Izaak Walton The Compleat Angler Limited Editions Club 1948 Illustrated Edition

Izaak Walton

Book

Walton, Izaak. The Compleat Angler, 1948 presents a twentieth-century fine press edition of the seventeenth-century English classic first published in 1653, a foundational text in angling literature and pastoral prose. Walton’s work combines practical instruction on fishing with reflective dialogue, poetry, and meditations on nature, shaping early modern recreational literature and influencing centuries of sporting and environmental writing. Revised repeatedly by Walton over a quarter century, the text became a touchstone for anglers and readers drawn to its blend of craft knowledge and contemplative philosophy. This Limited Editions Club printing situates the work within mid-twentieth-century book arts culture, reaffirming its status in Anglo-American literary tradition.

Walton, Izaak. The Compleat Angler; or The Contemplative Man’s Recreation: Being Discourse of Fish and Fishing for the Perusal of Anglers. Illustrated by Douglas W. Gorsline. New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1948. Large-format volume in slipcase.

The edition includes numerous black-and-white illustrations depicting fish species, anglers beside lakes and rivers, pastoral landscapes, and narrative scenes drawn from Walton’s prose and verse. First issued in London by Richard Marriot in 1653 and expanded through subsequent editions, The Compleat Angler endures as a central text in the history of leisure, environmental sensibility, and English vernacular prose. Light staining to some pages; text and illustrations crisp and clear; minor wear and fading to edges of slipcase. Overall very good condition. Substantial illustrated edition of a canonical work in recreational and natural history literature.

Item #18555

Price: $1,650.00