Ashendene Press Malory and "The Barge to Avalon"
The Ashendene Press Malory is one of the most exceptional of the fine-press Arthurian books. Its beautiful font with initials in red and blue and illustrations by Charles M. Gere and Margaret Gere make it a masterpiece of the printer’s art. The copy displayed here belonged to Nathan Comfort Starr, author of King Arthur Today, among the earliest studies of modern Arthurian literature, and contains his bookplate.
Among the iconic images in the Ashendene is the illustration of Arthur in the barge to Avalon. A more recent rendering of that image is the original and hauntingly evocative watercolor by Anna-Marie Ferguson for Le Morte d’Arthur (2000).
The Barge to Avalon, an original watercolor by Anna-Marie Ferguson.
Ashendene Press edition of Morte Darthur, illustration of Arthur in the barge to Avalon.
Spine, bookplate, bibliographic inscription,
and illustrated plates from the Ashendene Malory.