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Spender, Stephen (Author/Poet); George, Stefan & Von Hofmannsthal, Hugo (Poets) : Three Versions From The German: Poems By Stefan George And Hugo Von Hofmannsthal

Self-Published, London, England, 1955

First Edition / First Printing. Fine in No Dust Jacket, As Issued. 7 pages. The author's very first Limited Edition publication. Self-published, it is Sir Stephen Spender's rarest title. Limited Edition of 100 numbered and signed copies. Privately printed by the great poet and his wife as a Christmas holiday present, given exclusively to their close friends and colleagues. There is no ISBN. The Limited Edition is now rare. It is a beautifully produced gem of a book: Small-size volume format. Gilt softcovers with black titles pasted on, as issued. Text by Stephen Spender. Each copy is numbered, signed, and inscribed by the author and signed by him and his wife, Natasha Spender. Printed on archival stock paper in the United Kingdom to the highest standards. Without DJ, as issued. Presents Stephen Spender's "Three Versions From The German: Poems by Stefan George And Hugo von Hofmannsthal". Three new translations by the British Poet Laureate of great poems by two great German poets, Stefan George and Hugo von Hofmannsthal, who were significant influences on Stephen Spender's own poetry. An absolute "must-have" collectible, not just memorabilia, item for Stephen Spender collectors. This copy is one of the Limited Edition of 100 numbered and signed copies, indicated/numbered as such ("Number 66") on the Back Limitation Page. It is very prominently, neatly, and beautifully signed and inscribed by the author and his wife: "To Alan and Jennifer, With Christmas And New Year Love, from Stephen and Natasha". The greeting-inscription was written and signed by the author in black ink-pen whereas Natasha Spender signed her own name in blue ink-pen. The recipients, who are both named, are a married couple who were close friends of the Spenders. This title is a classic. This is one of few copies of the Limited Edition still available online and despite its imperfection (visible rubbing on gilt covers) is still in especially fine condition: Every single internal page is clean, crisp, and bright, a beauty. Please note: The paper may have lasted 65 years (as of 2019), but the volume is still ephemera, fragile as such. Because of its gem-like size, it is easily mishandled, misplaced, and finally lost, as indeed most copies were over the years. A handful of copies have survived since its publication in 1955: OCLC locates 10 copies in the Permanent Collections of the usual suspects, Oxford as well as Harvard and Yale Universities, with access strictly restricted to recognized Spender scholars only. A rare signed copy thus. One of the greatest poets of the 20th century. A fine collectible copy. .

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