HALL, Mrs. S. C. [Anna Maria Hall]. Sketches of Irish Character.

Illustrated Edition. London: How and Parsons, 1842. Illustrated edition. Octavo. pp. xii, 384. Contemporary green cloth elaborately blocked in blind, rebacked preserving the original gilt-decorated spine with red morocco title label. Some light foxing to preliminary leaves and occasional scattered spotting, otherwise internally clean and bright. A very good copy.

A charming and influential collection of Irish tales and character sketches by Anna Maria Hall (1800–1881), one of the most widely read Irish writers of the nineteenth century. Drawing upon her childhood in Bannow, County Wexford, Hall sought to preserve the customs, humour, folklore and everyday life of rural Ireland at a time of profound social change. The volume contains such celebrated sketches as Lilly O’Brien, The Bannow Postman, Father Mike, Kelly the Piper and The Rapparee, each illustrating the author’s affectionate and often idealised portrayal of Irish life and character.

Profusely illustrated with wood-engravings by leading artists of the period, including Daniel Maclise, William Harvey, J. Franklin, W. H. Brooke and others. The illustrations are among the finest examples of Victorian book production and significantly enhance the work’s appeal. Hall’s writings played an important role in shaping nineteenth-century perceptions of Ireland for British and American readers and remain an important source for the study of Irish social history and folklore.

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