Tales of Mystery and Imagination by Poe, Edgar Allan; Clarke, Harry (illustrator) - 1919

London: George G. Harrap and Co, 1919. Deluxe signed limited first edition of Harry Clarke's illustrated Poe, number 100 of 170 copies signed by Clarke. The collection includes many of the stories for which Poe is best known, including "The Fall of the House of Usher," "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," and "The Pit and the Pendulum." Few illustrators have matched the unsettling atmosphere of Poe's stories, which laid the foundation for much of modern mystery, horror, and science fiction; critics generally agree that Clarke's mad interpretations are among the very best. His highly stylized treatment of Poe looks back to Decadents like Aubrey Beardsley, while anticipating the work of artists like Ralph Steadman and Yayoi Kusama; Clarke is often cited as a major influence on the psychedelic graphics of the 1960s. A handsome, near-fine copy. Single volume measuring 10.5 x 8 inches: 382, [2]. Publisher's original full vellum, front board ruled and stamped in gilt with design by Clarke, spine lettered in gilt, top edge gilt, all other edges uncut, text block partially unopened. Half-title, with limitation signed by Clarke on verso. Frontispiece and 23 full-page tissue-guarded black-and-white illustrations, vignette on title page, decorative headpieces and endpieces. Vellum lightly bowed and soiled, lightest foxing to endpapers.