303 résultats
1891145251891. London: James R. Osgood McIlvaine & Co. 1891. Original yellow-green cloth decorated in gilt.<br/><br/> First Edition of this group of four essays on literature art society and criticism -- which consisted of 900 copies plus 600 printed for America with the Dodd Mead imprint. Published just a week after Wilde's only novel THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY INTENTIONS precedes all of his famous plays which came out during the span 1893-1899. In the opening essay Wilde laments the "decay of Lying as an art a science and a social pleasure." He takes to task modern literary realists like Henry James and Émile Zola for their "monstrous worship of facts" and stifling of the imagination. What makes art wonderful he says is that it is "absolutely indifferent to fact." The next essay "Pen Pencil and Poison" is a fascinating literary appreciation of the life of Thomas Griffiths Wainewright a talented painter art critic antiquarian friend of Charles Lamb and — murderer. The heart of the collection is the long two-part essay titled "The Critic as Artist." In one memorable passage after another Wilde goes to great lengths to show that the critic is every bit as much an artist as the artist himself in some cases more so. A good critic is like a virtuoso interpreter. Finally in "The Truth of Masks" Wilde returns to the theme of art as artifice and creative deception. This essay focuses on the use of masks disguises and costume in Shakespeare Goodreads. Charles Ricketts created the Fin-de-Siècle binding design and lettering -- in the same year that he also designed for the same publisher the binding of TESS OF THE D'URBERVILLES. This is a near-fine copy -- there is faint mottled fading that always seems to afflict this book's cloth but there is little wear other than minor rubbing at the extremities small partly-erased signature on the endpaper. INTENTIONS has become a difficult title to acquire in better condition. Mason 341. unknown books
187757710THREE RARE EARLY WILDE POEMS <br />8vo. 4 collective volume title page & half-title 2 corrigenda ii 344 plus bound in at the beginning of each of the 12 issues 2 leaves with the original issue title page and its list of contributors contemporary half brown morocco brown cloth on sides very neatly rebacked with the original spine relaid very good. <br />Signed on front free end paper "T. W. Rolleston" and with quite a number of manuscript corrections throughout. <br />This magazine was first issued three issues per year as wrappered magazines. At the completion of the volume 12 issues the remaining stock was issued as a bound volumes in cloth with a general title page. However in the publisher's cloth issue the title pages and contributors lists for the individual issues were discarded as the pagination is continuous without them. Here these have most unusually been retained.<br />This volume contains in the Trinity and Michaelmas 1876 and Hilary 1877 some of the very earliest of Oscar Wilde's published work. These are Mason <i>Wilde Bibliography</i> 72 73 and 74. These all predate Wilde's first separately published book <i>Ravenna</i> of 1878 and all three were later included in Wilde's <i>Poems</i> of 1881 or 1908. <br />W. H. Rolleston was among the other contributors as was Oscar's brother William. It appears that Rolleston had these issues bound himself and so the preliminary title and list of contributor leaves for the individual issues were retained. William McGee hardcover
1894191144London: Chapman and Hall Limited July 1894. First edition and first appearance of Wilde's "Poems in Prose". The poems are printed on pages 22-29 and comprises "The Artist" "The Doer of Good" "The Disciple" "The Master" "The House of Judgment" and "The Teacher of Wisdom". Two previously appeared in The Spirit Lamp edited by Lord Alfred Douglas. Octavo. Early 20th-century grey cloth red morocco spine label bound with original wrappers. Red morocco booklabel of Alfred Sutro 1863-1933 English dramatist and translator; bookplate of William Roughead 1870-1952 designed by Robert Home and dated 1907; bookseller's ticket of William Brown Edinburgh; "Butteris" bookseller stamp to front wrapper. Spine ends bumped abrasion to spine label and first ad leaf minor nicks and marks to some pages. A very good copy. Mason 56. hardcover
189413013A SIGNED COPY !!! THE GREEN CARNATION Appleton 1894 first American edition second issue with tipped in 1895 title page pencil notations on the end-papers spine just a bit soiled else a very good to very good plus copy of the authors anonymously published first book. Signed by the author on the title page. Rare thus. This book was based on the life of Oscar Wilde and at the time did the author some considerable harm. Appleton unknown
189412350THE GREEN CARNATION Heinemann 1894 first edition just about a fine copy of the authors anonymously published first book. This book was based on the life of Oscar Wilde and at the time did the author some considerable harm. Quite scarce in this condition. Heinemann unknown
1899158271899. Shannon Charles. By the Author of Lady Windermere's Fan. London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. Original mauve cloth decorated in gilt.<br/> <br/> First Edition consisting of 1000 regular copies so stated; there were also 100 signed copies on Van Gelder paper plus twelve signed copies on Japan vellum. This was the fourth and last of Wilde's four great comedies of manners -- following LADY WINDERMERE'S FAN published in 1893 A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE 1894 and THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST 1899 five months earlier. "An Ideal Husband" had opened at the Theatre Royal on 3 January 1895 the actors had been quite annoyed that Wilde required them to rehearse on Christmas Day only to keep them waiting for him to appear. It was an immediate success but it was while "Earnest" and "Husband" were running that Wilde inadvisably filed suit against the Marquess of Queensberry father of Wilde's lover Lord Alfred Douglas for criminal libel; this quickly morphed into a charge of "gross indecency" against Wilde and when he was arrested in April his plays closed. Sentenced to two years' hard labour 1895-1897 upon his release he fled to France -- where he resided when this book was published. The artistic binding design is by Charles Shannon. This is a very good copy of a book that is difficult to find in any better condition: the spine is rather dull and there is moderate cover soil. Mason 385. Provenance: the front endpaper bears the signature "Wilmer C. France 1899". The pioneering female classicist Emily Wilmer Cave France 1868-1951 married name Wright after 1906 was born in Birmingham England and educated first at Girton College Cambridge then at the University of Chicago -- where she was a Fellow in Latin and in Greek while earning her Ph.D.; from 1897 until her retirement in 1933 which span includes the date this book was published she was a Professor in Greek at Bryn Mawr College. In 2022 the Cambridge Philological Society published a monograph by D.N. Greenwood about her "Steely-Eyed Athena: Wilmer Cave Wright and the Advent of Female Classicists. unknown
1891wld26London: James R Osgood McIlvaine & Co. G : in good condition without dust jacket. Spine darkened and leaning. Covers lightly marked. Some edgewar to paper covers along outer edge. Wear to lower corner. Off-setting to endpapers and pastedowns. 1891. First Edition. Salmon hardback papered boards. 190mm x 130mm 7" x 5". 168pp. . James R Osgood, McIlvaine & Co hardcover
189322477London: Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head 1893. First Edition. Small quarto 21.75cm.; original reddish-brown gilt-embossed cloth; 1413214adspp. Extremities a bit rubbed narrow strip of discoloration to fore-edge of upper cover minor foxing to textblock upper hinge cracked but still quite strong; About Very Good. Contemporary bookplate of Oscar Wilde collector Jon Weekly. 500 copies issued MASON 357. Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head unknown books
1894WE16716London: John Lane 1894. First edition. Hardcover. Very Good. First edition one of 500 copies only printed. Octavo in lavender cloth decorated in gilt and with spine lettered in gilt. Fore edges uncut. 154 pp. plus 16 pp. of adverts for List of Books in Belles Lettres. This copy bears the rather scarce small publisher’s bookplate on the front pastedown announcing “This Book Now Published by John Lane at the Bodley Head in Vigo St. London W.†Very good. Scattered foxing to the endpapers. Shallow wear to the spine extremities and spine a bit rubbed. Some rippling to the lower portion of the cloth on the front board. John Lane hardcover
189811084London: Murdoch & Co 1898. First separate edition. String-bound. Near fine. 12mo 16pp. A clean sound copy in the publisher's printed wrappers near fine. This copy with the staple perished replaced by a professional conservator with archival string and a few very small paper repairs to spine. Tiny stain to the front wrap else a handsome copy indeed of this scarce and fragile Wilde volume a plea for mercy in the case of Warder Martin of Reading Gaol a particularly humane and empathetic prison guard who was dismissed Wilde asserts for his humanity towards prisoners. Wilde had grown to know Martin well during his imprisonment. The text was first published in the Daily Chronicle and this pamphlet represents the first separate edition. Mason 26. Murdoch & Co unknown
1891WRCLIT69505London: James R. Osgood McIlvaine 1891. Small quarto. Gilt green cloth backed cream cloth over boards elaborately decorated in gilt and red. Plates illustrations and decorated endsheets. Binding a bit darkened with some pale discolorations at edge 1895 ownership signature on preliminary blank corners a trifle worn the plates by Shannon somewhat faded as usual but still legible a few small nicks and a short tear to the edges of the front free endsheet but a good sound copy a few leaves unopened. First edition. Design illustrations and decorations by C. Ricketts and C. Shannon with plates by the latter. One of one thousand copies printed. Mason/Millard gives an account of the circumstances which led to the faint state of the Shannon plates. Contains four short stories: "The Young King" which first appeared in THE LADY'S PICTORIAL Christmas Number 1888 "The Birthday of the Infanta" which first appeared in PARIS ILLUSTRÉ March 30 1889 "The Fisherman and His Soul" and "The Star- Child." Because of its physical construction a book very difficult to find in agreeable condition. MASON/MILLARD 347. James R. Osgood McIlvaine hardcover books
189422263London: John Lane 1894. First edition. Hardcover. Publisher's full mauve cloth stamped in gilt spine stamped and lettered in gilt. Very good. 154 pages. 27.5 x 16 cm. Limited edition one of 500 with 16 pages of advertisements at end dated March 1894 Cover gilt design florets by Charles Shannon considerably influenced by his lifetime partner Charles Ricketts both of whom produced work for the Doves Press. MASON 364. The play premièred on 19 April 1893 at London's Haymarket Theatre satirizing English upper-class society. Spine dulled spine extremities creased binding tight; a sound copy. John Lane hardcover
1899WILDEOSC107084Leonard Smithers London. 1899. First edition. Octavo. pp xvi 213. One of 1000 copies. Original gilt decorated cloth. A drama in four acts.Bookplate on front pastedown. Covers marked and rubbed at head and tail of spine. Possible water-staining to the lower half of the spine. Endpapers faintly spotted. Very good. Leonard Smithers, London. hardcover
189814845London; Leonard Smithers Royal Arcade London W 1898. 1898. First edition first printing; one of 800 unnumbered copies printed on handmade paper; 30 were simultaneously printed on Japanese vellum. Large post octavo pp. viii 31 1 blank. Publisher's original cinnamon-colour linen white linen spine; titles gilt to spine. Printed at the Chiswick Press but not named on the imprint. Soiling to inner edges of boards corners slightly bumped top edge dusty. Contents clean and rather bright. A very good copy. In 1895 Oscar Wilde was sentenced to two years' hard labour for 'gross indecency'. This poem written while Wilde was in exile in France and Naples in 1897 uses the case of his fellow inmate Charles Thomas Wooldridge to highlight the brutality of the prison system and the irony of the state sentencing a man to death for exactly the same crime. Even without Wilde's name on the title-page the first 800 copies sold out within a week. Mikolyzk A91 Mason 371. London; Leonard Smithers Royal Arcade London W, 1898. hardcover
1893wld23aLondon: Elkin Mathews and John Lane. G : in good condition without dust jacket. Cover rubbed and faded. Some foxing. Previous owner inscription to fep. 1893. First Edition. Brown hardback cloth cover. 220mm x 160mm 9" x 6". xii 132pp 14pp. Heavy item - shipping supplement may apply for overseas. . Elkin Mathews and John Lane hardcover
189919047Limited printing first edition 1000. Very Good hardcover no DJ. Brown-red linen over boards gilt stamped foliate design on front cover and spine; gilt titles on spine. Clean square lightly scuffed covers and spine; spine gilt somewhat dulled; tightly bound; title page unopened at top edge; clean interior but for some darkening perhaps from oil affecting approx 25 pp. 8vo 213 pp. London: Leonard Smithers and Co. hardcover
1899186774London: Leonard Smithers and Co. 1899. I really think it reads the best of my plays First edition trade issue one of 1000 copies. Wilde's political comedy premiered at the Haymarket on 3 January 1895 and ran until 6 April. His arrest the day before the production closed precipitated his "utter social destruction" ODNB and the play was not published in book form until two years after his release from prison. The edition also included 100 signed copies on large paper and 12 on Japanese vellum reserved for presentation. Quarto. Original pink cloth spine lettered in gilt stylized leaf motifs by Charles Shannon in gilt to spine and covers edges untrimmed. Bookplate of one W. A. S. Ray. Spine sunned and a little soiled closed tears to upper margins of half-title and title page neatly repaired. A very good copy. Mason 385. James G. Nelson Publisher to the Decadents: Leonard Smithers in the Careers of Beardsley Wilde Dowson 2000. hardcover
1894189865London: Elkin Mathews & John Lane 1894. A sublime production by the enfants terribles of Victorian Britain First edition in English the first to feature Beardsley's elegant art nouveau illustrations. "If Le Morte Darthur made Beardsley known his designs for the first edition in English of Wilde's Salomé made him notorious and it remains the book of which most people think when his name is mentioned" Ray. Salomé was published in French in 1893. This English translation by Lord Alfred Douglas was published the following year in a run of 500 trade copies as here and 100 on large paper. The premiere took place on 11 February 1896 at the Comédie-Parisienne; the Lord Chamberlain cited Protestant Reformation laws banning religious plays to restrict the public staging in Britain. An opera version was sanctioned for performance in 1910 though the play itself had to be staged privately until the first public performance at the Savoy Theatre in 1931. Small quarto. Frontispiece illustrated title list of illustrations pages 9 plates and 1 tailpiece all by Beardsley; publisher's unopened 16-page advertisements at end. Original blue canvas boards spine lettered in gilt decorations designed by Beardsley to covers in gilt edges untrimmed. Spine ends and joint repaired with loss to a couple of letters marks to endpapers contents toned but clean short closed tear to rear blank. A very good copy. Mason 350; Ray 315A. hardcover
1891019038London : James R. 0SG00D McILVAINE & C0. 1891. Hardcover. Very Good. C. RICKETTS & C. H. SHANNON Design & Decoration by. . B00K: Very G00D/ $837.90 WILDE 0scar a H0USE of P0MEGRANATES C. RICKETTS & C. H. SHANNON Design & Decoration by. James R.OSGOOD McILVAINE & C0. L0ND0N 1891 There is no limited edition or edition statement. Wide H/c Brown Top And Balance Of Tan Spine With Title And Design In Polished Gold Letters Hard Cover B00K: Very Good/ Slight Shelf Edge And Corner Wear. Corners Are Square. 157 Numbered Pages Printed On Tan Paper Browning And Spotting From Aging In Very Good/Fine/ Condition Clean And Tight To The Spine Slight Wear. The Exterior Covering Of The Boards Are Not Decorated. D/j: None. Description Applies To This B0K Only. This B0k Is Hard To Find Will Be Packaged And Shipped Carefully To Avoid Shipping Damage And Will Make It An Excellent Addition To Your Own Personal Library Collection Or As A Gift For The Collector / Reader. WORLD WIDE SHIPPING AVAILABLE. <br/> <br/> James R. 0SG00D McILVAINE & C0. hardcover
189823817London: Leonard Smithers 1898. First edition. Hardcover. Orig. quarter cream and light brown cloth spine darkened. Very good. 31 pages. 23 x 14 cm. "Of this Edition eight hundred copies have been printed on hand-made paper and thirty copies on Japanese vellum." The last edition to identify the author as "C.3.3." -- Wilde was imprisoned in cell block C landing C Cell 3. This narrative a tale of Charles Thomas Woodbridge's 1896 execution at Reading for the murder of his wife. Three small fade spots front cover and slight crinkling at back cover toward head at fore-edge. Nicks to spine head and foot. Leonard Smithers hardcover
189823925Leonard Smithers. Very Good with no dust jacket. 1898. Stated 2nd Edition. Hardcover. Slim 8vo. London: Leonard Smithers 1898. Slim 8vo 4. 31pp. Printed on hand-made paper on one side of the page with deckle finish. Original quarter white linen mustard boards backstrip lettered in gilt a very good copy slightly soiled and backstrip lightly tanned. . Leonard Smithers hardcover
1894004078London: John Lane/Bodley Head 1894. First Edition . Decorative Cloth. Good to Very Good/No Jacket as Issued. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. This first edition of Wilde's play limited to 500 copies was published a year before his masterpiece "The Importance of Being Earnest". Publisher's bookplate front pastedown hinges starting fading to spine cloth. Pink cloth with gilt trim and gilt decorations edges untrimmed. <br/> <br/> John Lane/Bodley Head hardcover
1893002401London: Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head. Printed by T. and A. Constable Edinburgh 1893. First Edition. Cloth. Very Good Minus. 8vo. 21.5 by 16 cm. 8.5 by 6.25 inches. 18 132 14 2 pp. With publisher's list of books in the back. In this first edition apparently only 500 copies were printed! The pages are heavily toned per the norm for the paper stock but clean otherwise. The binding is tight. A few uncut leaves in the advertisement section. FEP with small ornamental bookplate pastedown of "Carroll Atwood Wilson" who was a well-known book collector of his day as well as a lawyer and chief legal counsel to the Guggenheims. The publisher's peach-colored cloth has some blistering on the boards. Along the edges there are long narrow spots in which the color is washed out. The spine has been rebacked with most of the original spine mounted thereon with a small loss of the gilt lettering transpiring. The resulting spine also has small dark spots and one is likely not to find it prepossessing. Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head. Printed by T. and A. Constable, Edinburgh unknown
1893002401London: Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head. Printed by T. and A. Constable Edinburgh 1893. First Edition. Cloth. Very Good Minus. 8vo. 21.5 by 16 cm. 8.5 by 6.25 inches. 18 132 14 2 pp. With publisher's list of books in the back. In this first edition apparently only 500 copies were printed! The pages are heavily toned per the norm for the paper stock but clean otherwise. The binding is tight. A few uncut leaves in the advertisement section. FEP with small ornamental bookplate pastedown of "Carroll Atwood Wilson" who was a well-known book collector of his day as well as a lawyer and chief legal counsel to the Guggenheims. The publisher's peach-colored cloth has some blistering on the boards. Along the edges there are long narrow spots in which the color is washed out. The spine has been rebacked with most of the original spine mounted thereon with a small loss of the gilt lettering transpiring. The resulting spine also has small dark spots and one is likely not to find it prepossessing. <br/><br/> Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head. Printed by T. and A. Constable, Edinburgh hardcover books
189350532London: Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head 1893. First Edition. Small quarto 21.75cm.; original reddish-brown gilt-embossed cloth; 1413214adspp. Straight and tight with the boards slightly faded at margins as is typical and a few spots where cloth has begun to lift. The text is slightly tanned but foxing is contained to endpapers. In all a pleasing and well-preserved copy of a fragile book. 500 copies issued MASON 357. Elkin Mathews and John Lane at the Sign of the Bodley Head unknown books