Grass Fire from "California Hills and Other Wood Engravings"

Paul Hambleton Landacre

This image is plate VI of XIV from the book "California Hills and Other Wood Engravings", published in 1931 in Los Angeles by Bruce McCallister and printed from the woodblocks by Harold Young in a limited edition of 500. There is a separate edition of 50 printed by Landacre and pencil signed by him.

A note in the colophon of California Hills states: "The artist and the printer pray that he who may be tempted to mutilate this book will be reminded of those dark words of St. Nicholas of Arrinstine: Quem si quis male tractaverit, morte moriatur, in sartagine coquatur, caducus morbus instet eum et febres, et rotetur, et suspendatur. Amen."

Despite this curse many of the books have been broken, sometimes because of damage to the cover or spine and sometimes by collectors and dealers who wish to own or frame individual images. This impression is from one of those broken books.