Distributed for Royal Collection Trust
The Miniature Library of Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House
A unique look inside the carefully crafted miniature library of the Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House.
Created between 1921 and 1924, the Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is one of the most beautiful and famous dollhouses in the world. The structure was designed by British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens and features the craftsmanship of over one thousand artists. The house was meticulously furnished, meant to serve as a representation of a real royal residence. It features electricity, running water, and working elevators, but perhaps most impressive of all is the house’s spellbinding Edwardian library, which includes more than three hundred miniature books, curated by the granddaughter of Queen Victoria Princess Marie Louise and the writer E.V. Lucas, who contacted hundreds of renowned authors to solicit original works. From poetry by Thomas Hardy to stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and gardening books to atlases, these works represent British aristocratic life and the best examples of art and literature of the time.
The Miniature Library of Queen Mary’s Dolls' House is accompanied by a Foreword by Her Majesty Queen Camilla, making it the premiere guidebook to the Crown’s miniature royal residence.
Created between 1921 and 1924, the Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House is one of the most beautiful and famous dollhouses in the world. The structure was designed by British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens and features the craftsmanship of over one thousand artists. The house was meticulously furnished, meant to serve as a representation of a real royal residence. It features electricity, running water, and working elevators, but perhaps most impressive of all is the house’s spellbinding Edwardian library, which includes more than three hundred miniature books, curated by the granddaughter of Queen Victoria Princess Marie Louise and the writer E.V. Lucas, who contacted hundreds of renowned authors to solicit original works. From poetry by Thomas Hardy to stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and gardening books to atlases, these works represent British aristocratic life and the best examples of art and literature of the time.
The Miniature Library of Queen Mary’s Dolls' House is accompanied by a Foreword by Her Majesty Queen Camilla, making it the premiere guidebook to the Crown’s miniature royal residence.
160 pages | 150 color plates | 8.27 x 6.77 | © 2024
Art: Art--General Studies, British Art
History: European History
Language and Linguistics: General Language and Linguistics
Library Science and Publishing: Publishing
Literature and Literary Criticism: British and Irish Literature
Reviews
Table of Contents
Foreword by Her Majesty Queen Camilla; ‘A very great treasure’ – The Creation of a Miniature World; The Room; ‘Every author of note’; ‘Please do not think I am complaining, because it was all joy’ – Collecting the Manuscripts; ‘Every taste has been considered’ – The Contents of the Manuscripts; ‘The little books look divine’ – Binding the Dolls’ House Library; Printed Books; ‘One of Royalty’s favourite occupations’ – Music in the Dolls’ House; ‘I shall be pleased to add my atom of art’ – Prints and Drawings in the Dolls’ House Library; ‘It will have in the future such inestimable value’; Select Bibliography
