Wilde, OscarABAA
461 résultats
1878réf. 2178Oxford: Thos. Shrimpton and Son 1878. First edition. First edition. 12mo. 16pp. Original grey-green printed wrapers. Exceedingly scarce first edition with the publisher's printed crest appearing on the cover of the wrappers as well as on the title page and a vignette woodcut appears on the last page. The prestigious Newdigate Prize Oxford's top award for poetry dates to early 1800's and the winner for 1878 was the young Oscar Wilde. The pamphlet was issued in the same year as was common with many of the early prize winners and is considered Wilde's first publication in book form. He worked on the poem a few years earlier while touring Greece as a student at Oxford. An exemplary copy with no wrinkling or central creases as was commonly seen from folding to place in a pocket. Very small nick out of two corners very slight barely detectable browning to covers else extremely clean and bright. 16pp. Thos. Shrimpton and Son unknown books
1923réf. 56675München Munich: Drei Masken Verlages 1923. Limited Edition. Very good. SIGNED. 57pp. Quarto 28 cm Parchment vellum boards with a hubbed spine gilt spine title and single gilt ruled borders on the spine and boards. Top edge gilt. Patterned endpapers. Bound by Hübel & Denck in Leipzig. The front board is wavy. There is a previous owner's decorative bookplate on the front pastedown. The text is in English. Ritter C a 29. Woodcuts by Frans Masereel. This is one of the copies which have been numbered with Roman Numerals. Number XLVII of LXX the copies numbered in Roman numerals forming part of an overall edition of 340 copies. Signed by Frans Masereel on the limitation page. Masereel has additionally signed the seven full-page woodcut illustrations within. Drei Masken Verlages unknown books
1891réf. 158131891. Ricketts Charles. London: James R. Osgood McIlvaine and Co. 1891. Original salmon paper-covered flexible boards decorated in dark red. First Edition of this collection of four dark semi-comic mystery tales. "Lord Arthur Savile's Crime" is an amusing but macabre tale if there can be such a thing about a young man who convinced by Lady Windermere's cheiromantist that he is doomed to commit murder does his best to do so prior to getting married -- out of a sense of duty to his fiancée. As one would expect Lord Arthur bungles his mission. In addition to the title story this book includes "The Sphinx Without a Secret" "The Canterville Ghost" and "The Model Millionaire." The binding of this title with decorations by Charles Ricketts is extremely delicate -- paper-covered flexible boards; although 1500 copies were issued we find this book to be quite uncommon and we have never seen a truly fine copy. In our experience THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY THE HOUSE OF POMEGRANATES and this title are the three Wilde first editions most difficuilt to find in collectible condition. This copy is close to near-fine with a bit of the darkening and mottling of the spine that is typical for this fragile book but with scarcely any actual wear. Mason 345. Housed in a handsome gilt-paneled morocco-backed slipcase with inner chemise. unknown books
1922réf. 2222703Privately issued 1922 1924 1931. First edition. Quarto. Collated and compiled by Robert Ernest Cowan and William Andrews Clark Jr. Original green cloth over boards; spine labels. Very good spines faded to tan. 6 volumes. A fine set of this monumental collection assembled by William Andrews Clark Jr. Each volume in a grey board slipcase. No signatures or bookplates. One of 100 copies. Printed by John Henry Nash. Privately Printed hardcover books
réf. 06514London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. A Play of Conscience and Corruption - Wilde at His Brilliant Peak" First Edition Limited Issue - From the Library of Esher Place WILDE Oscar. An Ideal Husband. By the Author of Lady Windermere's Fan. London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. First edition limited to 1000 copies. Small quarto 8 1/4 x 6 1/8 inches; 210 x 155 mm. xvi 213 1 pp. Publisher's mauve cloth covers elaborately decorated in gilt spine decoratively stamped and lettered in gilt top edge trimmed others uncut. With the printed Esher Place Library location label dated 1897 on the front paste-down denoting its place within a late Victorian country house library system. Housed in a red cloth chemise within a full maroon calf slipcase spine with five raised bands ruled and lettered in gilt in compartments. Endpapers and half-title with the lightest amount of foxing otherwise a spectacular example the binding fresh and unfaded. One of Wilde's four great society comedies An Ideal Husband premiered in 1895 at the Haymarket Theatre and stands among his most sophisticated explorations of public virtue and private compromise. Written at the height of his fame - and on the eve of his dramatic fall - the play offers a sharply observed critique of political morality reputation and the currency of secrets in late Victorian society. The 1899 Smithers edition issued in a limitation of 1000 copies following Wilde's imprisonment represents the first appearance of the play in book form and remains the preferred edition for collectors. London: Leonard Smithers and Co., 1899 unknown books
1899réf. 1411385London: Leonard Smithers and Co 1899. First Trade Edition Limited #208/1000. Hardcover. Octavo 151 pages. In Good plus condition. Bound in publisher's pale purple cloth with gilt leaves to boards gilt lettering to spine. Fading to spine and boards. Some general shelfwear. Chipping to head and tail of spine. Bumping to corners and extremities. Spine cocked. Front pastedown with glue stains from a removed bookplate. Front free endpaper with bookplate. Shelved showcase. 'The Importance of Being Earnest' was a success on stage when it opened in 1895 but closed after 86 performances due to Wilde's arrest. It is generaly considered one of his best works. This Trade edition was published in 1899 after he was released from Reading Gaol and residing in France. He died the following year. 1411385. Shelved Dupont Bookstore. Leonard Smithers and Co hardcover books
réf. 06519London: John Lane. 1894. A Woman of No Importance - Wilde Before the Fall" First Edition One of 500 Copies - The Slocum Copy WILDE Oscar. A Woman of No Importance. London: John Lane 1894. First edition. One of 500 copies. Small quarto 8 1/4 x 5 7/8 inches; 210 x 150 mm. 16 134 1 1 blank 16 publisher's catalogue dated March 1894 pp. Publisher's light red-brown linen over boards covers decoratively stamped in gilt spine decoratively stamped and lettered in gilt the design by Charles Shannon. All edges uncut. Light rubbing to extremities; front inner hinge cracked but holding. Otherwise an excellent entirely unrestored example. The first edition of Wilde's third society comedy published in the same year as Salomé and on the eve of the triumph of An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest. The play explores themes of social hypocrisy gender inequality and moral duplicity - subjects that Wilde would refine and perfect in his later dramatic masterpieces. Issued in a limitation of 500 copies by John Lane at The Bodley Head the edition shares the elegant typographic and binding aesthetic of Wilde's 1890s publications with the characteristic gilt design by Charles Shannon. Complete with the publisher's catalogue dated March 1894 as called for. Provenance: The Myles Standish Slocum copy with his pencil note on the front paste-down. Myles Standish Slocum 1887-1956 was a noted American collector of first and rare editions remembered both for the quality of his library and for his encouragement of book collecting through the annual Scripps College prize bearing his name. London: John Lane., 1894 unknown books
1895réf. 2221665First edition. 8 1/2" x 6 1/2". Original brown wrappers stamped in red lower right corner of upper cover replaced uncut and mostly unopened. Very good. 98 pages. No signatures or bookplates. Enclosed in a plum half morocco slipcase. Printed by The Chiswick Press. Mason 367 - only 50 copies were printed. Privately Printed paperback books
1898réf. 1262071898. First Edition. WILDE Oscar. The Ballad of Reading Gaol by C.3.3. London: Leonard Smithers 1898. Slim octavo original half cream cloth with cinnamon cloth boards uncut. $3600.First edition one of only 800 copies printed on handmade paper.Inspired by his prison experience and comprised in part by a plea for penal reform The Ballad of Reading Gaol was the last work Wilde completed before his death in 1900. ""In his comedies the miscreants were always pardoned but in the Ballad while ultimately forgiven they are treated vindictively by their fellows who are equally guiltyÉ There is no doubt that Wilde had once again touched a great subject and left his fingerprints on itÉ once read it is never forgotten"" Ellmann 532-34. Mason 371. A few pinholes to two preliminary leaves interior otherwise fine. One tiny inkspot to front cover spine slightly toned. A handsome extremely good copy of this scarce first edition. hardcover books
1907réf. 68900London and New York: A. R. Keller & Co 1907. Full Description: WILDE Oscar. The Writings of Oscar Wilde. London and New York: A. R. Keller & Co. 1907. The University Edition of the Uniform Edition. One of 800 numbered copies this being number 15. Complete in fifteen octavo volumes 8 x 5 1/2 inches; 205 x 140 mm. Illustrated with plates in black and white each with a descriptive tissue guard. Title and limitation pages on Japanese vellum printed in black and red with additional engraved title pages in each volume. Half red morocco over green cloth. Spines stamped and lettered in gilt. Top edges gilt. Marbled endpapers. Spines uniformly a bit darkened. Some minor occasional rubbing the worst of it to the top edge of "Lady Windemere's Fan." Still a near fine set. The Uniform Edition comprises the Edition De Luxe of 200 copies. the Oxford edition of 250 copies and the University Edition present copy of 800 copies. This very early edition precedes the 1908 Ross edition of Wilde's works often described as the first collected edition. HBS 68900. $4250. A. R. Keller & Co unknown books
1968réf. 69253London: Petersburg Press 1968. DINE Jim. The Picture of Dorian Gray. London: Petersburg Press 1968. Full Description: WILDE Oscar. DINE Jim artist. The Picture of Dorian Gray. London: Petersburg Press 1968. Limited edition signed and numbered by the artist Jim Dine on the limitation page in green ink. This being number 11 of 200 in Edition B. Folio 17 3/8 x 12 1/4 inches; 440 x 310 mm. Complete with frontispiece and twelve lithographs in color with a set of an additional 4 loose lithographs issued in a portfolio each annotated "Edition B" on the reverse and numbered 11/200 and signed by the artist in pencil on the front lower margin. Original full green velvet boards. Front board lettered in silver. Pictorial patterned endpapers. Housed in a black cloth slipcase. With additional black cloth portfolio. Cloth portfolio with a small split at top of hinge. A fine copy. "A working script for the stage from the novel by Oscar Wilde with original images and notes on the text by Jim Dine" From the title page. "The original colour lithographs etchings and text pages comprising this book were prepared on zinc and aluminum plates by the artist at Bath Academy of Art Corsham ini February 1968; and subsequently printed on Velin Arches at the Atelier Desjobert and Atelier Leblanc in Paris." Colophon HBS 69253. $4500. Petersburg Press unknown books
réf. 06423London: Methuen & Co. 1908. First Collected Edition Handsomely Bound by Birdsall of Northampton WILDE Oscar. Works. London: Methuen & Co. 1908-1922. The Picture of Dorian Gray with imprint: Paris: Charles Carrington 1908. First collected edition including For the Love of the King which was published in 1922. One of 1000 issued on handmade paper out of a total edition of 1080 sets. Fifteen octavo volumes 8 1/4 x 5 3/4 inches; 209 x 146 mm. Handsomely bound ca. 1950 by Birdsall of Northampton and London stamp-signed in full light blue calf covers with triple ruled borders spines with five shallow raised bands decoratively tooled in compartments two red leather labels lettered in gilt gilt decorated boards edges and turn-ins pale blue marbled endpapers top edge gilt other uncut. Spines uniformly faded one volume a little less so otherwise a very fine set including the fifteenth volume For the Love of the King which was published later in 1922. The first collected edition of the works of Wilde is still the most complete and correct. "The text is taken in most instances from the last editions issued under the superintendence of the author. In some cases the volumes contain additional matter which had not previously been reprinted while some of the volumes contain matter here published for the first time" Mason. Oscar Wilde 1854-1900 Irish-born poet dramatist and novelist. "During his undergraduate years at Oxford and as a disciple of Walter Pater Wilde became the leader of an aesthetic movement that advocated art for art's sake. He attracted a great deal of attention with his aestheticism and by wearing long hair dressing eccentrically and carrying flowers in his hands while lecturing.Wilde was accused of homosexual practices was tried and found guilty and was sentenced to imprisonment 1895-97.On his release physically spiritually and financially ruined he went to Paris.where he lived in bitterness and despair until his death. Wilde's works include Poems 1881; two collections of fairy stories The Happy Prince and Other Tales 1888 and The House of Pomegranates 1891; The Picture of Dorian Gray 1891 a novel; and many brilliantly witty plays including Lady Windermere's Fan 1892; A Woman of No Importance 1893; Salomé 1894 written originally in French and used as the basis for Richard Strauss's opera of the same title; An Ideal Husband 1895; and The Importance of Being Earnest 1895 often considered his masterpiece. His poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol 1898 and his impassioned letter to his lover Lord Alfred Douglas De Profundis published post-humously in 1905 were products of his imprisonment" Benét's Reader's Encyclopedia. Mason pp. 459-460. London: Methuen & Co., 1908 unknown books
réf. 06518London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. The Trivial Comedy for Serious People - Wilde's Masterpiece" First Edition One of 1000 Numbered Copies WILDE Oscar. The Importance of Being Earnest. A Trivial Comedy for Serious People. By the Author of Lady Windermere's Fan. London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. First edition. One of 1000 numbered copies this being No. 256. Printed at the Chiswick Press. Small quarto 8 3/4 x 7 inches; 222 x 178 mm. 16 151 1 pp. Publisher's light red-brown linen over boards covers decoratively stamped in gilt spine decoratively stamped and lettered in gilt the design by Charles Shannon. All edges uncut. The bare minimum of rubbing to extremities free endpapers minimally browned from paste-down glue as usual; spine slightly darkened and gilt a little dulled. Still a near fine copy sound and unrestored example. The first book appearance of Wilde's most celebrated play originally performed in 1895 at the St. James's Theatre. Issued four years later by Smithers - Wilde's principal publisher during and after his fall - this edition presents the definitive text of his final and finest comedy. The Importance of Being Earnest represents the culmination of Wilde's dramatic art: a perfectly constructed satire of identity social convention and moral pretense combining epigrammatic brilliance with unmatched theatrical economy. The edition is notable for its elegant production including the Chiswick Press printing and the distinctive gilt cover design by Charles Shannon placing it among the most visually refined of Wilde's first editions. Bibliographical Reference A pleasing and well-preserved example. The slight spine darkening and mellowing of the gilt are typical; copies retaining such integrity are increasingly scarce. Mason 382. London: Leonard Smithers and Co., 1899 unknown books
réf. 41901Berlin: Guido Moriell 1991. Limited edition. Hardcover. Fine condition. Signed by the artist on each etching and colophon. A15/50. Small Folio. 55 1pp. Original hand bound blue Morocco with geometric cover design by bookbinder Guido Moriell and black-stamped lettering on spine housed in blue cloth clamshell box with gilt lettering on spine. Every binding of the deluxe edition is a unique copy. Includes the video documenting the production of this anniversary edition housed in separate compartment of clamshell box as issued. Bibliophile edition on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the bookbinder Guido Moriell Radolfzell released in two Deluxe Editions A and B of 50 copies each and a standard edition of 100. This is No. 15 of the deluxe edition A printed on handmade paper. With 10 signed and hand colored original etchings by Rudolf Stuckert printed on the hand press of the artist. Top edge blue. Blue shaded endpapers. Blue initials. Text revised by John Loram based on the translation by Wilhelm Cremer 1922. Beautiful hand press production on firm handmade paper by the Steinort paper mill. An artistic masterpiece of modern hand press printing and bookbinding. Rudolf Stuckert 1912-2002 was a German painter and gallerist. He studied at the Academies in Kassel and Düsseldorf and was a master student of Oskar Moll. Stuckert opened his first gallery in 1936 in Düsseldorf with an exhibitions of Bruno Goller. In 1949 Stuckert became a cofounder of the New Rhine Secession Neue Rheinische Sezession in Düsseldorf. He had moved to Lake Constance in 1947 where he became a cofounder of the artist group "Der kleine Kreis" and was considered one of the so-called Höri-Painters. His paintings are an interplay of figurative and abstract elements. Landscapes ballplayers and acrobats are his favorite motifs. Guido Moriell is a film enthusiast and bookbinder in Radolfzell Lake Constance. In 2008 his work as a bookbinder was featured in the prestigious exhibition "Kunst des Bucheinbandes Art of Bookbinding" at the Duchess Anna Amalia Library in Weimar. Emphasis of the exhibition was the bookbinding in historic fashion showing a video of Guido Moriell at work as an example of traditional bookbinding. Guido Moriell hardcover books
1899réf. ST19154London: Leonard Smithers and Co 1899. FIRST EDITION. ONE OF 1000 COPIES. 215 x 155 mm. 8 3/8 x 6". 8 p.l. 213 1 pp. Original lavender cloth decorated with gilt flourishes smooth spine with gilt lettering edges untrimmed and ENTIRELY UNOPENED. Mason 385. ◆Spine slightly sunned as virtually always but no wear to joints or hinges and in all A REMARKABLY WELL-PRESERVED OBVIOUSLY UNREAD COPY because unopened and without the soiling this edition is almost always found with. This is an exceptionally fine copy of Wilde's second hit play successful like his other witty comedies but with at least slightly more serious social and political content. Opening at the Haymarket Theatre in 1895 and continuing for 124 performances it features as the title character a prominent politician in danger of losing his reputation because of a potentially damaging letter that the play's villain threatens to expose if the husband refuses to support the former's corrupt political agenda. The play moves its characters toward a more ideal moral standard as they struggle with dishonesty hypocrisy double standards materialism and corruption of social and political life. But none of this weighs down Wilde's witty banter as the play suggests after all that even when there is a pretense of the embrace of moral probity nobody is ever that good or is even expected to be. The work is dedicated to the Irish-American writer Frank Harris who is said to have given Wilde the idea to use insider trading which related to Disraeli's financial machinations as part of the plot here. Covering the play for the "Saturday Review" George Bernard Shaw declared Wilde 1854-1900 "our only thorough playwright. He plays with everything: with wit with philosophy with drama with actors and audience with the whole theatre." On nearly all copies of this edition the publisher's binding is now encountered in unappetizing condition; finding our unopened copy--with virtually none of the soiling almost always seen with the four Wilde plays bound in this lavender cloth--is piece of very good fortune. Leonard Smithers and Co unknown books
1926réf. 329075Paris: F.-L Schmied 1926. Limited. hardcover. near fine. Color woodcuts and decorations by Francois-Louis Schmied printed by hand. 4to full black crushed morocco spine faded to brown with gold & silver art deco design; full gray leather doublures pictorially stamped in gilt & blind with a singing bird; gray silk fly-leaves by Gonin. Paris: F.-L Schmied 1926. Limited Edition. Fine in a leather tipped marbled board slipcase. French translation by Albert Savine of Wilde's The Happy Prince and the Nightingale and the Rose. Number VII of XII copies de collaborateurs signed by the artist. F.-L Schmied unknown books
1943réf. 156715Beverly Hills CA: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer MGM 1943. Draft script for the 1945 film. Copy belonging to an unknown crew member with their manuscript annotations in pencil on several pages. Based on the 1890 novel by Oscar Wilde about a man whose portrait magically takes on the ability to absorb the sins of his debauched life while he remains unaged. Nominated for three Academy Awards winning one for Best Cinematography. Set in London. Goldenrod studio wrappers rubber-stamped FILE COPY and COMPLETE on the front wrapper noted as copy No. 67 and production No. 5069 dated 11-5-43 with credits for director Albert Lewin. Title page integral with the first page of the text. 168 leaves with last page of text numbered 169. Mimeograph duplication rectos only with a single pink revision page dated 3-13-44. Pages about Near Fine wrapper Good only with a tear on the bottom right portion of the front wrapper and rear wrapper split from the binding bound with two gold brads. Selby US. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer [MGM] unknown books
1910réf. 320658New York: Nottingham 1910. Limited. hardcover. fine. 10 volumes. Thick 8vo finely bound in recent 3/4 dark green morocco with twin burgundy spine labels decoratively gilt spines raised bands and marbled boards top edges gilt deckled edges. New York: Nottingham Society circa 1910. Fine. Deluxe Edition Number 832 of of 1000 sets. Nottingham unknown books
1894réf. 282902London: John Lane 1894. Limited. hardcover. very good. Tall 8vo lavender cloth faded to tan with gilt designs considerably browned on the spine and edges; pages untrimmed London: John Lane 1894. Limited First Edition. Mason 365. One of only 50 copies printed simultaneously with the first trade edition. Internally fine and clean. John Lane unknown books
1898réf. 282548London: Smithers 1898. First. hardcover. very good. Slim 8vo mustard cloth backed in white with gilt lettering. London: Leonard Smithers 1898. Limited First Edition. One of 800 copies printed on hand-made paper on one side only. Inscribed on title page; "I.O. from F.A.S. Guilsborough Hall." A very good copy with some bubbling of the cloth and light soil. Irene Osgood later the wife of R.H. Sherard author of the life of Oscar Wilde was a novelist. This book was given to her by Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham Preserved in an attractive1/4 leather slipcase with an elaborately gilt spine. Smithers unknown books
1894réf. 140949078London: Elkin Mathews & John Lane 1894. First Edition. Near Fine. First edition in English of Wilde's seminal one-act tragedy and the first to feature Aubrey Beardsley's lavishly unrestrained illustrations. One of 500 copies. xii 67 1 16 ads illustrated with frontispiece 9 full page plates and singular tailpiece. Bound in publisher's blue canvas cloth decoratively stamped in gilt after design by Beardsley. Near Fine with light sunning to spine and edges light foxing to cloth. Offsetting to front endsheets and armorial bookplate to pastedown there contents lightly tanned. A beautiful copy of a definitive work of the Decadent movement. Composed initially in French Wilde allegedly intended for Sarah Bernhardt to play Salome in hopes of bypassing strict British censors although it was inevitably banned by Lord Chamberlain due to the depiction of biblical characters. The play premiered on February 11 1896 at the Theatre de l'Oeuvre in Paris starring Lina Munte and directed by Lugne-Poe. Rave reviews ensued and later adaptions followed most notably Richard Strauss' Dresden production which premiered in 1905. The radical work served as a direct affront to Victorian moral standards and cemented the femme fatale archetype for future avant-garde luminaries. Mason 350. Elkin Mathews & John Lane unknown books
1881réf. ST20886London: David Bogue 1881. FIRST EDITION First Issue. 192 x 126 mm. 7 1/2 x 5". ix 1 236 1 pp. EXTREMELY ATTRACTIVE CRIMSON MOROCCO INTRICATELY GILT BY ZAEHNSDORF stamp-signed and dated 1909 on front turn-in covers framed in gilt with delicate pointillé cornerpieces surrounding inlaid green morocco drawer handles and oblique floral tools raised bands spine panels densely gilt in the pointillé style of Bozerian with stems of flowers radiating from pairs of inlaid green drawer handles turn-ins gilt-ruled red silk endleaves top edge gilt other edges untrimmed. Original slightly soiled gilt limp vellum binding bound in at rear. Mason 304. A few trivial spots internally but A VERY FINE COPY--the leaves fresh clean and wide-margined and the binding lustrous and virtually unworn. This is a finely bound copy of the first edition of Wilde's first book of poetry and his first substantial work of any kind. The collection is made up of 61 poems 31 of which appear here for the first time. Many reflect Wilde's delight in his visit to the art towns of Italy; other poems such as the tender "Resquiescat" written in memory of Wilde's sister Isola who had died at the age of eight show a more personal emotional sentiment. According to Mason "the first printing June 1881 consisted of 750 copies of which only 250 copies were used for the first edition the remaining 500 being equally divided between the second and third editions." Wilde himself oversaw the layout and design of the book choosing the handmade Dutch paper on which it is printed and the design of prunus blossoms on the vellum binding here bound in at the rear. The only published books by Wilde to appear before the present work were his student poem "Ravenna" which was named the "Newdigate Prize Poem" at Oxford for 1878 issued in wrappers and his drama "Vera; or the Nihilists" printed in 1880 of which Mason had knowledge of only two copies. Our attractive binding is a fine example of the work of the Zaehnsdorf firm long a top-ranked English bindery. Born in Pest Hungary Joseph Zaehnsdorf 1816-86 served his apprenticeship in Stuttgart worked at a number of European locations as a journeyman and then settled in London where he was hired first by Westley and then by Mackenzie before opening his own workshop in 1842. His son and namesake took over the business at age 33 when the senior Joseph died and the firm flourished under the son's leadership becoming a leading West End bindery. Over the years Zaehnsdorf employed a considerable number of distinguished binders including the Frenchman Louis Genth who was chief finisher from 1859-84 and trained a number of others including Roger de Coverly and Sarah Prideaux. A family-run business until 1947 the Zaehnsdorf bindery continued to produce consistently attractive and innovative designs executed with unfailing skill. David Bogue unknown books
1968réf. 305092London: Petersburg Press 1968. Edition C with six loose lithographs signed duplicates of those bound in the book and four signed etchings this copy 100 of 100 lacking two of the prints. Illustrated by Jim Dine. 2 vols. Folio 18.1 x 13 inches. Snakeskin print leather binding near fine on text volume and portfolio volume matching box and heart cover with some fading otherwise near fine. Dine Jim. Edition C with six loose lithographs signed duplicates of those bound in the book and four signed etchings this copy 100 of 100 lacking two of the prints. Illustrated by Jim Dine. 2 vols. Folio 18.1 x 13 inches. Three editions of this work were published with an extra suite of prints: A Edition of 200 plus 25 artists' proofs bound in red velvet with the title in silver with six signed lithographs duplicates of the plates in the text signed by Dine B Edition of 200 plus 25 artists' proofs bound in green velvet with the title in silver with four etchings signed by Dine C Edition of 100 plus 15 artists' proofs in a snakeskin-patterned leather binding stamped in black with a matching box with "heart built up on the cover" also signed by Dine containing all of the prints of the two other editions 10 total signed by Dine. THIS COPY LACKING TWO PRINTS: "Sybil in her Dressing Room" and "Basil in Black Leather Suit" Jim Dine worked on a stage version of Wilde's novel with English director Robert Kidd for the Bath Academie of Art at Corsham moving the setting to London during the 1967 Summer of Love. The play was never finished as the scheduled lead actor James Fox objected to Dine's "obscene" costumes derailing the whole production. Petersburg Press stepped in and offered to print Dine's drafts for the adapation. Mikro 47 Petersburg Press unknown books
1894réf. OW056London: John Lane at the Sign of The Bodley Head 1894 First edition limited large paper copy with "Of this edition 50 copies have been printed" statement on the verso of the fourth preliminary page and no publisher's catalogue at the back of the book. Publisher's yellow buckram boards with gilt decorations by Charles Shannon to covers and spine spine lettered in gilt. Near fine with some toning to spine and board edges light wear to spine ends with a very shallow chip to cloth at foot of spine bottom right corner of front board worn to boards and heavy offsetting to endpapers. Overall a beautiful copy of one of Wilde's four celebrated drawing-room plays. Mason 365. A Woman of No Importance is a four-act play that was first produced in London at the Haymarket Theatre on April 19 1893. Like many of Wilde's plays it satirizes the English upper-class and criticizes Victorian society. The title "a woman of no importance" refers to the character Mrs. Arbuthnot who bears the illegitimate son of Lord Illingworth. Although societal conventions deem her a sinful woman Wilde proves Arbuthnot a respectable widow who is rewarded with a son who treats women respectfully. In contrast Illingworth one of Wilde's archetypal dandy figures is rejected by his son and many of the women in the play making him a "man of no importance." A Woman of No Importance was published simultaneously in two formats: small octavo the standard edition of 500 copies and quarto the "Large Paper" issue of 50 copies. While both constitute the first edition of A Woman of No Importance the large paper copies are decidedly rarer than the octavos; intended to be more exclusive and deluxe publications large paper formats were typically produced using higher quality materials lacked the publisher's advertisements and were printed in small print runs. Because they were intended as collectibles from publication large paper copies of Wilde's plays are exceedingly scarce. First Edition Limited Large Paper Copy. Hard Cover. Near Fine. London: John Lane at the Sign of The Bodley Head hardcover books
1899réf. 140949181London: Leonard Smithers and Co 1899. First Edition. Near Fine. First edition first printing. One of 1000 copies unnumbered. xvi 152 pp. printed on laid paper. Bound in publisher's lavender cloth with gilt spine lettering and decorations by Charles Shannon. Near Fine with sunning to spine and extremities and fading to spine gilt light soiling and scattered foxing to cloth light rubbing to extremities and slight bumping to lower corners. Binding starting at p. 105 offsetting to front endsheet bookplate to front pastedown. A very nice copy from the library of the American naval officer and book collector Charles John Muto. Mason 381. The first edition of the most delightful play in the English language. Wilde's last play opened on Valentine's Day 1895 to almost unanimous praise. Two weeks later he received a card at his club accusing him of sodomy to which he responded with an ill-judged libel lawsuit that led to his downfall and imprisonment. By the time this book was published by Leonard Smithers one of his few remaining friends Wilde was dying in Paris his health broken by Reading Gaol. There are now statues to him in London and Dublin. Leonard Smithers and Co unknown books
