The Ballad of Reading Gaol -
Oscar Wilde, John Vassos (illustrator)
1928 - E. P. Dutton & Co., New York - 1928
‘Yet each man kills the thing he loves’.
First edition to be illustrated by John Vassos, ‘The Ballad of Reading Gaol’ was originally published anonymously in 1898, and written by Oscar Wilde in exile in Berneval-le-Grand and Naples, after his release from two year's hard labour in Reading prison. It is the tale of Charles Thomas Wooldridge who has been sentenced to hang for the murder of his wife, Laura Ellen.
Art-deco illustrations throughout by John Vassos.
The poem follows the inmate through his final three weeks, as he stares at the sky and silently drinks his beer ration. Heart-wrenching and eye-opening, perfectly expressing Wilde's belief that humanity is made up only of offenders, each of us deserving a greater charity for the severity of our crimes.
And alien tears will fill for him,
Pity's long-broken urn,
For his mourners will be outcast men,
And outcasts always mourn.
[Chosen as the epitaph on Wilde's tomb] The illustrator John Vassos [1898-1985] was a noted American industrial designer and graphic designer. He was highly regarded as an artist, industrial designer, illustrator, inventor, interior designer, architect and social commentator. According to his local newspaper [Silvermine Nash] one could also add dog breeder, outdoorsman, car customizer, womanizer and spy.
Quarto (binding size 24.1x19.4cm), pp. [8] 124. Elegantly bound in half-black morocco over the original ribbed paper boards with gilt and black eagle vignette to the upper panel, top edge trimmed, others untrimmed, the original cloth spine bound in at the rear. Condition: Fine in fine binding, the original paper boards showing some fading and toning to outer edges. Ref: 112691 Price: HK$ 4,000
First edition to be illustrated by John Vassos, ‘The Ballad of Reading Gaol’ was originally published anonymously in 1898, and written by Oscar Wilde in exile in Berneval-le-Grand and Naples, after his release from two year's hard labour in Reading prison. It is the tale of Charles Thomas Wooldridge who has been sentenced to hang for the murder of his wife, Laura Ellen.
Art-deco illustrations throughout by John Vassos.
The poem follows the inmate through his final three weeks, as he stares at the sky and silently drinks his beer ration. Heart-wrenching and eye-opening, perfectly expressing Wilde's belief that humanity is made up only of offenders, each of us deserving a greater charity for the severity of our crimes.
And alien tears will fill for him,
Pity's long-broken urn,
For his mourners will be outcast men,
And outcasts always mourn.
[Chosen as the epitaph on Wilde's tomb] The illustrator John Vassos [1898-1985] was a noted American industrial designer and graphic designer. He was highly regarded as an artist, industrial designer, illustrator, inventor, interior designer, architect and social commentator. According to his local newspaper [Silvermine Nash] one could also add dog breeder, outdoorsman, car customizer, womanizer and spy.
Quarto (binding size 24.1x19.4cm), pp. [8] 124. Elegantly bound in half-black morocco over the original ribbed paper boards with gilt and black eagle vignette to the upper panel, top edge trimmed, others untrimmed, the original cloth spine bound in at the rear. Condition: Fine in fine binding, the original paper boards showing some fading and toning to outer edges. Ref: 112691 Price: HK$ 4,000