]

Wien [Vienna] & Leipzig: Gerlach und Wiedling, 1909. Near fine.. First edition of this stylish book of lullabies merging medieval and modern artistic influences. The aesthetics of this lovely little book dance the line between manuscript and print with a dash of Jugendstil: large ornamental "rubricated" initials nestle into musical notation and simple illustrations call to mind the figural borders of early printed books of hours, all with the bold contrast popular in German art of the early 20th century. Even the typeface mimics the bâtarde scribal script in use in Germany in the 14th and 15th centuries.
DEUTSCHE WIEGENLIEDER is number 24 in the celebrated Gerlach's Jugendbücherei series of 34 books, noted for "combin[ing] contemporary artistry with popular fairytales and German legends" (San Diego State Library). Gerlach hired well-known German and Austrian artists to give a modern flair to traditional stories, which this title does particularly well. 6'' x 5.25''. Original blue pictorial cloth binding with yellow stenciled figures and gilt lettering. Green endpapers. Illustrated throughout in red, yellow, and blue, including musical notation. Text in German. 96 pages. Binding with a touch of fraying to spine ends. Slight cracking to hinges of endpapers, still firm. Colors sharp and bright.