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Bitten By Witch Fever Lucinda Hawksley

Bitten By Witch Fever By Lucinda Hawksley

Bitten By Witch Fever by Lucinda Hawksley

Reviews:
$28.99
Condition - Very Good
Out of stock
Very Good

Summary

Part social history and part design catalogue, this innovative book delves into the sinister history of 19th-century wallpaper.

Bitten By Witch Fever Summary

Bitten By Witch Fever: Wallpaper & Arsenic in the Victorian Home by Lucinda Hawksley

Winner: Best Trade Illustrated Book, British Book Design & Production Awards 2017

'As to the arsenic scare a greater folly it is hardly possible to imagine: the doctors were bitten as people were bitten by the witch fever.' - William Morris on toxic wallpapers, 1885. Bitten by Witch Fever presents facsimile samples of 275 of the most sumptuous wallpaper designs ever created by designers and printers of the age, including Christopher Dresser and Morris & Co. For the first time in their history, every one of the samples shown has been laboratory tested and found to contain arsenic. Interleaved with the wallpaper sections, evocative commentary guides you through the incredible story of the manufacture, uses and effects of arsenic, and presents the heated public debate surrounding the use of deadly pigments in the sublime wallpapers of a newly industrialized world.

Chosen by Emma Roberts and Karah Preiss for their Belletrist Book Club's Gift Guide.

Bitten By Witch Fever Reviews

'A highly original and beautifully illustrated volume that contrasts alluring, poison-laden wallpapers with thought-provoking narrative' - Town Daily
'Like Horrible Histories, but for grown-ups with a keen interest in interior design' - Emerald Street
'Lucinda Hawksley explores the fascinating history of the use of arsenic in textiles and wallpapers. The book is beautifully made' - It's Nice That
'In Hawksley's engaging prose, Morris comes across as a contradictory figure - just like the poisonously beautiful wallpaper that adorned so many Victorian homes and like the sumptuous pages of this handsome book, hiding a dark social history within' - World of Interiors
'The bible on this topic - and gorgeous to boot' - BBC History

About Lucinda Hawksley

Lucinda Hawksley is the author of three biographies of Victorian artists: Lizzie Siddal, Kate Perugini (nee Dickens) and Princess Louise. She also writes about art history, social history, literature and the life and works of her great-great-great-grandfather Charles Dickens. Lucinda is a Pre-Raphaelite and Aestheticism expert and a regular lecturer at the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Arsenic & Victorian Paper Hangings * 1. Arsenic Murder & Myth 2. Madness in the Method; Poison in the Process * 3. Arsenic in the Home * 4. The Wallpaper Designers * 5. The Public Debate * 6. Getting Away From It All * 7. The Rise of Arsenic-free Wallpaper * Appendix

Additional information

GOR007931364
9780500518380
0500518386
Bitten By Witch Fever: Wallpaper & Arsenic in the Victorian Home by Lucinda Hawksley
Lucinda Hawksley
Used - Very Good
Hardback
Thames & Hudson Ltd
2016-10-20
256
N/A
Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.
This is a used book - there is no escaping the fact it has been read by someone else and it will show signs of wear and previous use. Overall we expect it to be in very good condition, but if you are not entirely satisfied please get in touch with us

Customer Reviews - Bitten By Witch Fever