Berger (Sanford and Helen) Collection of Kelmscott Press Ephemera, approximately 1891-1990s, bulk 1891-1898

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Summary

Title:
Sanford and Helen Berger collection of Kelmscott Press ephemera
Dates:
approximately 1891-1990s, bulk 1891-1898
Creators:
Berger, Sanford and Berger, Helen
Abstract:
The Sanford and Helen Berger collection of Kelmscott Press ephemera contains proofs, drawings, circulars, paper samples, and additional ephemera from William Morris's Kelmscott Printing Press. The bulk of the materials date from approximately 1891 to 1898, though the collection also contains some reference files and other ephemera dating from the 1930s to the 1990s.
Extent:
6.21 Linear Feet (5 boxes)
Language:
Materials are in English.
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Sanford and Helen Berger collection of Kelmscott Press ephemera, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Background

Scope and content:

The Sanford and Helen Berger collection of Kelmscott Press ephemera contains proofs, drawings, paper samples, and additional ephemera from William Morris's Kelmscott Printing Press. The bulk of the materials date from approximately 1891 to 1898, though the collection also contains some reference files and other ephemera dating from the 1930s to the 1990s.

The collection contains prints by Arts and Crafts movement artists Edward Burne-Jones, Charles M. Gere, Walter Crane, Robert Catterson-Smith, Emery Walker, William Harcourt Hooper, and others.

Also included are proofs illustrated with William Morris's decorative initial and border ornamentation, and typography samples of the Golden, Troy, and Chaucer fonts. Many proofs include notes by Morris on design and text.

Some proofs of Kelmscott titles included are: Beowulf, the Golden Legend, the History of Reynard the Foxe, Poems by the Way, the Recuyelle of the Historyes of Troye, the Story of the Glittering Plain, the Water of the Wondrous Isle, the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer, and others.

The collection also contains ephemera with notes by Morris's secretary Sir Sydney C. Cockerell, in addition to circulars, order forms, certificates, and paper samples watermarked with Morris's flower and perch designs.

Biographical / historical:

Sanford (Sandy) Lionel Berger (1919-2000) was an architect and collector from San Francisco, California. A University of California Berkeley and Harvard-trained architect, he practiced for 38 years and was senior vice president of the San Francisco firm, Stone, Marraccini & Patterson.

Sanford and his wife, Helen Louise Berger (1920-2001), also a Harvard-trained architect, were William Morris scholars active in bibliophilic societies such as the William Morris Society and the Book Club of America. In 1965, the Bergers sought to acquire an original Kelmscott Press publication after purchasing a facsimile of the Kelmscott Chaucer in 1958.

After decades of collecting, they compiled an almost complete set of Kelmscott Press books, in addition to manuscripts, textiles, wallpapers, tapestries, ephemera, and more. Before The Huntington acquired their collection in 1999, their materials were often exhibited in art and academic institutions, such as UC Berkeley in 1984, at Stanford University in 1992, and the Victoria & Albert Museum in 1996.

In addition to collecting, the Bergers also operated two private presses, the Tunnel Road and the Scenic Road, from their home, the "Kelmscott Carmel."

Sanford L. Berger died on July 30, 2000, and Helen L. Berger died on March 26, 2001.

In 1891, English designer, social critic, craftsman, and printer, William Morris (1834-1896), founded the Kelmscott Press, a printing press named after his country home, the Kelmscott Manor. Inspired by Emery Walker's 1888 presentation at the Arts & Crafts Exhibition Society on Nicolas Jenson's 15th-century printed books, Morris sought to revive medieval methods of typography, decoration, and design in contemporary publishing. Morris was involved in all aspects of production; he chose literary texts for publication, selected artists for the prints, designed new typefaces, illustrated initials and borders, and sourced custom handmade paper.

Morris used three typefaces in his publications. In late 1889, he developed the Golden typeface modeled off Jenson's Roman typography. In 1891, he designed the Troy typeface based on semi-gothic types used in German printing. In 1892, he modified the Troy typeface by making a smaller version called the Chaucer typeface.

Illustrators who worked for Kelmscott Press include: Charles M. Gere, who designed the frontispiece for News from Nowhere (1892), Charles Fairfax Murray, who illustrated the title page for Savonarola's Epistola de contempta mundi (1894), Arthur J. Gaskin, who illustrated twelve images for Shepheades calender (1896), Walter Crane, who illustrated the Story of the Glittering Plain (1894), and Edward Burne-Jones, who illustrated a majority of the prints for the Kelmscott Press, with the most extensive being the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer (1896).

Other individuals involved with Kelmscott Press's production include: William Harcourt Hooper, the principal engraver for the Press; Edward P. Prince, the punch-cutter for the typefaces; J. Batchelor & Son, the papermakers; Robert Catterson-Smith, an artist who revised illustrations for the Kelmscott Chaucer; Henry Halliday Sparling, secretary of Kelmscott Press until July 1894; and Sydney Carlyle Cockerell who became secretary and took charge of the Press after Morris died in 1896.

During its seven years of operation, the Kelmscott Press produced 53 titles, starting with the Story of the Glittering Plain (1891), continuing with titles such as the History of Godefrey of Boloyne (1893), the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer: Now Newly Imprinted (1896), and ending with Sydney Cockerell's homage to Morris with A Note by William Morris on his Aims in Founding the Kelmscott Press (1898).

Acquisition information:
Purchased from Sanford and Helen Berger, October 1999.
Processing information:

Processed by Mari Khasmanyan in December 2024.

Arrangement:

Collection is arranged according to the existing order of the materials, then by size and format when order is unknown.

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

About this collection guide

Collection Guide Author:
Mari Khasmanyan
Date Encoded:
This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2025-12-17 16:07:37 -0800 .

Access and use

Restrictions:

Open for use by qualified researchers and by appointment. Please contact Reader Services at the Huntington Library for more information.

Terms of access:

The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining necessary permissions rests with the researcher.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item]. Sanford and Helen Berger collection of Kelmscott Press ephemera, The Huntington Library, San Marino, California.

Location of this collection:
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108, US
Contact:
(626) 405-2191
reference@huntington.org
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