Rare example of a pre-revolutionary book printed on cloth . One of only 100 copies, printed especially for the tercentenary of the Romanov dynasty.

This extremely scarce item was made by Prokhorov's Trekhgornaya textile factory, one of Russia's oldest cotton manufacturers. The enterprise was founded in 1799 and rose to international prominence in the 19th century thanks to the quality of their products, which were repeatedly awarded prizes at trade fairs around the world. The factory had previously made two books printed on cloth for children. Their simple design aimed to teach young children everyday words and the fact they were made out of cloth instead of paper made them more durable. The cover even featured an illustration of two dogs fighting over a book with the word 'indestructible' below them.

It was incredibly innovative at the beginning of the 20th century to produce such books and so for the grand celebrations in 1913, the factory decided to replicate the idea but with a Romanov theme. 300 let tomu nazad was a commemorative souvenir but also acted as an advert for the company's skilful advances in production and the high quality of their dyes. The illustrations (in a lubok style) feature scenes of Kostroma, the ancestral home of the Imperial family and the first Romanov Tsar, Mikhail Fedorovich and his wife Eudoxia. During this year of celebrations, Tsar Nicholas II travelled along the Volga river to Kostroma in a sort of pilgrimage to the cradle of his dynasty. The city had prepared a vast exhibition in honour of his visit and this book was one of the items on display to impress his Imperial Highness.

We could not find examples of this book in any institution.

Oblong 8vo (16 x 20 cm); limited edition, one of 100 copies; 10pp., printed on linen in seven colours, illustrated wrappers, some staining but overall in very good condition.