Fables

Very Good German Original wrappers. 12mo. (16 x 11 cm). In German. 71, [1] p., [12] unnumbered b/w plates. Very rare first edition (from first 1st-5th thousand impressions and both in scarce institutional holdings and market rarity) of this fourth book of "A thousand and one nights" series, titled 'The Caliph Harun Al-Rashid' with fine illustrations edited by Heinrich Wolgast, (1860-1920), a German educator and pedagogue. Close to social democratic ideology, Heinrich Wolgast became known as a literary pedagogue. He criticized a "specific" juvenile literature which, as trivial mass literature, only satisfies the need for entertainment, and called for an artistic education of the youth through aesthetically demanding literature. In 1888 Wolgast became a co-founder of the "Youth Writings Committee" of the "Association of Hamburg Elementary School Teachers". As a co-founder of the "United German Examination Committees for Youth Writings", he acted from 1896 to 1912 as the editor of the magazine "Jugendschriften-Warte". This small and very collectible book published by Otto Zimmermann reflects the pedagogical concerns rather than the true harsh, erotic, and imaginary atmosphere of the Arabian Nights. Only one printed copy in OCLC 76105214 (German National Library, Leipzig = Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, Leipzig).