Potter (Beatrix) The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, first edition, first or second printing without "Author of The Tale of Peter Rabbit" on title, colour frontispiece, plain title vignette and 26 colour plates, pictorial endpapers, occasional light finger-soiling, ink inscription to front free endpaper verso, original blue boards with mounted colour illustration, spine slightly faded, adhesion mark to head of lower cover, near-fine otherwise, printed glacine dust-jacket, browned, chipping to extremities, small portion of loss to head of upper panel, [Linder p.423; Quinby 5], 16mo, 1903.

⁂ Squirrel Nutkin was born out of a story and picture letter that Potter sent to Norah Moore, the daughter of her former governess, whilst the author was staying at Lingholm in the Lake District. Whilst there Potter made a number of sketches of the surrounding landscapes and particularly St. Herbert's Island which would become a model for Owl Island in the story.