Old Dame Trot and her comical cat.

London : Routledge, Warne, and Routledge, [1863].
London : George Routledge & Sons, [1865-1873].

[London] : Edmund Evans.
[London] : Leighton Brothers.

Aunt Mavor's toy books [new series] : 49
Routledge's new sixpenny toy books : 19
Routledge's new sixpenny toy books : 59

6d.

Evans, Edmund (engraver and printer)
Leighton Brothers (printer)
Routledge, Warne, and Routledge (publisher)

Toy book

Size
24,5x17,5 cm
Format and pagination
8° : 8 ll.
Signatures
A⁸
Signatures note
1 gathering, sewn, paginated 1-8
Illustrations
8 illustrations, engraved and signed by Evans after drawings by anonymous illustrator; first double spread (pp. 4-5); text and illustration on the same side of the sheet
Source for attribution
Signature (engraver)
Source for date
Listed in Routledge's wholesale catalogue of October, 1863
Listed in Routledge's ledger as having the 1st edition printed in October, 1863
List of titles on lower wrapper
Before 1865, printed in black by Evans
After 1865, printed in red, yellow, pink, blue, brown and the black key block by Leighton Brothers, with Evans' signature gauged off
Listed in Routledge's wholesale catalogue of July 1866 as no. 19 of Routledge's new sixpenny toy books series

The publishers' caption "Routledge, Warne, and Routledge" was in use after May 1859, when William Henry Warne died, aged only 37
The Farringdon Street address was in use until the end of January 1864, when they moved to Broadway, Ludgate Hill
Printed on one side of the sheet only; first and last page pasted to upper and lower wrappers
Title and publication information from upper wrapper, which serves as title page, and from lower wrapper publishers' advertisements

Chromo-relief
Relief
Hand-colouring

Variant A
[1863]: printed in black and hand-coloured; upper wrapper printed in red and black on yellow paper; inserted in a red and black frame, at head, type-set series title: "AUNT MAVOR'S EVERLASTING TOY BOOKS. | PRICE ONE SHILLING EACH."; below, title in red and black: "[red, outlined in black] OLD | DAME TROT | [black] AND | HER COMICAL CAT.", and illustration from p. 1; below the picture, at foot, type-set publishers' caption: "LONDON: | ROUTLEDGE, WARNE, & ROUTLEDGE."; lower wrapper printed in black on yellow paper; it bears the old publishers' address in use before January 1864; this lower wrapper has been traced only in association with the present title; it lists Routledge's one shilling toy and funny books titles nos. [1-17] and Routledge's illustrated juvenile books titles nos. 1-2, 4-13, 14-22, 23-31, the last of which were published in November 1862; publishers' advertisements, framed: "[ornamented] New Juvenile Books. | ROUTLEDGE'S SHILLING COLOURED TOY BOOKS. | In fcap. 4to, price One Shilling each, boards, with Pictorial Covers. | [two columns, Routledge's one shilling toy and funny books titles nos. [1-6, 16-17; 7-15]] | [at centre] ROUTLEDGE'S ILLUSTRATED JUVENILE BOOKS. | Price ONE SHILLING each, printed in small fcap. 8vo. […] | [three columns, titles nos. 1-2, 4-13; 14-22; 23-31] | [at centre] ROUTLEDGE'S PRIMERS AND ALPHABETS. | […] | LONDON: ROUTLEDGE, WARNE, AND ROUTLEDGE, FARRINGDON STREET."; at foot, outside the frame: "EDMUND EVANS, ENGRAVER AND PRINTER, RAQUET COURT, FLEET STREET."; inside illustrations printed in black, hand-coloured
Variant B
[1865]: printed in colour; upper wrapper printed in red and black on yellow paper; inserted in a red frame, at head, type-set series title: "AUNT MAVOR'S TOY BOOKS. | PRICE SIXPENCE EACH."; same title and front cover illustration as variant A; below the picture, at foot, type-set publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS"; 1865 lower wrapper printed in black on yellow paper, listing Aunt Mavor's toy books titles 12, 14-59, the last of which published in 1865; at foot, publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS, | BROADWAY, LUDGATE HILL."; outside the frame, printers' caption: "EDMUND EVANS, ENGRAVER AND PRINTER, RAQUET COURT, FLEET STREET."; inside illustrations printed in black, hand-coloured
Variant C
[1865]: printed in colour; upper wrapper printed in red and black on yellow paper; inserted in a red frame, at head, type-set series title: "AUNT MAVOR'S TOY BOOKS. | PRICE SIXPENCE EACH."; same title and front cover illustration as variant A; below the picture, at foot, type-set publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE & SONS"; 1865 lower wrapper printed in black on yellow paper, listing Aunt Mavor's toy books titles 12, 14-63, the last of which published in 1865; at foot, publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS, | BROADWAY, LUDGATE HILL."; outside the frame, printers' caption: "EDMUND EVANS, ENGRAVER AND PRINTER, RAQUET COURT, FLEET STREET."; inside illustrations printed in red, yellow, pink, blue, brown and the black key block
Variant D
[1866]: printed in colour with Leighton cover design; upper wrapper printed in red and black on yellow paper; inserted in decorated red frame, at head: "AUNT MAVOR'S TOY BOOKS."; inserted in a red banner: "SIXPENCE."; same title and front cover illustration as variant A; below the picture, at foot, type-set publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS."; 1866 lower wrapper listing Routledge's new sixpenny toy books titles, unnumbered, the last of which published in 1866; at foot, inside the frame, publishers' caption: "GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS, | LONDON AND NEW YORK."; outside the frame: "LEIGHTON, BROTHERS, PRINTERS, MILFORD LANE, STRAND."; inside illustrations printed in red, yellow, pink, blue, brown and the black key block by Leighton Brothers, with Evans' signature gauged off
Variant E
[1870]: printed in colour with Leighton cover design; upper wrapper printed in red and black on yellow paper; inserted in decorated red frame, at head: "PRICE SIXPENCE; OR, MOUNTED ON CLOTH, ONE SHILLING"; inserted in a red banner: "AUNT MAVOR'S TOY BOOKS."; same title and front cover illustration as variant A; below the picture, at foot, type-set publishers' caption: "LONDON: | GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS."; 1870 lower wrapper listing Routledge's new sixpenny toy books titles, unnumbered, the last of which published in 1870; at foot, inside the frame, publishers' caption: "GEORGE ROUTLEDGE AND SONS, | LONDON AND NEW YORK."; no printers' caption outside the frame

BL: 12806.g.52. (variant C: [1865]; accession stamp dated 10MA67; same shelfmark for several boxes of items (this is second box, no. 27))
BrM: GR487 .O4175 1866z (variant E; Digital copy)
ByM: GR487 .O4155 1865z (variant B; Digital copy)

Catawiki: 2743749 (variant A: [1863], everlasting; inscribed and dated: "August 1864"; sold in 2015)
Roe and Moore Rare Books: 600030 (variant D: [1866])

Documents
NAL-ReC: B.LB.ROUT.TR.1863 (proofs for inside illustrations of the first issue, 1863, not coloured, with handwritten notes on p. 1: "188. Oct. 29/63, 4000")
UCL-RKP: RKP 9 (p. 743: "Old Dame Trot. 1863 Oct. 1, 1st edition 4000. 1864 July 1, 2000. 1865 Sep. 1, 2000. 1866 July 2, 5000. 1868 Jan. 7, 5000. 1873 Jan. 1, 4000.")

https://www.picoboo.eu/catalogue/pcb3449

Francesca Tancini, "Old Dame Trot and her comical cat". In PiCoBoo, accessed October 15, 2024, https://www.picoboo.eu/catalogue/pcb3449