Books

N. P.: Painted by Joseph Clayton Clark (KYD), n. d. ca 1920., 1920. First edition. An original full-color illustration of Bill Sykes, the villain in Oliver Twist, executed by Kyd. No date but probably ca. 1920s. Captioned Bill Sykes, Oliver Twist, and signed as Kyd. Approximately 3 3/4 x 5”, matted, glazed, and framed. A richly colored watercolor. Wikipedia says: "Joseph Clayton Clark (1857 - 8 August 1937), who worked under the pseudonym "Kyd", was a British artist best known for his illustrations of characters from the novels of Charles Dickens. The artwork was published in magazines or sold as watercolor paintings, rather than included in an edition of the novels." Fine bright picture in fine condition, but not examined out of the frame.

Oliver Twist; or, the Parish Boy's Progress is Charles Dickens's second novel, and was first published as a serial from 1837 to 1839. The story centers on orphan Oliver Twist, born in a workhouse and sold into apprenticeship with an undertaker. After escaping, Oliver travels to London, where he meets the 'Artful Dodger', a member of a gang of juvenile pickpockets led by the elderly criminal Fagin.

First editions of 'Oliver Twist' can be identified by their three volumes published by Richard Bentley in 1838, featuring 24 steel-engraved plates by George Cruikshank and no mention of the author’s name on the title page. Subsequent editions after Dickens’s death may also include his name as the author.