Olfers,Sibylle von. — Im Schmetterlingsreich. [1. Aufl.].

Esslingen & München, Verlag von J.F. Schreiber, [1916]. [15] pp., inckl. 7 col. lithogr. plts. Orig. publisher's h.cloth binding with paper-covered boards). Oblong 4to. - Edges very slightly worn; title page (verso & recto) / endpapers a bit spotted; owne's name on pastdown. - Overall a good copy. Plates in very fine condition. ((Publisher order no. 18).Rare first edition. - A classic German picture book from 1916, written and illustrated by the famous German drawing teacher Sibylle von Olfers (1881-1916). The book is a beautiful example of early 20th-century nature poetry and the Art Nouveau or Jugendstil movement for children. Her artistic style is characterized by dreamy, soft illustrations with graceful, organic frames full of plant ornaments. This is a copy with the text in prose by Sibylle von Olfers herself. For later editions (from the 1920s and 1930s), the well-known children's book author Albert Sixtus was commissioned by the publisher. He replaced her prose with rhymes (verse). - - The story takes young readers to a magical realm entirely inhabited by butterflies and the nature spirits that care for them. The book thematically follows the arrival of spring and the transformation of the little caterpillars ("Räupchen") and pupae ("Puppen") into fully grown butterflies with colorful wings. Just as in her masterpiece "Etwas von den Wurzelkindern" (Alone in the World with the Root Children), Von Olfers brings the seasons and the biological cycle of nature to life in a fairytale-like, anthropomorphic manner.