![[ASCENT OF MONT BLANC]: A fascinating, lengthy A.L.S. by Dr. Edmund Clark, closely written over four pages, 4to, Chamonix, 27](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/51480646-28ed-4e59-a8f8-b18400c0cb5f/88db64c6-4d09-40aa-978f-b185013e7ffa/468x382.jpg)
[ASCENT OF MONT BLANC]: A fascinating, lengthy A.L.S. by Dr. Edmund Clark, closely written over four pages, 4to, Chamonix, 27th August 1835, to Reverend Robert Warrener. Clark writes in the midst of his Grand Tour and provides a detailed account of his successful ascent of Mont Blanc, penned in the immediate aftermath of his remarkable feat, beginning by explaining ´I have postponed my letter in hope of meeting with something of greater interest to write about, nor perhaps should I have now commenced had I not lately succeeded in an excursion of some difficulty, an account of which may help to fill my sheet. Yesterday at 3pm I reached the summit of Mont Blanc, the greatest elevation in Europe with Captain Sherwill a young English officer. This forms the 12th successful ascent of Mont Blanc, of which 6 have been accomplished by English insects´ and continuing to offer an insight into the many places in Italy and Switzerland he had visited before the ascent, ´Having seen the lions at Paris, whisked off to salute the bears at Berne. Spent a halfpenny in feeding the big brown bear with ginger bread-nuts making him stand up & catch the projected fragments in their descent towards his monstrous gaping mouth´, mentioning a famous belle in Brienz regarded as the prettiest woman in Switzerland (´the say [she] has got a lout of a fellow for a husband that thrashes her, the scoundrel´), and the Chillon Castle (´saw Byron´s name cut by himself in the dreadful dungeon´), as well as stops at Milan (where Clark viewed a picture by Leonardo da Vinci), Verona, Padua, Venice (´fine gondola lounges, the most luxurious sort of locomotion under the sun´) as well as Florence where they´Doffed our hats to the Venus de´Medici´ and also saw statues by Michelangelo, and Rome, writing ´Florence is a positively enchanting residence.....such I was in the good Pope´s dominions, a German baron & Swedish countess joined us [for] breakfast at the port before Rome.....In 3 hours we were at the gates of Rome. I entered it on foot & bare headed as is duty bound. Modern Rome is a dismal affair, but the old Ruins!´, before travelling to Naples (´through the horrid dens of cut-throats´) and to Pompeii, ´the most interesting of all objects in Italy. Scrambled up to the lofty top of Vesuvius. Such a view over the Isles of Capri´. Clark then offers an extensive report of his mountaineering exploits, ´...up the Brevent about 17,000 feet. Then a formidable day´s work up the Buel (?) a height of more than 10,000 feet. Here poor Mr. Eschen sunk into a chasm.....next morning he was found frozen to death......We looked down upon this fatal spot. I accompanied Dr. Benjamin Babington from India. It was one of the noblest views I ever saw. We were surrounded with a forest of snowy alpine peaks. Next to Mt. Blanc it is the highest accessible mountain in this part of the chain. Thursday Aug 25 with seven guides started for the top of the mountain king. It is two years since the last ascent & 5 since 3 guides were killed in an unsuccessful attempt. Ascended to the base of the Aiguille du Midi to breakfast then left Terra Firma & embarked on the dreary ocean of ice & snow. The ice is cut & creviced in such a manner that we had often half an hour´s work to advance 40 yards climbing up walls of ice by holes cut with a hatchet, or taking hold of the end of an ice pole to scramble up. We were fastened together with cords. In many places we walked over a thin slippery ledge with a deep blue chasm of 200 to 300 feet on each side.......We marched on the ice that day 7 hours & then arrived at an islet of bare rocks that rise up in the midst of the snows & are called Les Grands Mulets. Here we were dragged up a high precipice with the help of ropes & so reached the comfortable hotel. This hotel is a platform as big as an ironing table covered with snow. The snow we scraped away in some degree & then turned up the dry side of the stones (such is the unhappy tendency of man to luxurious indulgence). Lighted a fire. Manufactured some punch......Then stretched ourselves to sleep covered with a blanket & a sheet at a height much greater than the top of Skiddaw or Ben Nevis, and the thermometer at freezing. It was a lovely moon light night. No sound of insect or of bird, nothing but the awful roar of avalanches around & beneath us. 26th of August Friday, all dressed at 4 o´clock......then again embarked on the snows.......Stopped by a long crevice. Crossed it upon a bridge formed of 5 ice poles placed from edge to edge. Felt rather as if snuffing the candle with one´s finger. Then climbed up the opposite side by cutting holes with the axe. After this comfortable trudging in the snow but rather deep till the Petit Plateau, a place of snow covered with an avalanche. Crossed it & arrived at the Grand Plain. Height about 13,000 feet. Heat of the sun burning and blistering to the eyes & face......began to feel the effect of rarity of the air - headache, no appetite.......arrived at the spot where the 3 brave guides perished in an avalanche while trying to ascend with a Russian physician & statesman in 1820. Their bodies have never been found. The crevice into which they were buried by the avalanche is still somewhat visible. Two of the 7 guides with us were nearly killed in that dreadful catastrophe. Now began to ascend the steep icy wall of the summit. We were nearly 4 hours in ascending one vast slope being obliged to cut a passage with the axe very often. Here one slip wd. have been serious. You wd. probably have glided down the frozen inclined plain with immense velocity.......We now became very cold, our shoes.....as hard as iron, our faces pale & shrunk. Respiration uneasy, Intense headache. My friend had great nausea also. At last we reached the Petit Mulets. The loftiest rocks in the line of ascent. From this a steep hard plain of snow leads directly to the summit. We lay down on the snow, panted & puffed away, again for 10 yards, then lay down again; eat a little snow; up again (the guides too were already exhausted) How many more starts to the top? Three said the brave guides......and in two desperate efforts we were on the pinnacle of Europe. My friend arrived a moment or two after & such was his exhaustion that the moment his guide called out Nous voici sur le sommet de Mt. Blanc he burst into a flood of tears. We were both utterly worn out with fatigue, rarity of air. Cold & inability to eat. The thermometer was below freezing even in the sun......The sky deep indigo approaching to violet. The view immense......all in a vast panorama laid at our feet. In the highest rock I placed olive twigs brought from Italy for the purpose.....all these are enclosed in a strong cylinder of glass.......& placed in......the rocks so securely that when the storms of a thousand years are gone by & our dust is mixed with kindred earth, still I think it possible that the little record may remain unhurt. We descended hastily slept on the Grands Mulets on our delicious bed of rocks & today rejoined the valley. No one seriously hurt. I had one foot a little frozen......We are all full of gaiety for it is not too often that an ascent is at once so successful & so pleasant. It is my intention to write a small pamphlet on the ascent & to send you a copy´. With address panel to the final page of the bifolium. An excellent letter containing a rare first hand account of an early 19th century ascent of Mont Blanc. Some minor staining and age wear and toning and with a few small, neat splits and tears, G
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HENIE SONJA: (1912-1969) Norwegian figure skater and film actress, Olympic gold medallist in 1928, 1932 & 1936 and a ten-time World Figure Skating Champion (1927-36). A good, small group of three different vintage signed sepia postcard photographs of Henie, each captured at the height of her figure skating career, one depicting her in a mid-air pose as she performs a routine outdoors, another showing her in a happy head and shoulders pose with one of her trophies and the final image depicting Henie seated in a three-quarter length pose holding a small dog in her arms and with a trophy at her side. All are signed in bold black fountain pen ink with her first name, two to the lower white borders, and one is dated 1931 in her hand. Some very light, extremely minimal age wear, VG, 3
LAPLACE PIERRE SIMON: (1749-1827) Marquis de Laplace. French Scholar and Scientist whose works developed mathematics, physics and astronomy. Laplace formulated the equation named after him and was one of the first scientists to postulate the existence of black holes. His five volume work Celestial Mechanics has been a guide for many leading scientists. He is widely considered one of the greatest scientists of all time, and often referred to as the “French Newton”. A good D.S., `C[om]te Laplace´, one page, oblong 4to, Paris, 24th December 1808, in French. The partially printed document, completed in Laplace´s hand, is a receipt confirming the payment Laplace gets obliged to pay a year after according to the decree aproved by the Emperor related to the nobility title granted to him, as Count, by the Emperor. The partially printed document states, with Laplace´s annotations in cursive, `Décret du 17 Mars 1808 - Le vingt-quatre Décembre mil huit cent neuf, je payerai à la grande Trésorerie de la Légion d´honneur la somme de Deux cent vingt francs... que je suis tenu de verser en exécution du statut Impérial du 1er Mars 1808, pour l´emploi qu´il prescrit, à cause du Majorat relatif au Titre de Comte que Sa Majesté Impériale et Royale a bien voulu me conférer. Pour le payement de la présente, j´élis domicile à Paris, à La Chancellerie du Sénat. Fait à Paris, le vingt quatre Décembre mil huit cent huit . Cte Laplace´ (Translation: "Decree of March 17, 1808 - On December twenty-four of the year one thousand eight hundred and nine, I will pay to the great Treasury of the Legion of Honor the sum of Two hundred and twenty francs... which I am required to pay in execution of the Imperial statute of March 1st 1808, for the employment it prescribes, because of the Majorat relating to the Title of Count that His Imperial and Royal Majesty was kind enough to confer on me. For the payment of this, I take up residence in Paris, at the Chancellery of the Senate. Done in Paris, December twenty-fourth, one thousand eight hundred and eight. Cte Laplace´. The document bears a revolutionary blind embossed seal to the front and a tax ink stamp to the verso, bearing also to the verso a three lines handwritten annotation signed by the responsible of the Legion d´honneur Treasury Dubois. Very small minor age wear, otherwise G to VG
SHELLEY MARY: (1797-1851) English novelist of the Gothic novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818) and the editor and promoter of the works of her husband, the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. A fine, extremely rare A.L.S., Mary Shelley, three pages, 8vo, Somerset Street, Portman Square (London), n.d. (17th June 1829), to [Cyrus Redding]. Shelley commences her letter stating ´I am sorry to have it only in my power to reply that the portrait of Mr. Shelley to which you allude is by no means a good one´, and explains ´it is the size of life, in oils - but unfortunately very unfinished. There are however several very striking points of resemblance, and I indulge a hope that when I can afford it, a first rate engraver might succeed in making a good print from it´, further remarking ´I do not know anything so disagreeable or unjust as the too frequent custom of prefixing prints unworthy of the person meant to be represented - and in this case, there would be great danger, that even Mr. Heath could not succeed´ and also adding ´I should be averse therefore to having it done unless by him, & unless it were in my power to cancel it altogether if I did not approve of it. If it had been otherwise, if the picture had been one which would only have needed fidelity and care, I should have been very happy to have furnished you with the opportunity of making an engraving´. Shelley concludes by stating that it was not necessary for Redding to have apologised for his application on the subject, and briefly refers to two mutual acquaintances, including Leigh Hunt. A letter of fine content in which Mary Shelley serves to protect the image of her husband, who had not achieved fame in his lifetime, but whose recognition steadily grew following his death in 1822. Some very light, extremely minimal age wear and with one small, neat split at the base of the vertical fold in the bifolium, VGCyrus Redding (1785-1870) British journalist who effectively edited The New Monthly Magazine from 1821-30 and published Shipwrecks and disasters at sea (1833) amongst other titles, including a history of wine.Charles Heath (1785-1848) British engraver, book publisher and illustrator.Leigh Hunt (1784-1859) English critic, essayist and poet, a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley.
TIBBETS PAUL: (1915-2007) American Brigadier General in the United States Air Force, pilot of the Enola Gay, the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb, Hiroshima, 6th August 1945. Signed 8 x 10 photograph by Tibbets, the cardstock image depicting the mushroom cloud over Hiroshima following the atomic bombing on 6th August 1945. Signed by Tibbets in blue ink to a light area at the head of the image, also adding the word Pilot in his hand alongside his signature. VG
ELIZABETH THE QUEEN MOTHER: (1900-2002) Queen consort of the United Kingdom 1936-52 as the wife of King George VI. Vintage signed and inscribed Christmas greetings card by the Queen Mother, the stiff cream 4to folding card featuring an oval colour image to the inside of the Queen Mother in a head and shoulders pose. Signed and inscribed (´Gerald & Angela......from Aunt Elizabeth´) in black ink with an unusual form of her signature, above and below a printed Christmas and New Year greeting, 1969. With a gold embossed crown to the front cover. A good association piece. About EXGerald David Lascelles (1924-1998) was the younger son of Henry Lascelles, 6th Earl of Harewood and Mary, Princess Royal, the only daughter of King George V and Queen Mary. A first cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, Lascelles married his first wife, the British actress Angela Dowding (1919-2007), in 1952. They remained married until their divorce in 1978.
WALLIS BARNES: (1887-1979) English scientist & inventor of the bouncing bomb used in Operation Chastise (The Dambusters Raid) on 16th May 1943. Signed Royal Air Force Museum cover issued to commemorate Barnes Wallis and featuring a colour image of an R-100 airship and with an inset portrait of Wallis, post marked 15th June 1976 on the 40th Anniversary of the first flight of the Wellington bomber. Signed by Wallis in bold blue fountain pen ink with his name alone to a clear area. About EX
BECKETT SAMUEL: (1906-1989) Irish novelist and playwright, Nobel Prize winner for Literature, 1969. A.L.S., Sam, to the verso of a vintage picture postcard of the steps leading to the Monument to the Unknown Hero at Mount Avala, Belgrade, 11th July 1958, to Deryk Mendel. Beckett writes a brief message to update his friend on travel arrangements, ´On tomorrow to Zagreb to join Roger & Nicole near Fiume (i.e. Rijeka)´, and concludes by sending his affectionate greetings. At the foot of the letter appear two brief notes in French, ´On se revenu´ (Translation: ´We´ll be back´) signed by Beckett´s lover and future wife, Suzanne Dechevaux-Dumesnil, and ´Ca Va. Et toi!´ (Translation: ´How are you. And you!´) signed by the French actor Jean Martin. VGDeryk Mendel (1920-2013) British ballet dancer, choreographer, actor and director, a friend of Beckett. The playwright wrote the short play Act Without Words I in 1956 for Mendel and the dancer first performed the mime at the Royal Court Theatre in London on 3rd April 1957.Jean Martin (1922-2009) French actor, best known for originating two roles in Samuel Beckett´s most famous plays: Lucky in Waiting for Godot, and Clov in Endgame.
JOLSON AL: (1886-1950) American actor and singer, remembered as the star of the first talking picture, The Jazz Singer (1927). A good vintage signed and inscribed 8 x 10 photograph, the original Warner Bros & Vitaphone Pictures publicity portrait depicting Jolson in a happy close-up head and shoulders pose. Signed in bold black fountain pen ink across a light area at the base of the image. A few very light, minor creases to the edges of the white borders, VG
WELLES ORSON: (1915-1985) American actor & film director, Academy Award winner. An exceptional vintage signed sepia 8 x 10 photograph of Welles in a head and shoulders pose, wearing a top hat, in costume as the wealthy newspaper publisher Charles Foster Kane from the classic film Citizen Kane (1941). Signed by Welles in bold blue fountain pen ink with his name alone to a clear area of the background. Signed photographs of Welles in costume from arguably his most famous role are of the utmost rarity and highly desirable. VGCitizen Kane (1941) was Welles's first feature film, which he also co-wrote, produced and directed. It is constantly ranked as one of the greatest movies ever made.
CZECHOSLOVKIA-SOVIET FRIENDSHIP TREATY: An historically important set of four World War II date Ds.S. by both Zdenek Fierlinger (1891-1976) Czechoslovak diplomat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Czechoslovakia 1945-46 and Vyacheslav Molotov (1890-1986) Russian politician and diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs 1939-49 & 1953-56, being the Treaty on Friendship, Mutual Aid and Post-War Cooperation between the Czechoslovak Republic and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the first of the typescript documents being in Czech, four pages, folio, Moscow, 12th December 1943, issued as a supplement to the Treaty of Mutual Assistance signed between the two countries in Prague on 16th May 1935, and the agreement made on the joint progress in the war against Germany that was signed in London on 18th July 1941, agreeing to post-war cooperation to maintain peace and prevent a new attack by Germany, and ensuring permanent friendship between the two countries, the treaty comprising six articles in which the Czechoslovak Republic and USSR agree to provide each other with military assistance in the 'current war against Germany and all those states that are associated with him in offensive actions in Europe', undertaking that they will not 'enter into any negotiations with Hitler's government or any other government in Germany for the duration of the present war', further agreeing 'on close and friendly cooperation after the restoration of peace, and that they will act in accordance with the intentions of mutual respect for their independence and sovereignty, as well as non-interference in the internal affairs of another state....[and].....that they will develop economic relations on the widest possible scale and provide each other with all kinds of economic assistance after the war' and also undertaking not to enter into any alliance or participate in any coalition directed against each other, and concluding by agreeing that the treaty shall come into force immediately and remain in place for a period of twenty years. Signed by both Fierlinger and Molotov at the conclusion above two official wax seals tied by a red cord. The second typescript document being an identical version in Cyrillic, also four pages, folio, Moscow, 12th December 1943, and again signed at the conclusion by both Fierlinger and Molotov above their official wax seals. The third typescript document represents an addendum to the treaty, one page, folio, Moscow, 12th December 1943, in Czech and states, in part, 'When concluding the Treaty of Friendship.....between the Czechoslovak Republic and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the contracting parties agreed that in the event of any third country wishing to accede to this Treaty, bordering the Czechoslovak Republic or the USSR and resisting the object of German agression in this war, the latter will be given the opportunity, by mutual agreement......to sign this Treaty, which will thus acquire the status of a trpartite treaty'. Signed by both Fierlinger and Molotov at the conclusion. The fourth document is an identical version of the addendum in Cyrillic, also one page, folio, Moscow, 12th December 1943 and again signed by Fierlinger and Molotov at the conclusion. The four documents are tied together with red cord and housed within the original folder with plain maroon coloured boards. Some minor scuffing and age wear, a few very light water stains to the upper borders of most pages and the final document with a small area of paper loss to the upper right corner, not affecting the text or signatures. About VG
FAMOUS MEN & WOMEN: Selection of signed First Day Covers by a wide variety of famous men and women comprising Johnnie Johnson (Benham ´silk´ cover issued as a Salute to the brave of The Battle of Britain), Gherman Titov (Benham ´silk´cover issued on the 30th Anniversary of the Vostok 1 space mission and Yuri Gagarin becoming the first man in space), Greg Norman, Lester Piggott, Graeme Souness (issued for the Centenary of the Football League), Cliff Richard, Vera Lynn (issued for the 50th Anniversary of VE Day), Lennox Lewis, and Geoff Hurst. All feature attractive colour designs and images and all are boldly signed to clear areas. VG to EX, 9
AUSTIN WILLIAM: (1884-1975) English character actor, the first actor to portray Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne's butler, in the Batman serial of 1943. Vintage signed sepia 5 x 7 photograph of Austin in a head and shoulders pose. Signed ('Cheerio, William Austin') in dark fountain pen ink to the image. One slight, very minor trace of former mounting to the lower right corner of the border, otherwise VG
BOUGUEREAU WILLIAM: (1825-1905) French painter. A.L.S., Wm. Bouguereau, one page, 8vo, Paris, 21st May 1888, to Mr. A. Hustin (?) of the Paris Journal Illustre, in French. The artist informs his correspondent that ´Je vous autorise a reproduire dans le Paris Journal et dans la Vie Artistique la gravure de mon tableau "Le Premier Deuil" publiee par la revue de M. Baschet´ (Translation: ´I authorise you to reproduce in the Paris Journal and in the Vie Artistique the engraving of my painting "Le Premier Deuil" published by M. Baschet's magazine´). With blank integral leaf. Some very light age toning, only very slightly affecting the text and signature, otherwise VGLe Premier Deuil (´First Mourning´) is an oil painting completed by Bouguereau in 1888. The work depicts the moment when Adam and Eve discover the body of their dead son, Abel, killed by Cain. It is housed in the National Museum of Fine Arts in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
STYLES HARRY: (1994- ) English singer, a successful solo artist and member of the pop boy band One Direction. Signed colour 10 x 8 photograph of Styles in a half-length profile pose wearing a pair of headphones and singing into a microphone. Signed in bold black ink with his first name to a light area of the image and also adding a love heart in his hand alongside his signature. EX
REAGAN NANCY: (1921-2016) American actress, the second wife of Ronald Reagan from 1952 and First Lady of the United States 1981-89. Signed 8 x 10 photograph of the young actress seated in a half-length pose. Signed (´Nancy Reagan´) in bold blue ink with her name alone to a light area of the image. About EX
LINDBERGH CHARLES: (1902-1974) American aviator who made the first solo non-stop flight across the Atlantic from Paris to New York in the Spirit of St. Louis, May 1927. A good, bold dark fountain pen ink signature ('Charles A. Lindbergh') and date, 10th September 1941, in his hand on an attractive printed air mail cover featuring red, white and blue stripes and with the printed words Via Air Mail, Par Avion, Correo Aereo! at the head. Matted in off-white with red borders above a 7.5 x 5 reproduction photograph of Lindbergh seated in a full-length pose alongside the Spirit of St. Louis and framed and glazed in a red wooden frame to an overall size of 12 x 13.5. VG
SCHNEIDER MAGDA (1909-1996) & ROMY (1938-1992) German actresses, mother and daughter. Vintage signed postcard photograph by both Magda and Romy Schneider individually, the image depicting them in head and shoulders poses together. Signed by Magda Schneider in bold blue fountain pen ink with her name alone to the lower border and signed by Romy Schneider in bold blue fountain pen ink with her first name only to a light area at the base of the image. VG
RAMOS MEL: (1935-2018) American artist who first gained important recognition as a member of the Pop Art movement in the 1960s and is remembered for his paintings of female nudes. Signed colour 10 x 8 photograph of Ramos in a profile head and shoulders pose, smoking a cigar, and with a paintbrush in one hand as he works on a painting of a blonde model before him. Signed by the artist in blue ink with his name alone to the image. Scarce in this form. EX
HITCHCOCK ALFRED: (1899-1980) English film director. An excellent T.L.S., Hitch, one page, 4to, n.p. (California?), 31st July 1940, to Edmond F. Bernoudy (´My dear Eddie´). Hitchcock announces ´It looks as though we aren´t going to be able to be together on the next picture I´m sorry to say´ and explains ´On my return from New York yesterday I found that RKO have allocated an assistant to me called Dewey Starkey and I know you will realize that it´s pretty difficult for me to refuse to take what I am led to believe is their number one assistant on the lot´, further remarking ´It looks to me, Eddie, as though this first picture here will have to be a miss as far as we are concerned, but nevertheless I´m going to try and make arrangements for you to come on the next one if you are free because I´m anxious not to sever our partnership. If the company had been a smaller one I would have had no difficulty in continuing our association´. Hitchcock also expresses his gratitude to Bernoudy, ´I want to thank you very much, Eddie, for all you´ve done to help me here. I would almost go as far as to say that the comfortable conditions that I had in making "Rebecca" were in a large measure responsible for its success as far as I am concerned. Had it been necessary for me to go on making it under the conditions which I started I doubt whether the results would have been the same´ and concludes ´Please let us keep in touch and God willing we will be together before you can say "Walter Wanger"!´. A letter of fine content and good association. Very slightly neatly trimmed to the edges and with a few very light, minimal creases, VGEdmond F- Bernoudy (1901-1978) American assistant film director who had worked alongside Hitchcock on the romantic psychological thriller film Rebecca (1940). It would seem that Hitchcock achieved his wishes and, despite the content of the present letter, Bernoudy also served as assistant director on Hitchcock´s next film, the spy thriller Foreign Correspondent, which was also released in 1940 and was produced by Walter Wanger. Dewey Starkey (1898-1974) American assistant film director, Academy Award winner. Starkey worked on 41 films between 1930 and 1944 including Hitchcock´s romantic psychological thriller film Suspicion (1941).
MEMPHIS BELLE: Robert Morgan (1918-2004) American Colonel, Command Pilot of the B-17 Flying Fortress Memphis Belle during World War II. Two individually signed covers, the first a commemorative cover featuring an image of a Flying Fortress aircraft dropping bombs over Germany and with the caption at the head Plowshares Turned Into Swords, and the second a First Day of Issue cover commemorating Classic American Aircraft and featuring a colour silk cachet, post marked at Dayton, Ohio, 19th July 1997. Both covers are signed by Morgan in black ink to clear areas, also adding the words Pilot of Memphis Belle in his hand beneath each of the signatures. VG, 2
BOSCO JOHN: (1815-1888) Don Bosco. Italian Roman Catholic Priest, Educator and Writer. He developed teaching methods based on love rather than punishment, a method known as the Salesian Preventive System. Founder of the Salesians of Don Bosco. Canonized as a saint in 1934. Rare A.L.S., `Obbl.[igatissi]mo Servitore Sac. G. Bosco´, three pages, small 4to, Turin, 15th May 1870, to Countess Callori, in Italian. Bosco thanks his correspondent for her help and charity and refers to his recent trip stating `Benemerita Signora Contessa, la sua lettera mi venne a raggiungere in Mornese che é il Paradiso terrestre della Provincia Acquese - Ella abbonda in bontá e carité ed io la ringrazio. Il mio viaggio fu ottimo. Cessazione dalle ordinarie occupazioni, un po´ piu di riposo, buoni pranzi mi hanno fatto benissimo, al corpo s´intende-…´ (Translation: “Well-deserving Madam Countess, your letter reached me in Mornese which is the earthly paradise of the Acquese Province - You abound in goodness and charity and I thank you. My trip was excellent. Cessation from ordinary occupations, a little more rest, good lunches have done me very well, for the body of course -…”) Saint John Bosco further unusually recommends a relative, saying `Le mando unito un biglietto pel benevolo cav. Giacosa. E´ la prima volta che raccomando un parente; glielo avevo promesso come premio e lo fo perché lo ha guadagnato…´ (Translation: “I am also sending you a note for the kind gentleman Giacosa. It's the first time I've recommended a relative; I promised it to him as a reward and I do it because he deserved it…”) Further again, and before concluding, Bosco explains his near future travelling plan, stating `Se potró andare a Mirabello la preverró e faro certamente una stazione a sua casa – L´altro ieri si tenne seduta a Roma riguardo all chiesa di S. Giovanni della Pigna – il risultato fu per noi: forse dovró fare una corsa a Roma; oggi ho scritto per vedere se posso farne a meno a al meno differire…´ (Translation: “If I can go to Mirabello, I will anticipate it and certainly make a stop at your house - The day before yesterday there was a session in Rome regarding the church of S. Giovanni della Pigna - the result was that perhaps I will have to make a trip to Rome; I wrote today to see if I can cancel it or at least postpone it…”) Overall minor age wear, with a very small hole not affecting the text or signature and few minor foxing stains, otherwise G Countess Carlota Calori di Vignale (1827-1911) one of the most important financial benefactors of Bosco´s projects. Bosco considered Countess Callori as his second-mother.
BECKETT SAMUEL: (1906-1989) Irish novelist and playwright, Nobel Prize winner for Literature, 1969. A.L.S., Sam Beckett, one page, 8vo, Paris, 28th November 1953, to Deryk [Mendel]. Beckett states that he has suddenly decided to go to London and will leave tomorrow, remarking that he shall probably see Kitty Black and will write to Mendel to let him know what she has to say, further adding ´Have just seen Genevieve Serreau. The Mardis de l´oeuvre are looking for a curtain-raiser to go with Ionesco´s Chaises and she seems to think our scenario might fit the bill´ and continuing ´If you think this worth looking into Jean-Marie Serreau is to be had on the phone at the Oeuvre any day about 2.30 - 3pm´. Beckett concludes by stating that he hopes Mendel didn´t experience any earthquakes in Lisbon and that he is safely back. A letter of interesting associations, linking Beckett to a number of other individuals with important contributions to Waiting for Godot, which had premiered earlier in the same year as the present letter. VGDeryk Mendel (1920-2013) British ballet dancer, choreographer, actor and director, a friend of Beckett. The playwright wrote the short play Act Without Words I in 1956 for Mendel and the dancer first performed the mime at the Royal Court Theatre in London on 3rd April 1957.Dorothy ´Kitty´ Black (1914-2006) South African-born playwright, literary agent and translator who was involved with the noted production of Beckett´s Waiting for Godot in 1956.Genevieve Serreau (1915-1981) French actress and playwright who co-founded the Théâtre de Babylone in Paris which premiered Beckett´s Waiting for Godot on 5th January 1953.Jean-Marie Serreau (1915-1973) French actor and theatre director associated with the Theatre de l´oeuvre in the 1950s. Serreau created works by avant gardist playwrights including Beckett and Eugene Ionesco, and was married to Genevieve Serreau.
RASPUTIN MARIA: (1898-1977) born Matryona Grigorievna Rasputina. Daughter of Grigori Rasputin. Maria wrote three memoirs about her father, dealing with Tsar Nicholas II and the Empress Alexandra Feodorovna, and his 1916 murder. The first The Real Rasputin (1929), the second Rasputin my Father (1932), and the third one The Man Behind the Myth, was published in 1977. The veracity of her works have been questioned, as she painted an almost saintly picture of her father, insisting that most of the negative stories were based on slander and the misinterpretation of facts by his enemies. An interesting T.L.S., `M. Raspoutine´, one page, 4to, Paris, 6th November 1933, to Maurice Verne, in French. Maria refers to the article published by her correspondent in L´Intransigeant, explains that there has been a misunderstanding and asks for an amendment to be publishes, saying in part `Je viens seulement de lire l´article que vous avez consacré à mon père, il y a une huitaine de jours, et où vous me mettez en cause. Je crains qu´il n´y ait eu un malentendu, probablement est-il du à ma façon de parler le Français... Je n´ai jamais dit que le Dr. Badmaffev était un familier de notre maison à Saint Petersbourg, j´ai dit que mon père l´avait rencontré et que Badmaffev était venu quelques fois à la maison, comme sont venus des milliers de personnes...´ (Translation: ("I have only just read the article that you devoted to my father, about a week ago, and where you implicate me. I fear that there was a misunderstanding, probably due to the way I speak French... I never said that Dr. Badmaffev was a friend of our house in Saint Petersburg, I I said that my father had met him and that Badmaffev had come to the house a few times, as thousands of people had come...") Further, Maria Raspoutin also refers to the Royal family and most of all about the Tsarevich, saying `Jamais à ma connaissance Badmaffev n´a soigné un des membres de la famille impériale et, en tout cas, jamais mon père n´a eu affaire à lui et n´a conseillé son intervention pour le cas du Tsarevitch...´ (Translation: "To my knowledge, Badmaffev never treated one of the members of the Imperial family and, in any case, my father never had to deal with him and never recommended his intervention in the Tsarevich's case...") Signed in bold blue ink at the base. Overall creasing, age wear and toning to the lower part and a small crease to fold left edge. F to G After Felix Yusupov published his memoir in 1928, detailing the death of Rasputin, Maria sued Yusupov and Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia in a Paris court for damages of $800,000. She condemned both men as murderers and said any decent person would be disgusted by the ferocity of Rasputin's killing. Maria's claim was dismissed. The French court ruled that it had no jurisdiction over a political killing that took place in Russia.After leaving Russia and going into exile, Maria took dancing lessons in Berlin in 1929. Later in Paris, Maria was offered a job as a cabaret dancer because of her name. She took more dancing lessons to support their two young daughters and would later work with several different Circus Companies from 1929 to 1935, where she had to dance as she said "the tragedy of my father's life and death, and be brought face-to-face on the stage with actors who were impersonating him and his murderers. Every time I have to confront my father on the stage a pang of poignant memory shoots through my heart, and I could break down and weep". One of her last circus tours was billing Maria "the daughter of the famous mad monk whose feats in Russia astonished the world".
![[PICASSO PABLO]: (1881-1973) Spanish painter, a co-founder of the Cubist movement. VERDET ANDRE (1913-2004) French poet, pain](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/51480646-28ed-4e59-a8f8-b18400c0cb5f/ba2a2ffe-0eba-4ec4-a7af-b1840132e220/468x382.jpg)
[PICASSO PABLO]: (1881-1973) Spanish painter, a co-founder of the Cubist movement. VERDET ANDRE (1913-2004) French poet, painter and sculptor, a friend of Pablo Picasso. Book signed and inscribed, being a softcover edition of La Chevre de Picasso, published by Editions de Beaune, Paris, 1952, in an edition of 4,000 copies, featuring a printed French text essay by Verdet as well as a poem and with a number of black and white illustrations. Signed and inscribed by Verdet in bold fountain pen ink beneath one of the illustrations, ´Pour Loulou, mon pote de la Resistance et d´ailleurs, A Verdet´ (Translation: ´For Loulou, my pal from the Resistance and elsewhere, A Verdet´) and dated November 1953 in his hand. Some very light, minimal age wear, about VGVerdet was arrested by the Gestapo as a member of the Resistance during World War II and was first deported to Auschwitz and later moved to Buchenwald.
GAUGUIN PAUL: (1848-1903) French Post-Impressionist painter. A rare and very interesting lengthy Autograph Manuscript draft article by Gauguin, four pages, folio, n.p., n.d. [late 1889], in French. The draft article is untiltled, although would later be published as "Huysmans et Redon". Gauguin responds in this article to Huysmans's writing on visual arts, stating in part `Huysmans est un artiste, son mouvement d´impulsion se traduit dans une expulsion en littérature. Beaucoup de peintres voudraient être musiciens ou litérateurs. Lui voudrait être peintre. Il l´aime la peinture. A différentes époques des critiques ont paru de lui.... Depuis il s´est fait un grand changement en lui car il a soif d´art et ne craint pas de marcher sur ses erreurs. Nous l´en félicitons´ (Translation"Huysmans is an artist, his impulse movement translates into an expulsion in literature. Many painters would like to be musicians or men of letters. Huysmans would like to be a painter. He loves painting. At different times critics have appeared about him... Since then a big change has taken place in himself because he is thirsty of art and do not fear to walk on his own errors. we do congratulate him for this") Further Gauguin criticises the terms on which Huysmans has written about Odilon Redon and disputing Huysmans's understanding of other artists ancient and modern including Francesco Bianchi, and referring to Rembrandt and Rapahel, states in part `Je ne vois pas en quoi Odilon Redon fait des monstres - Ce sont des êtres imaginaires. C´est un rêveur, un imaginatif.... Voyez l´oeuvre de Rembrandt de Raphael et quelle relation intime entre tous ses modèles femmes et hommes et son portrait...´ (Translation: "I don't see how you can say that Odilon Redon makes monsters - They are imaginary beings. He is a dreamer, an imaginative.... See the work of Rembrandt, Raphael, and what an intimate relationship between all his female and male models and his portrait..."). Further again, Gauguin refers extensively to Gustave Moreau `...Son mouvement d´impulsion est bienloin du coeur, aussi il aime la richesse des biens matériels...´ (Translation "...His impulsive movement is very far from his heart and he loves the richness of material wealth..." and refers also to Puvis de Chavanne with some unconnected notes at the end `Coco de mer - Coco a deux parties qui s´entrouvent comme le sexe femelle d´où sort un énorme fallus qui va se piquer en terre pour germer. Les habitants l´ont considéré lontemps comme le fruit défendu de l´arbre de la science du mal et du bien´ (Translation "...Coconut in two parts which open like the female genitalia, from which emerges an enormous phallus which embeds itself in the earth to germinate. The inhabitants have long considered it as the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil") An extremely interesting thoughts by Gauguin, saying in differents parts of his manuscript `...Je veux dire par là que le peintre ne opeut illustrer un livre et vice versa. Il peut décorer son livre oui, y ajouter d´autres sensations qui s´y rattachent... De la laideur - Question brûlante et qui est la pierre de touche de notre art moderne et de la critique.... D´un volcan vous en refroidissez la lave et d´un sang bouillonant vous en faites une pierre. Fût-elle un rubis ...mais on veut des rubis et on les vend aux trafiquants de diamants! En somme Gustave Moreau est un beau ciseleur. En revanche Puvis de Chavannes ne vous sourit pas... La simplicité la noblesse ne sont plus d´époque. Que voulez-vous éminent critique d´art, ces gens là seront un jour de leur époque....´ (Translation: "By this I mean that the painter cannot illustrate a book and vice versa. He can decorate his book yes, add other sensations attached to it... Of ugliness - A burning question and which is the touchstone of our modern art and criticism.... Of a volcano you cool the lava and from boiling blood you make a stone. Was it a ruby...but we want rubies and we sell them to diamond traffickers! In short, Gustave Moreau is a great engraver. On the other hand, Puvis de Chavannes does not smile at you... Simplicity and nobility are no longer of the times. What do you want, eminent art critic, these people will one day be of their time...") A letter of excellent contant and association. Extremely small tears to the bottom edge of the second page, otherwise G to VGIn the present letter, Gauguin criticises the art criticism of the "decadent" critic Karl-Joris Huysmans. These typically combative notes, attacking the taste of the great literary champion of the Impressionists, were written when Gauguin was back in Paris after his fraught sojourn with Van Gogh in Arles, and was beginning to turn his mind to Tahiti. At the heart of his argument is the figure of Odilon Redon, who was in fact a friend of both men. Huysmans had written some of the first positive reviews of Redon's art, which had played a vital role in establishing him in the art world. Both Redon and Gauguin had exhibited in the 8th Impressionist exhibition of 1886, and by the late 1880s Redon was one of the few artistic contemporaries of whom Gauguin spoke with unambiguous respect. Gauguin is responding to a chapter of Huysmans's "Certains" on Redon entitled "Le Monstre" (1889). To Huysmans, Redon was an artist of fantasy, creating distorted monsters to express modernity - a visual equivalent of contemporary decadent and symbolist literature. Gauguin refutes this, claiming that Redon's imagination is an expression of nature. This article was dated by Guérin, who notes that it was first published in Les Nouvelles littéraires, 7th May 1953. Interestingly, the manuscript shows significant differences from the published text, with a number of important sentences silently omitted or re-ordered. Karl-Joris Huysmans (1848-1907) French Novelist and art Critic. A founding member of the Academy Goncourt and an early advocate of Impressionism.Odilon Redon (1840-1916) French Painter. Best known for his Dreamlike works inspired by Japanese art.Gustave Moreau (1826-1898) French artist, an important figure in the Symbolist movement.Pierre Puvis de Chavannes (1824-1898) French painter.
STEINBECK JOHN: (1902-1968) American writer, Nobel Prize winner for Literature, 1962. A fascinating autograph manuscript, unsigned, six pages (separate leaves, written to the rectos only), folio, n.p., n.d. (1953). The manuscript, written in pencil and with various corrections as well as significantly longer unpublished sections to the published text, represents Steinbeck’s essay My Short Novels which appeared in Wings magazine in October 1953 ahead of the publication of the works as a collection. Steinbeck provides his analysis of six novels and opens with an introduction (numbered 1B) which is entirely different to the published version, in the present text writing ‘A book, even a little book, is a kind of person. It has tone – that’s its personality, and structure, that’s its physique…..During the time of a book’s writing, the author is his book – not one or other of the characters but the whole book…..When the book is finished, that person usually dies in the author……If the author has deeply loved the book……then when it is finished, he forgets…..the struggles and doubts and he remembers it as he would a dear person who is gone……I have never gone back over books long finished until now. But the printing of these short novels in one volume requires that I look at these and try to remember them. It is a confusing thing. Can I have been all of these persons……’, continuing to refer to his writing processes (‘Writing is an elusive business’) and commenting on the novels in particular ‘No two of these novels are alike. It would be strange if they were. Each one grew out of a time, and a condition, a state of mind, and states of history both personal and general. I can’t be sure that what I set down now is accurate but I have tried to remember’. Steinbeck then proceeds to reflect on the six stories, the circumstances of their writing, their reception, the goals he pursued in writing them, and more, beginning with The Red Pony, the manuscript reading ‘The Red Pony was set down in a matter (?) of pain. My mother was dying and her death was the first break in the family. Young people try to find a reason or a cause or a purpose in the events which move them. I suppose this is self-protective. In this time, I went back to my own childhood and tried as so many others have to write a death and a transfiguration, a balance between life and death…..’ (The published text varied considerably, ‘The Red Pony was written a long time ago, when desolation reigned in my family. The first death had arrived. And the family, which every child believes to be immortal, was broken. Perhaps this is the coming of age for every man and woman. The first torturous question: why?, then acceptance, and then the child becomes a man. The Red Pony was an attempt, an experiment, if you will, to put on paper this loss, this acceptance and this growth’). The writer then turns to Tortilla Flat, reflecting ‘I had been reading extensively concerning the Arthurian cycle – not with great scholarship but with interest…..wondering what real thing had happened out of which the myths grew. And then as an exercise I wrote Tortilla Flat using the people and stories currently told in Monterey but trying to set them in a moral tissue like the Gesta Romanorum. It was a kind of satire attempt to write folk lore….’, continuing with Of Mice and Men (‘another experiment’) and providing an anecdote involving his dog, Toby, who was thoughtful and given to brooding, ‘Once when I had finished about two thirds of Of Mice and Men I went out for an evening leaving Toby alone. Perhaps his critical sense took charge. At any rate he tore my manuscript book to confetti. There was no fitting it together. I had to start from the beginning…..I’ve often wondered how different the two versions were. I’ll never know’, writing of The Moon is Down, which was published after an interval when several long novels were created, ‘The Moon is Down was a kind of declaration of faith in the strength and survival of free and democratic men over dictatorship. The book got me in a lot of trouble. I was called a traitor…..’, the essay continuing ‘The fifth short novel was Cannery Row. It was written on my return from Europe and Africa…..as a war correspondent. It was written as a nostalgic thing to forget the bitterness and horror……It was said that I didn’t know anything about war; perfectly true although how Park Avenue commandos found me out I can’t conceive…..Subsequently I saw a piece of war as a correspondent and following that wrote Cannery Row….[for]…..soldiers who had said “Write something funny that isn’t about the war…..we’re sick of war”. They had to fight it……It was pleasing to me that half a million copies were distributed to troops and they didn’t complain. We had some very war-like critics then. They had no patience with soldiers’ and concluding ‘In Mexico I heard a story and made a long jump back to the Tortilla Flat time. I tried to write it as folk lore…..I called it The Pearl. It didn’t do so well at first…..but it seems to be gathering some friends or at least acquaintances. And that’s the list in this volume. It is strange to me that I have lived so many lives. Thinking back it seems an endless time – and only a moment’. The manuscript, as it exists in its present form (the pages are numbered 1B, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 5) finishes with what appears to be an incomplete sentence, ‘Miguel Cervantes created the modern novel’. A wonderful manuscript, full of interesting observations in which Steinbeck shows the thought process behind some of his most famous works, as well as writing in general, all interspersed with a little humour. Some chipping and small areas of paper loss to the edges of each of the pages, only very slightly affecting a few words of text. G
MORISOT BERTHE: (1841-1895) French Painter. Morisot was married to Eugene Manet, brother of her close friend and colleague Edouard Manet. She was a member of the circle of painters in Paris who became known as the Impressionists. In 1874, she joined the "rejected" Impressionists by the Academie des beaux-arts in the first of their own exhibitions, which included Cezanne, Degas, Monet, Pissarro, Renoir and Sisley, which was held at the studio of the photographer Nadar. A rare and lengthy A.L.S., `B.M.´, with her initials, four pages, 8vo, n.p., n.d., to her niece Paulette, in French. Morisot, in her late years, thanks her correspondent for her letter and explains what is her husband and her own updated health situation, stating in part `Ma chère petite Paulette, je suis bien touchée de ta lettre, j´ai toujours su que tu avais du coeur et que tu répondais à l´affection que ton oncle et moi avons pour toi. Il est beaucoup mieux...mon esprit inquiet va au devant des complications de l´avenir. Ta mère comprendra ici mieux que toi, nous sommes à un âge où une fois touchés par le malheur nous pourrions ne devoir jamais nous relever´ (Translation: "My dear little Paulette, I am very touched by your letter, I always knew that you had a heart and that you responded to the affection that your uncle and I have for you. He is much better...my worried mind goes ahead of the complications of the future. Your mother will understand better than you, we are at an age where once touched by misfortune we may never have to get up again") Further Morisot refers to writing and painting and gives her advice to her niece, saying `J´ai lu ta lettre à ton oncle, elle lui a fait grand plaisir, il a visité l´Auvergne dans sa jeunesse... et a trouvé que tu décrivais parfaitement le pays. Nous sommes deux à te reconnaitre un petit talent littéraire que tu devrais cultiver, tu ne ferais pas tort à la peinture, au contraire, je crois que l´un aide l´autre et je pressens que dans quelques années d´ici, la mode sera aux femmes écrivains. Si on reçoit le Figaro là-bas, demande à ta mère de te laisser lire les fragments de Mémoires par les Goncourt. ils contiennent quelques fois de jolies choses´ (Translation: "I read your letter to your uncle, it gave him great pleasure, he visited Auvergne in his youth... and found that you described the country perfectly. We are the two of us recognizing in you a little literary talent that you should cultivate, you would not do any harm to painting, on the contrary, I believe that one helps the other and I sense that in a few years from now, fashion will be for women writers. If you receive Le Figaro there, ask your mother to let you read the fragments of Memoirs by the Goncourt, they sometimes contain pretty things") Further again Morisot refers to her brother-in-law and to her own day by day, saying `J´ai vu l´oncle Adolphe toujours bavard, se mettant franchement à ma disposition avec un fleuve de paroles assourdissant... en somme je ne suis pas abandonnée, que ta mère se rassure et qu´elle jouisse en paix de son séjour à la campagne, vous devez y avoir de bien belles journées, quelle mine a-t-elle? Elle me disait dans une de ses lettres qu´elle avait été souffrante´ (Translation: "I saw Uncle Adolphe, always talkative, frankly putting himself at my disposal with a deafening river of words... in short I am not abandoned, may your mother be reassured and may she enjoy her stay in peace in the countryside, you must have some very nice days there, how is she feeling? She told me in one of her letters that she had been unwell") VGPaule Marie Gobillard (1867-1945) Niece of Berthe Morisot. She was the elder daughter of Theodore Gobillard (1833-1883) and Berthe´s elder sister Yves Elisabeth Morisot (1838-1893)Eugene Manet (1833-1892) Younger brother of Edouard Manet. Berthe and Edouard were not only colleagues but very close friends. Edouard remained with his wife and Eugene married Berthe Morisot in 1874, in what has often been described as a marriage of convenience. Adolphe Pontillon (1832-1894) Brother-in-law to Berthe Morisot. He was the husband of Berthe´s sister Marie Caroline Morisot (1839-1921)
KUZMA GREG: (1944- ) American poet. Small series of four T.Ls.S., Greg Kuzma, each one page, slim 4to, Crete, Nebraska, all dated but with no year indicated (1970s), to the poet, editor and literary critic Jan Schreiber (3) and the editor David Godine (1). Kuzma writes regarding various publishing matters, in part, ´I´m sorry, of course, that the poems of The Petition aren´t the right kind of things for you. Will you look at another group? I ask this partly because the Hollander book that you sent me is so superbly done that I doubt I´ll see a finer looking book, and would be so delighted if something similar might ever come about for me. The other reason is that though I think The Petition poems are good, and mine, I am writing different kinds of poems now and have been for some time, and that my work has generally, over the years, sought many forms and voices. Short of rhyme and meter itself, I think I have written poems of a sort that might interest you, poems that are not "of the poetic climate" that exists in this country today - - I know sort of what you mean´ (19th January), ´Congratulations on having the Hollander book up for the NBA. Anybody´s going to have trouble beating out Ammons, or is it Berryman this time? But good luck. This stuff here is what I´d like someone to make a book of. These are my first six published pamphlets - - I´d like to have a selected poems taken from them, but not necessarily call it that. I was going to use a number of these in the Viking book, but then I changed my mind and wanted the Viking book to be work that hadn´t been collected before. They did end up using a few poems from The Bosporus and "The Monster" from Something at Last Visible. Harry´s Things would have to stay together, though it might be cut back a bit. Anyway, I thought I´d let you take a look´ (10th April), ´I expect we are into different things, and most of the time I guess my work isn´t either terse or precise, and I´m never formally patterned. As much as I admire Frost and find myself moved by him, I can´t get his formal tightness without sounding hollow.....I read somewhere that you are doing the printing of a John Judson book for Elizabeth Press. Do you like his work? I ask because I have a manuscript of woods and fishing poems that are quite imagistic and accurate descriptively, called McKeever Bridge. Part of it is being done as a chapbook by Bill Fox, a small publisher, but the whole of it is something I´ve wanted to see done for three years or more´ (4th December), ´....I ran across one of your brochures, and I note that you publish poetry. Would you be willing to read a manuscript of my work? I´ve been publishing poems in magazines for a number of years, and 7 of my pamphlets have been published by small presses. Recently Viking Press has contracted a book from me, and they may take another or two. But there are a couple other manuscripts I believe in, and would like to see reach print, especially in artistically-finished editions. I am a printer/publisher myself, although I´m not very good at it yet´ (22nd November). Together with a printed 8vo promotional flyer issued for Kuzma´s readings. Three file holes to the left edge of each letter, VG, 5Jan Schreiber (1941- ) American poet, translator and literary critic who launched the poetry chapbook series at the Godine Press.
WRIGHT JAMES: (1927-1980) American poet, awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1972. A scarce, small group of three T.Ls., two signed, James Wright, four pages (total), 8vo, New York, November 1974 - January 1975, all to Stephen Brook. The letters concern the proposed publication of some of Wright´s poems in a chapbook and state, in part, ´....it would make me very happy to have some of my work appear in your series. However, you may not wish to publish what I have in mind. If so, I will understand. In a chapbook I wish to publish 19 prose poems......Most of them will appear in magazines in the coming Spring......Also, I can easily find someone to write an appropriate introduction or afterword, should you so desire. My regular publisher, Farrar, Straus & Giroux, advises me to ask that you publish any chapbook of my work on a non-exclusive basis and only in the chapbook edition; that is, I wish to reserve to myself the right to include these prose poems in any future book of my own´ (unsigned; 15th November 1974), ´It´s true that the nineteen prose poems I sent you were in no particular order, and that a principle of organization is needed. May I propose an idea? What would you think of printing a chapbook in two sections? The first would include those prose poems which you mentioned as dealing with "art and culture" and the second with those which you call "autobiographical recollections". (These terms don´t quite satisfy me, but I see what you mean)´, continuing to list the twenty-one poems in his proposed order over the two parts and remarking ´You´ll notice that I´ve added two very short prose poems to the second group.......I think your ideas about organizing the prose poems which I sent you is a good one, and I´m curious to hear what you think of what I´ve done in response. In any case, dear Mr. Brook, please accept my gratitude for the thoughtfulness and care with which you´ve read the manuscript´ (8th December 1974), ´Although I´m of course disappointed that you´ve decided not to print my little manuscript of prose poems, I do quite well understand the reasons for your decision. Perhaps, according to your kind invitation, I will have another manuscript to submit to you one of these days. Meanwhile, please be assured of my admiration for your beautiful series´ (30th January 1975). Some creasing to two of the letters and one with three file holes to the left edge, G to VG, 3Stephen Brook (1947- ) English author and wine journalist, a former editor of The Atlantic Monthly Magazine and publisher at Routledge, Kegan & Paul from 1976-80.
ROBBIE MARGOT: (1990- ) Australian actress, an Academy Award nominee. Signed colour 8 x 10 photograph of the actress standing in a three-quarter length pose wearing a red coat, in costume as Annie, holding a gun in one hand and with a bank of television screens in the immediate background, from the neo-noir thriller film Terminal (2018). Signed by Robbie with her first name only in blue ink to the centre of the image. EX
PRODIGY THE: Signed 4.5 x 4.5 photograph by all three members of the English electronic dance music band The Prodigy individually, comprising Liam Howlett, Keith Flint and Maxim, the image being a reproduction of the album sleeve cover of Music for the Jilted Generation (1994). Signed by each with their first names only and with slightly poorer contrast. Together with a few related items including a 10 x 8 promotional photograph of the band inscribed in bold black ink ´Respect, Prodigy´. VG to EX, 5
O'TOOLE PETER: (1932-2013) English actor, the recipient of an Honorary Academy Award. Signed 7 x 9 photograph of O'Toole seated outdoors in a three-quarter length pose in costume as T. E. Lawrence from the epic biographical adventure drama film Lawrence of Arabia (1962). Signed by the actor in black fountain pen ink with his name alone to a light area of the image. It was for his performance in this role that O'Toole received the first of his eight Best Actor Academy Award nominations. EX
WISEMAN JOSEPH: (1918-2009) Canadian-born American actor, remembered for his role as the villain Dr. Julius No in the first James Bond film Dr. No (1962). A scarce signed 8 x 10 photograph of Wiseman in a head and shoulders pose in costume as Dr. Julius No from Dr. No. Signed in black ink to a light area at the base of the image, also adding the words ´As "Dr. No"´ in his hand above his signature. About EX
CHARPENTIER GUSTAVE: (1860-1956) French composer. A.L.S., with his initials G Ch., to the recto of his personal printed oblong 12mo Visiting Card, featuring his printed name to the centre, as a Membre de l’Instiut, and address at Boulevard de Rochechouart at the base, n.d., to a friend, in French. The composer writes, in full, 'Merci, cher et fidele ami - que de souvenirs vous avez reveille en moi, avec celui de votre bonne grace envers un auteur debutant' (Translation: 'Thank you, dear and faithful friend - what memories you have awakened in me, along with the memory of your kindness towards a first-time author'). VG
ACTRESSES: A small good selection of three signed 5 x 7 photographs, comprising Nathalie Delon (1941-2021) French Actress, Model and Writer. Best remembered for her first acting role, appearing opposite her husband and actor Alain Delon, in the film Le Samourai (1967), Yvette Mimieux (1942-2022) American film and television Actress, & Isabella Rossellini (1952- ) Italian Actress and Model. All are boldly signed to clear areas of the images. VG, 3
21 Books on Bees and Bee Keeping. The Bee-Keeper's Guide, second edition, illustrations, advertisements at end, original pictorial paper wrappers, 1938; Carter (George A.) Bees and Honey, first edition, half-title, plates, original boards, dust-jacket, 1945 § Bent (E. R.) Swarm Control Survey, colour frontispiece, folding plan at end, original cloth, Aldershot, 1946 and other books on bees.
Four Architecture volumes.Twenty Seven Illustrations by Frederick Walker Designed for the Cornhill Magazine. 1867. London; Smith, Elder & Co.Large 4to, orig blind stamped binding, gilt stamped titles to central panel. Pebbled maroon cloth spine. Title in red and black, retaining 25 of the 27 litho plates with Observations on the Architecture of England during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James 1st. By Charles James Richardson. 1837.Bound in period green half Morocco, with central title label in Morocco gilt. Large folding frontis, litho plates. The Old and New Churches of London. Rev. J. M. Capes. 1880.J. Bumped, Orin marron gilt cloth, large 4to. Architectural Illustrations of Skelton Church, Yorkshire by Ewan Christian. 1846, slim folio, quarter Morocco. The first title scarce in commerce and at auction.[4].
Contributions to the history of the phosphorus-bases. By Augustus William Hofmann. First printed edition [first printed in the Philosophical Transactions in 1860. 4to. With figure illustrations. Period half calf [upper board detached]. Pagination; [3], 2-125pp. Scarce Science. No auction results.
![Constantinople [Aziyade] By Pierre Loti. Translated by Marjorie Laurie. London. T. Werner Laurie ltd, 1927. Later English edi](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/dad7948b-d187-4f20-862c-b18700f6849b/8602648a-4cd2-4f16-ac01-b18800b63a10/468x382.jpg)
Constantinople [Aziyade] By Pierre Loti. Translated by Marjorie Laurie. London. T. Werner Laurie ltd, 1927. Later English edition of Loti’s autobiographical first novel of forbidden love between an English naval officer and a Turkish woman in Constantinople, with colour frontispiece illustration. Period red cloth ,title label to spine 8vo. Small hole to the upper joint. [7], 8-266, [4]pp ads to the rear. Scarce.
A short introduction of grammar, generally to be used : compiled and set forth for the bringing up all those, that intend to attain to the knowledge of the Latin tongue. W[illiam] Lily. John Ward. N.D. 18th Century. Old calf, upper board detached [attached by one cord only, binding cocked. Woodcut borders to the title[s]. Full woodcut plate to verso of p.139, Front endpaper omitted. [21], 2-71, [9], 1-139, [3], 146-220pp. First part in English, 2nd and 3rd parts [with separate titles] in Latin. Scarce.
DARWIN, Charles. On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. 1860. FIRST AMERICAN EDITION, 2nd Issue, three quotations facing the title-page, half-title, no revision to title. browned, original green blind-stamped pebbled cloth, lacking table, damp stained first 51pp, foxed, D. Appleton and Company, New York. 432pp.
Examples of ancient and modern furniture. Metal work. Tapestries. Decorations. &c. 1876. Tall slim folio. Published by S. Birbeck, 19 Belgrave Rd Birmingham. Bound in the orig decorated cloth, bevelled boards, chip to the cloth front board. Lemon endpapers, with litho title, 21 litho plates, + text [numbered 31-51]. a supplement to Talbert’s Gothic forms applied to furniture of 1868. The original and influential drawings in this book marked Talbert as an innovator in furniture design and showed him to be the first to provide consistent and progressive alternatives to High Victorian Gothic furniture.
Masterman Ready, or The Wreck of the Pacific. By Captain Marryat. Three vol set, first editions 1841-1842. All bound in period half black calf. Illustrated throughout. Marryat wrote the novel for his children who wanted a sequel to The Swiss Family Robinson, but he was forced to abandon a straight sequel because of "the ignorance or carelessness displayed in describing the vegetable and animal productions of the island on which the family had been wrecked". (Osborne). Some rubbing.
![CATALOGUE OF THE SCIENTIFIC PAPERS...COMPILED BY THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, [1867]-1925. 19 vol](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/dad7948b-d187-4f20-862c-b18700f6849b/bb120a11-a70a-460f-bdf5-b18800b5ded8/468x382.jpg)
CATALOGUE OF THE SCIENTIFIC PAPERS...COMPILED BY THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF LONDON. CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS, [1867]-1925. 19 volumes, 4to, first, second, third and fourth series and the supplement (volume 12), the first volume bound in half brown morocco over cloth, the remaining 18 volumes in full maroon or red cloth, volumes 9-19 stamped with Cambridge University crest, all lettered in gilt on spine with arms of the Royal Society at foot. Some wear to joints.
Mercantile Architecture. A Series of 55 Studies for Shops, Offices and Warehouses. William Sharp Ogden. 1885. Small folio, period pebbled cloth. With litho frontis, title and all 54 monochrome plates. Scarce, . Ogden was a Manchester architect specializing in warehouse design. First printed in 1876. Cloth tearing to the lower part of the upper boards joint.
Mr. Woolston's defence of his discourses on the miracles of our Saviour. Against the Bishop’s of St. David’s and London, and his other Adversaries. Part 1 2nd Edition. London Printed for the author.. 1729. With half title, [8], 71pp. Unbound. Scarce, this being the first part [the second part was printed the following year in 1730]. No auction results. Scarce. Small 8vo.
Bound volume of Leaflets 1881-1899. Bound in period cloth, gilt lettering to spine, The Cobden Club. Free Trade interest. 100+ leaflets bound in, first gatherings detached [pages loose]. The Cobden Club was a society and publishing imprint, based in London, run along the lines of a gentlemen's club of the Victorian era, but without permanent club premises of its own. Founded in 1866 by Thomas Bayley Potter[1] for believers in Free Trade doctrine, it was named in honour of Richard Cobden, who had died the year before. Potter was honorary secretary of the Cobden Club from its foundation until his death in 1898. Contents include Agriculture, Sugar, Gold trade, West Indies, India. Scarce.
Memoirs of a Physician By Alexander Dumas. FIRST ENGLISH EDITION of Dumas's first novel in the Mémoires d'un médecin series, named for the Comte de Cagliostro, originally published from 1846. Vol 1+2, 1847. Bound in period half calf, Morocco title label to the spine. Pagination;[3], 6-316, [2], 319, [1], 2 parts in 1 vol. Both with titles, ad leaf to the end of vol 1. A partial English translation of just the first 57 chapters was advertised by George Peirce in 1846. This volume would form part of Simms and M'Intyre's Parlour Library series, which would have been announced at the start of each volume in the place of a half-title. The delay in publication between volumes 1 and 2 was caused by a lawsuit between Dumas and the periodical Le Constitutionnel. Some foxing throughout
Lectures on subjects connected with clinical medicine: comprising diseases of the Heart. 1846 First Edition. P. M. Latham. 2 Vol set. Bound in period calf, vol 1’s upper board cracked, strengthened to the inner joints. Lower panel chipped to vol 2. Lacking title labels to the spine. Some rubbing. Presented to W. H. Duncan Smith Esq, signed by three medical officers, London including William White Copper [Author, Surgeon], and two others,
A Brief Account of the Rise and Progress of the change in Religious Opinion now taking place in Dingle, and the west of the county of Kerry, Ireland. 1846 First Edition. Mrs D. P. Thompson. Bound in the original green tooled and ribbed cloth binding, gilt title to the spine, lemon end blanks, Folding map frontis, vignette to the title, 4 plates. 208pp. Rare on the Market. Bookplate to the front pastedown, glue residue to inner joint.
The Whole Book of Psalms, with their wonted tunes harmonized in your parts by the Principal Musicians of the Reign of Elizabeth and first published by Thomas Este A.D 1592, Edited by Edward F. Rumbault. Folio size binding. London. Printed for the Members of the Musical Antiquarian Society, By Chappell. 1844. Bound with others [mid 19th century] music scores including Parthenia or the Maydenhead. Scarcely seen. Front board detached, lacking leather backstrip.Folio measuring; 39.5cm x 30.3cm
A PAIR OF DUTCH DELFT BLUE AND WHITE FRAMED TILE PANELS 19TH CENTURY The first depicting head and shoulders of a man with moustache in early 17th century costume, within a rose and leaf border, the other of a woman in similar period dress holding a glove, matching border, both framed tiles approximately each 13.5 x 13.5cm, panel 94 x 80 cm, frames 109.5 x 96cm Provenance: Property from a Private Collection, London
EDWARD WILLIAM WYON (1811-1885), A MARBLE BUST PORTRAIT OF ROBERT STEPHENSON M.P. (1781-1848) DATED 1855 Signed, dated and titled to reverse 78cm high Robert Stephenson was the only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he worked alongside his father developing the designs and mechanical processes that produced the first steam locomotives. An engineer, surveyor and bridge builder, he became Member of Parliament for Whitby. This bust was originally housed at Euston Station and was transferred to the Clapham Railway Museum when the station was re-developed. It was then purchased by sealed tender in the mid-1960's and subsequently held in a private collection. Wyon seems to have created at least two versions of this portrait with another example from 1856 now held in the Institution of Mechanical Engineers. It was obviously a popular subject and a bronze version was also cast - with an example now held in the Science Museum. Condition Report: With wear, marks, knocks and scratches as per age, handling, use, and cleaning. Some weathering with exposure leading to sugaring to forehead and nose. Rain streaking notably to sides of neck and reverse. Socle chips- black marks and some wear to rear top edge Please see additional images for visual references to condition which form part of this condition report. All lots are available for inspection and Condition Reports are available on request. However, all lots are of an age and type which means that they may not be in perfect condition and should be viewed by prospective bidders; please refer to Condition 6 of the Conditions of Business for Buyers. This is particularly true for garden related items. All lots are offered for sale "as viewed" and subject to the applicable Conditions of Business for Buyer's condition, which are set out in the sale catalogue and are available on request. Potential buyers should note that condition reports are matters of opinion only, they are non-exhaustive and based solely on what can be seen to the naked eye unless otherwise specified by the cataloguer. We must advise you that we are not professional restorers or conservators and we do not provide any guarantee or warranty as to a lot's condition. Accordingly, it is recommended that prospective buyers inspect lots or have their advisors do so and satisfy themselves as to condition and accuracy of description. If you have physically viewed an item for which you request a report, the condition report cannot be a reason for cancelling a sale. Buyers are reminded that liability for loss and damage transfers to the buyer from the fall of the hammer. Whilst the majority of lots will remain in their location until collected, we can accept no responsibility for any damage which may occur, even in the event of Dreweatts staff assisting carriers during collection.Condition Report Disclaimer
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