The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer Now Newly Imprinted
1896
Medium
Hand-printed book on Batchelor linen paper, bound with tooled white pigskin on oak board
Dimensions
44.5 × 36 × 7 cm (17 9/16 × 14 3/16 × 2 13/16 in.)
Classification
book
Department
Ryerson and Burnham Libraries Special Collections
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
271552
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer Now Newly Imprinted is the magnum opus of the artist William Morris, a prominent figure in the 19th-century Arts and Crafts movement in Britain. The book is popularly known as the Kelmscott Chaucer because it was printed at the Kelmscott Press founded by Morris. The Kelmscott Press epitomized Morris’s appreciation for quality and sophisticated design, construction, and hand-printing skills at risk of being lost to mechanization. He created at least three of the type...
About the Artist
William Morris · 1834–1896
William Morris (1834–1896) was a British designer, craftsman, writer, and socialist activist who became the most influential figure in the Arts and Crafts movement and one of the most important designers in British history. Born in Walthamstow, Essex, he studied at Oxford, where he formed a lifelong friendship with Edward Burne-Jones and came under the influence of John Ruskin's writings on art, l...