Bookplate for Melville Clark
1937 / Charles P. Morse
A heraldic-style personal bookplate in black ink on ivory paper. The ornate central shield is divided in two, with a left-facing lion rampant on the lower portion and a forward-facing lion head flanked by two crossed in the upper portion. Above the shield, there is a wreath with a lion rampant holding a scepter. On either side of this are two vertical banners, one bearing a sextant and the other a five-pointed star. Above the crest is the text "Ex libris" and below is a banner that reads "Victor Mortalis Est," which translates from Latin to "The conqueror is mortal." Beneath this is the originator's name in a blackletter font. The whole is surrounded by an ornate border of leaves, with emblems in the four corners and the lower middle. Clockwise from upper left, there is a lyre with the initials WW and 1814, simple text reading "G.W. Clark, est 1858, a piano and 1853, a harp and 1905, and a tavern sign that reads "Drovers Tavern 1820. The center top bears a gear, a floral symbol, and a K in a circle that may be the Kiwanis Club symbol.