Little Red Riding Hood (Pop-Up Book) — Antique Tissue Crepe Paper Triumph Edition, ca. 1890 — Fine Condition

B. Wilmsen. Little Red Riding Hood (Tissue-Paper Pop-Up Book).
Philadelphia: B. Wilmsen, Triumph Edition, n.d. [ca. 1890].

Quarto (10 1/2 x 7 1/4 in.; 267 x 184 mm). [10] pp. including pictorial stiff-paper wrappers. Text and illustrations printed in chromolithography. Five double-page openings each containing a three-dimensional honeycomb tissue-paper pop-up, nine in total, all fully functional. Original color-illustrated wrappers; spine stapled twice as issued.

A striking example of a late-nineteenth-century German-printed tissue-paper movable, issued in America by B. Wilmsen of Philadelphia as part of his “Triumph Edition” series. The cover bears the imprint “Triumph Edition Copyright B. Wilmsen Philadelphia / Printed in Germany,”. The book presents the classic tale of Little Red Riding Hood through vibrant chromolithographed scenes enhanced by delicate honeycomb paper sculptures that spring into dimensional form as the pages are opened.

Condition: An excellent copy, remarkable for the survival of all nine fragile tissue-paper pop-ups intact and fully operational. Covers and internal leaves clean and bright with only minimal age toning; binding tight and staples firm. A particularly well-preserved example of this scarce and ephemeral movable book, over 130 years old.