A series started in November 1939. The series ceased in 1959 after 76 volumes. Those issued after 1949 had d/w. The books originated in the Insel-Verlag series published in Germany

These were priced at 1/- each
1. British Birds on Lake, River & Stream (1939) (1941 reprint)
Text Phyllis Barclay-Smith. 16 colour plates after John Gould's "The Birds of Great Britain"
2. A Book of Roses (1939) (1941 Reprint)
Text by J Ramsbottom. Plates after originals in Redoute's "Roses"
3. A Book of Ships (1941)
Text by Charles Mitchell. 16 colour plates & 11 b/w
4. Portraits of Christ (1940)
Text by Ernst Kitzinger & Elizabeth Senior. 16 colour plates & 14 b/w
5. Caricature (1940)
Text by E Gombrich & E Kris. 16 colour plates & 19 b/w

These were priced at 2/- each
6. British Shells (1943)
By F Martin Duncan. 16 colour plates & 3 b/w diagrams.
Cover design by Marian Mahler
7. Fashions and Fashion Plates 1800-1900 (1943)
By James Laver. 16 colour plates
Cover design by Marian Mahler
8. Elizabethan Miniatures (1943) (1949 Revised) (1952 Reprint) (1955 Revised)
By Carl Winter. 16 colour plates & 3 b/w figures.
Cover design by William Grimwood
9. The Microcosm of London by T Rowlandson & A C Pugin (1943) (1949 Revised)
Text by John Summerson. 16 colour plates
Cover design by William Grimwood
10. The Bayeux Tapestry (1943) (1946 revised) (1949 Reprint) (1953 Reprint)
By Eric Maclagan. 8 colour and 40 monochrome plates. b/w map
Cover design by William Grimwood

11. Fishes of Britain's Rivers and Lakes (1943)
By J R Norman. 16 colour plates from Edward Donovan "Natural History of British Fishes" & 2 b/w figures
Cover design by Charles Paine
12. The Poet's Corner (1943)
By Sir Max Beerbohm. 24 colour plates & other b/w illustrations
13. Edible Fungi (1943) (1948 revised)
By John Ramsbottom. 16 colour plates & cover design by Rose Ellenby
14. A Book of Lilies (1943)
By Fred Stoker. 16 colour plates by Lilian Snelling & 2 b/w illustrations
Cover design by Marianne Mahler
15. Seashore Life and Pattern (1944)
By T Stephenson. 16 colour plates & 10 b/w illustrations.
Cover design by T A Stephenson

16. Children as Artists (1944) (1947 New Edition)
By R R Tomlinson. 16 colour plates & 13 b/w illustrations.
17. The Leaves of Southwell (1945)
By Nikolaus Pevsner. Photographs by F L Attenborough. with 33 plates & 24 figures in the text
18. Some British Moths (1944)
By Norman Riley. 16 plates from original drawings by Moses Harris
Cover design by Enid Marx
19. Garden Birds (1945) (Reprinted 1946 & 1952)
By Phyllis Barclay-Smith. 20 colour plates from John Gould's "The Birds of Great Britain"
Cover design by Sylvia Varley
20. English Ballet (1944) (1945 revised)
By Janet Leeper. 16 colour plates & 6 b/w illustrations

21. Popular Art in Britain (1945)
By Noel Carrington. 32 plates in colour and b/w by Clarke Hutton + cover design
22. Heraldry in England (1946) (Reprinted in 1949, 1951 & 1953)
By Anthony Wagner. 15 colour plates & 1 b/w illustration
Cover design by William Grimmond
23. Poisonous Fungi (1945)
By John Ramsbottom. 16 colour & 4 b/w figures by Rose Ellenby
Cover design by Joy Jarvis
24. Birds of the Sea (1945)
By R M Lockley. 24 colour plates & 2 b/w by R B Talbot Kelly
These were priced at 2/6 each
25. Ur : The First Phases (1946)
By Leonard Woolley. 16 colour plates
Cover design by William Grimmond

26. A Book of Toys (1946)
Written and illustrated by Gwen White + cover design
27. Flowers of Marsh and Stream (1946)
Text by Iolo A Williams. 16 colour plates & 3 b/w figures by Noel Rooke + cover design
28. A History of English Clocks (1947) (1950 revised)
By R W Symonds. 72 photographic plates & 6 line drawings.
Cover design by Clifford & Rosemary Ellis
29. Flowers of the Woods (1946)
By E J Salisbury. 24 colour plates from Curtis "Flora Londinensis"
Cover design by Clifford & Rosemary Ellis
30. A Selection of Engravings on Wood by Thomas Bewick, with a Note on Him by John Rayner (1947)
30 b/w plates & 17 illustrations in the text.
Cover design by William Grimmond

31. English Book Illustration 1800-1900 (1947)
By Philip James. 36 plates.
Cover design by William Grimmond
32. A Christmas Carol in Prose : Being a Ghost story of Christmas (1946) (1954 Reprint)
By Charles Dickens. Illustrations by John Leech.
Cover design by William Grimmond (from original)
33. Russian Icons (1947)
By David Talbot Rice. 16 colour plates. Cover design by Enid Marx
34. The English Tradition in Design (1947)
By John Gloag. 72 photographic plates & 3 b/w illustrations.
Cover design by William Grimmond from a design by Eva Crofts
35. A Book of Spiders (1947)
By W S Bristowe. 24 colour plates (from previously unpublished drawings 1867-70 by A T Hollick
Plus 8 b/w ilustrations
Cover design by Mary W Duncan
[This is the commonest title in the series because it was remaindered.]

36. Ballooning (1948)
By C H Gibbs-Smith. 32 plates, 14 in colour
Cover design by Marian Mahler
37. Wild Flowers of the Chalk (1947)
By John Gilmour. 16 colour plates, 1 b/w & map by Irene Hawkins
Cover design by William Grimmond
38. Compliments of the Season (1947)
By L D Ettlinger & R G Holloway. 16 colour plates & 3 b/w illustrations
Cover design by Hans Schwarz
39. Woodcuts of Albrecht Durer (1948)
By T D Barlow. 84 b/w plates
40. Edward Gordon Craig Designs for the Theatre (1948)
By Janet Leeper. 40 plates & 4 illustrations in the tex.
Cover design by William Grimmond after a desgn by Craig

41. British Butterflies (1951)
By E B Ford. 16 colour plates by Paxton Chadwick, plus 1 page of line drawings + cover design
42. British Military Uniforms (1948)
By James Laver. 24 colour plates.
Cover design by William Grimmond
43. A Prospect of Wales (1948)
Essay by Gwyn Jones. 20 colour plates & 3 b/w illustrations by Kenneth Rowntree + cover design
44. Tulipomania (1950)
By Wilfrid Blunt. 16 plates from 17thC water colours by Alexander Marshal
Coverdesign by William Grimmond
45. Unknown Westminster Abbey (1948)
By Lawrence E Tanner. 64 photographic plates by R P Howgrave-Graham

46. Highland Dress (1948)
By George F Collie, 24 colour plates from McIan's "The Clans of the Scottish Highlands"
47. British Reptiles and Amphibia (1949)
By Malcolm Smith. 16 colour plates & 6 b/w figures by Paxton Chadwick + cover design
48. A Book of Scripts (1949) (Revised 1950, 1952, 1955, 1960) (1968 Enlarged & Revised)
By Alfred Fairbank. 64 plates in b/w & 13 b/w figures.
Designed by Jan Tschichold
49. Some British Beetles (1948)
By Geoffrey Taylor. 24 colour plates & 4 b/w illustrations by Vere Temple
50. Popular Art in the United States (1948)
By Erwin I Christensen. 32 plates from the Index of American Design National Gallery of Art

51. Life in an English Village (1949)
Introductory essay by Noel Carrington. 16 lithographs by Edward Bawden + cover design
These were priced at 3/- each
52. The Isle of Wight (1950)
Illustrated and described by Barbara Jones. 16 colour plates & 5 b/w illustrations
Cover design by Clifford Barry
53. Flowers of the Meadow (1950)
By Geoffrey Grigson. 24 plates by Robin Tanner + cover design
54. Greek Terracottas (1950)
By T B L Webster. 54 collograuve plates
Cover design by Enid Marx
55. Romney Marsh (1950)
Illustrated and described by John Piper. 16 colour plates & 17 b/w illustrations

56. Early British Railways (1950)
By Christian Barman. 16 reproductions of old prints & drawings.
Cover design by Enid Marx
[The number on the spine says 55, but is correctly printed on the wrapper.]
57. A Book of Mosses (1950)
By Paul Richards. 16 colour plates from Johannes Hedwig's "Descriptio Muscorum"
Cover design by Paxton Chadwick
58. A Book of Ducks (1951)
This was priced at 3/6
By Phyllis Barclay-Smith. 16 colour plates & 19 b/w illustrations by Peter Shepheard + cover design
59. Ackermann's Cambridge (1951) (1952 Reprint)
This was priced at 4/-
By Reginald Ross Williamson. 20 colour plates from "A History of the University of Cambridge,
its Colleges, Halls & Public Buildings" (1815)
Cover design by William Grimmond
60. The Crown Jewels (1951)
This was priced at 4/-
By Oliver Warner. 16 colour plates by Paxton Chadwick + cover design

61. An Atlas of Tudor England and Wales (1951) (1953 Reprinted)
This was priced at 3/6
Introduced by E G R Taylor : With 40 plates from John Speed's "Pocket Atlas of 1627"
62. Medieval Carvings in Exeter Cathedral (1953)
This was priced at 4/6
By C J P Cave, with a noe on the carvers by Nikolaus Pevsner
63. A Book of Greek Coins (1952)
This was priced at 4/6
By Charles Seltman. 48 photogravure plates and a map
Cover design by William Grimmond
64. Magic Books from Mexico (1953) (1966 by Ediciones Lara, Mexico)
This was priced at 4/6
Introduction and Notes on the plates by C A Burland. 16 colour plates
Cover design William Grimmond
65. Semi-Precious Stones (1952)
This was priced at 4/6
16 coloured plates by Arthur Smith N Wooster + cover design

66. Birds of La Plata (1954)
This was priced at 4/6
Notes by W H Hudson & Introduction by Richard Curle. 16 colour plates by S Magno.
Cover design by Sarah Nechamkin
67. Mountain Birds (1952)
This was priced at 4/6
By R A H Coombes. 16 plates by G E Lodge
Cover design from a patterned paper in the collection of Olga Hirsch
68. Animals in Staffordshire Pottery (1953)
This was priced at 5/-
By Bernard Rackham. 16 plates & 4 b/w illustrations by Peggy Jeremy + cover design
69. Ackermann's Oxford (1954)
This was priced at 5/-
Notes by H M Colvin. 16 colour plates from Rudolph Ackermann's "A History of the University
of Oxford, its Colleges, Halls and Public Buildings" 1814 & James
Ingram's "Memorials of Oxford" 1837.
Cover design Gordon Cullen
70. The Diverting History of John Gilpin (1953) (1954 Reprint)
This was priced at 3/6
By William Cowper, illustrations by Ronald Searle.

71. Egyptian Paintings (1954)
This was priced at 5/-
Illustrated and described by Nina M Davies. 16 colour plates & 3 b/w drawings in text.
Cover design by Patricia Lyle
72. Misericords Medieval Life in English Woodcarving (1954) (1956 reprint)
This was priced at 3/6
By M D Anderson. 48 photographic plates & 2 b/w illustrations
Cover design by Berthold Wolpe
73. The Picture of Cricket (1955)
This was priced at 5/-
By John Arlott. 16 colour or b/w white plates.
Cover design by Lynton Lamb
74. Woodland Birds (1955)
This was priced at 5/-
By Phyllis Barclay-Smith. 16 plates by Peter Shepheard + cover design
75. Monumental Brasses (1957)
This was priced at 5/-
By James Mann. 32 plates
Cover design John Griffiths

76. The Sculpture of the Parthenon (1959)
This was priced at 5/-
By P E Corbett. 40 b/w plates & 7 line drawings
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[Complete Set of 76 volumes offered in 1991 for £400]

READING
Russell Edwards & David J Hall : "So Much Admired" - Die Insel-Bucherei and
the King Penguin Series (1988 Salvia Books, Edinburgh)