Comedy, satire, Burlesque

London: Bradbury, Evans & Co, 1852. 308 pages, pictorial title page and 10 hand-colored steel engraved plates by John Leech. 100 wood engraved illustrations in text. Bound in 19th-century half green calf over marbled boards. Marbled edges and endpapers. Binding rubbed away at edges and extremities. Child's pencil marks on rear blank. more information

London: Printed for G.G.J. and J. Robinson, etc., 1791. 8vo (22 cm); [4], 270 pages. Bound in recent cloth. First appearance in English of the lively letters of Alciphron, the second-century Greek satirist. He presents the letters as if they were written by sailors, peasants, parasites and prostitutes, giving a vivid picture of popular culture in Athens. The letters from the prostitutes are especially interesting, not only for the clues they provide about the role of women in society, but for plots lifted from lost examples of New Attic Comedy (especially Menander). more information

London: Printed by C. Whittingham ... for the Associate Booksellers, Vernor and Hood (etc.), 1800. New edition. 16cm; viii, 155 pages, and 5 engraved plates illustrating comic scenes from the text after Baynes. Bound in 1/4 calf over marbled boards, decorated in gilt on spine with interesting winged pelican motif. Joints tender. Occasional light foxing. Early owner's name in ink on front blank (Nathaniel Micklethwaite) and armorial bookplate. Satirical letters in verse describing the adventures of the bumptious "Blunderhead Family" at Bath. more information

Paris: Isidore Liseux, 1889. 20cm; 6 volumes. Title pages printed in red and black. Portrait frontispiece. Bound in publisher's wraps. Untrimmed. Spines peeling. Some foxing on wraps. One quire held weakly in volume 1. Lively translation of Aretino's pornographic satire on high-minded Renaissance philosophies of love. Aretino bursts in on Plato's Symposium with discussions of a more familiar sort of love. more information

Florence: G. Barbera,, 1863. 11cm; xvii, [1], 461, [3] pages, and steel engraved portrait frontispiece. Bound in original publisher's wraps. Bookplate. Shelf wear, corners bumped, but no frays, tears or stains. The comic poet Francesco Berni is still underappreciated and largely unknown to anglophone readers. According to the Britannica (11th ed), "Berni stands at the head of Italian comic or burlesque poets. For lightness, sparkling wit, variety of form and fluent diction, his verses are unsurpassed." This pocket edition includes his poems, letters, plays, a literary essay in dialogue form, and latin verse. more information

In Venetia: Appresso gli heredi di Gio. Guerigli, 1630. 4o (22cm); 3 parts in two volumes. Printer's device on title pages. Woodcut initials and ornaments. Bound in contemporary stiff vellum, titled in manuscript on spine. Shelf wear and dust. Light damp marks present. Early ownership inscriptions canceled on front blank. References: Gamba, 1802 (1624 ed.); Vinciana 3567. Born in Loreto, Boccalini embarked on a political career and actually served briefly as governor of Benevento. He railed against the domination of Italy by Spain, France and Austria. In 1605 he began to publish his barbed "dispatches" (ragguagli), which numbered more than 300 by the time of his sudden death (poison?) in 1613. The author imagined Parnassus as a city in continuous vacation, where poets and politicians meet. He pretends to send reports from this city on a large variety of themes, but mainly on politics. The anti-Spanish satire becomes truly ferocious. more information

New York: Street & Smith, 1896. #397. Original edition.. 31cm; 48 pages. Illustrated on cover with comic woodcut vignettes of a bear hanging from a balloon, and of a daisy chain of men ("Indians," in the text) hanging from a balloon piloted by Rocky Mountain Sam and The Professor. Stapled. Pulp stock toned, as in all surviving copies. Fore edge frayed, last leaf torn. Dime novel in the "Log Cabin Library" series. Episodic plot held together by character of Rocky Mountain Sam and his balloon escapades in the Indian territories. more information

New York: December 9, 1939. 28 cm; 1 page on Burgess's monogramed letterhead, to "Hughes," signed with monogram in ink. 43 lines, including salutations and four quatrains of verse. Usual folds, toned at edges. Two closed tears along top edge. Letter discussing the theoretical template for nonsense verse from the author of one of the most enduring nonsense quatrains, "I never saw a purple cow." The letter is certainly to Rupert Hughes (1872-1956), author, director and, incidentally, uncle of Howard Hughes. Burgess writes, "I have discovered a sure-fire formula for Nonsense Verses-especially the double couplet, much superior to the quatrain." Burgess supplies four delightful examples illustrating the secret, including "The public marvels, I suppose, that I paint pictures with my nose. If there is any mystery to it, It isn't How, it's Why I do it." more information

Paris: Ambroise & Jérôme Drouart, 1605. First edition. References: Brunet I 1613-1614; Hoffmann II, 84; Tchermerzine III, 398 (Florent). Octavo (18cm); two parts in one volume: [16] 356 [4] (last two pages blank); 38 [2 blank] pages. Roman, italic and Greek types. Engraved illustration in text of Bacchus and Silenus among satyrs. Woodcut initials, woodcut and typographic ornaments. Bound in contemporary (?) vellum with yapp fore-edges. Early owner's inscription on title page (Henrik ter Borch); presentation inscription dated at Cambridge, 13 March 1930, on front free endpaper from "HFS" to Gilbert S. Inglefield, later Lord Mayor of London. Engraved advertisement on front pastedown for Ward & Chandler, Booksellers, circa 1740. Some dampstaining, particularly at the end of the volume. A small red stain on the lower board. Casaubon's innovative work on classical satire, which demonstrated that Greek satyr plays and Roman satire were two entirely distinct literary genres (thereby ending a confusion that had prevailed since the 4th century). The first specialized monograph on satire, the work grew out of Casaubon's commentary on Persius published earlier the same year. In appendix to De Satyrica, Casaubon published a translation by Florent Chrestien of Euripides's satyr play Cyclops, the only preserved specimen of the Greek satyric genre. Chrestien was a student of Henri Estienne and librarian to Henry IV. Online scans of the Yale copy of De Satyrica failed to include the Euripides. more information

London: Punch, 1845. First Edition in book form. Edited by Gilbert Abbott a'Beckett. Recased in first binding. Front wrap bound in. Enpapers renewed. Few plates repaired at margins. Front joint tender and starting. more information

Montreal: McGill University Press, 1965. Printed wraps, stapled. Oblong, 16 x 22 cm; 4 leaves, each illustrated with designs from Cruikshank's Hints to Emigrants (1840). more information

London: S. Paul & Co., 1915. First edition. Original decorated cloth over beveled boards. 37cm; 3 leaves, 20 mounted lithograph plates. Limited to 500 copies, this copy out of series, signed and dated by the author and the publisher. Foreword by H. G. Wells. Closed tear in lower margin of first three leaves. Text block shaken in binding. Binding somewhat soiled and edgeworn, yet this copy is sound, entire, and very good overall. In the early 20th century, the Australian Will Dyson's cartoons established him as a caustic critic of the British social-political order. During World War I his Kultur Cartoons against German militarism were of national importance. more information

Boston: Oliver Ditson, December 2, 1878. 19 cm; 31 pages, ads. Printed self wraps, illustrated with publisher's full-page wood-engraved ad on lower wrap. Upper wrap unevenly toned; sewing tender but holding firm. Lower edge slightly bumped. Gilbert and Sullivan's first great success, HMS Pinafore, opened in London in May 1878. Saturation was so thorough that "unauthorized" productions sprang up. The first American production took place at the Boston Museum, November 25, 1878. This copy of Gilbert's libretto is dated December 2, 1878 on the Dramatis Personae page, and 1879 on the upper wrap, placing it among the earliest American printings available. In the absence of hard evidence, one can reasonably assume that the sheets from one of the earliest productions were utilized into 1879 with freshly printed wraps. more information

New York: Peter Weed Books, 1993. Decorative Boards. First published 1962. "Reissued in 1993 ; First Printing," according to copyright page. Follows the adventures of Edna, Harry and Sam on a handcar: "At Wunksieville they rescued an infant who was hanging from a hook intended for mailbags. Signed by Author more information

Milano: Giovanni Silvestri, 1826. 17 cm; 91, [1] pages, and engraved portrait of Gozzi by Ester Silvestri. Bound in original printed wraps. Unopened, untrimmed. Pages still bright and clean. Shelf wear only. more information

Paris: Didot, 1812. Second edition. Bound in contemporary mottled pink paper-covered boards, worn. . 31cm; xiii, [i], 85 pages. Title and text in French and Italian on facing pages. Bridgewater arms stamped in red on both title pages; Egerton arms stamped in red at head of appendix (a survey of critcism on Comus). A 16-page geneaology in French of the Bridgewater family dated 1810 bound in, stamped with Bridgewater arms. Scattered light foxing only. The British eccentric Francis Henry Egerton, 8th Earl of Bridgewater (1756-1829) commissioned this translation into French and Italian of Milton's Comus in part to honor his own ancestor, John Egerton, who was present at the first performance of it. First issued in 1806, Egerton chose to reprint the corrected text with the celebrated firm of Didot. A third issue of the Italian text was printed later the same year. more information

London: Printed by W. Bulmer and Co., for J. Wright, 1799. 8vo (22 cm); 3, xlviii, 189 pages. Title page with engraved portrait vignette. Bound in contemporary full birdseye calf decorated in gilt. Marbled endpapers. Binding rather rubbed and worn, cracked at joints but holding. Spine ends perishing. Owner's autograph on title page (Sir Alex Bannerman, 1818), with few ink notes in text in 19th-century hand. Latin and English texts on facing pages. more information

Paris: P. Jannet, 1853. Cloth. 12mo; 17 cm., lv, 340, ads., Red cloth, stamped in blind, titled in gilt on spine., Water stains along bottom edge of casing; some spotting in text., One of the great wits of his age, Regnier wrote satires in alexandrines after the manner of Horace and Juvenal. No less an authority than Sainte Beuve compared them to Flemish paintings for their vigor, their precision and light. Includes an essay on the history of satire in France. more information

Florence: Gaspero Ricci, 1808. Prima edizione fiorentina, corretta ed accresciuta di altre Rime finora inedite" (First Florence edition, revised and enlarge with previously unpublished poems). 16cm; 2 volumes in one. 270; 296 pages. Bound for utility in green polished calf over marbled boards, worn at edges and extremities. Titled in gilt on spine, with shelf label in manuscript. Hinges split but holding. Occasional marginalia in manuscript. References: Melzi 3:446 (glossing "U.P.D.C." as "Un Prete di Cerreto," and identifying him as Nicola Saccenti; Gamba, 2425, note ("queste poesie ... danno buona copia di voci e di graziosi modi di dire"). Giovanni Santi Saccenti is a beacon for all who are brilliant, sharp, wise, full of the poetic gift, and yet excluded from financial or social success. Saccenti made his living as an itinerant notary. While he lived, he read his poems-shiny as knives and sharper-to great acclaim at gatherings for friends. They circulated in manuscript for a dozen years after his death before appearing in print, full of mistakes, in 1761. Satires in the tradition of Juvenal and Persius, but informed by Enlightenment sensibilities, the collection also includes a "version" in modern dress of Horace's Ars poetica, and a mock epic entitled Il Vezzoso ("The Dandy"). The present edition claims priority in Florence, capital of the poet's native region. more information

Bari: Laterza, 1912. 21 cm; 466 pages. Bound in original printed wraps. Poor condition, offered as reading copy only. Text block cracked, holding by threads; one leaf with closed lateral tear. No marks or blemishes. "Scrittori d'Italia" series. Contains the text of L'amor Costante by Alessandro Piccolomini; L'Aridosia by Lorenzino de' Medici; Il Ragazzo by Lodovico Dolce; and I Bernardi by Francesco D'Ambra more information

Paris: P. Jannet, 1857. 2 volumes; 16cm. 352, 304 pages. Red cloth, stamped in blind, titled in gilt on spine. "Bibliotèque elzivirienne" series, vols. 91-92. Minor wear only, with two millimeters of cloth shaved from the top of the spine of volume 1. Bookplate of Isaac Norris. The most celebrated work of satirist Paul Scarron (1610-1660). more information

New York: Dodd, Mead & Co., 1900. 8vo (28 cm) large paper edition; 130 pages, each page embellished with delicate pale-green pictorial borders. Four full-page plates framed in cornice overlays and tissue cover sheets with letterpress. Numerous text illustrations. Bound in olive-green fabric stamped in gilt, with leather backstrip titled in gilt. Minor wear along edges. Bookplates of early owners. Edition limited to only 200 copies on Imperial Japan. more information

London: Virtue, Hall, and Virtue, [1855]. Gilt-stamped leather. 8vo (23cm); 29 delightful full-page engraved plates by "Phiz." Marbled edges and endpapers. Binding scuffed at extremities. Marginal toning on plate leaves. more information

Dublin: Gilbert and Hodges, M. Keene, J. Fleming, J. Parry, and B. Smith, 1810. 2 vols. 8vo (22 cm); xxxii, 375; 329, [51] pages. English and Latin on facing pages. Modern red half morocco over marbled boards in period style. Paneled spine decorated in gilt, with black leather title pieces. Boards rubbed at edges; scattered foxing, especially at beginning and end. Very good over all. Translation by Samuel Patrick first published in 1745. more information

London: T. Becket, P. A. De Hondt and R. Baldwin, 1768. 2nd edition, revised and corrected. 22cm; 2 volumes. 8 folding engraved plates of comic figures and masks. Bound in contemporary full sheep, rubbed, worn at heel and crown, with portion missing from crown of vol.1. Leather labels renewed. Joints cracked but holding. Hinges repaired with cloth tape. Text very good. References: Lowndes IV, 2607; Clarke, 228 ("a better translation can scarcely be expected:); Schweiger 1079. more information

London: A. and C. Black, 1908. First edition.. 23 x 31 cm; [40] leaves and [36] color plates after paintings by Thackery. Preface by George Ade. Bound in pictorial cloth, somewhat discolored. A little shaken. Hinges repaired. Occasional light foxing. Caricature sketches of travel in Egypt, with descriptive letterpress. more information

Calais: Imprimerie de Leroy fils, 1817. Folio sheet (44 x 32 cm); woodcut border. Capitals in woodblock type. Expertly matted. Rare playbill announcing a performance at Calais of the popular comedy, Portrait de Michel Cervantes, by Michel Dieulafoy (1762-1823). Dieulafoy was a prolific librettist who wrote over a hundred light operas, comedies and farces to great acclaim. His "Portrait of Cervantes" first appeared on stage in 1799, was published in 1802, and translated into English by Charles Kemble (Fanny Kemble's father) in 1808. The play was vigorous enough to remain in repertory for twenty years. (Contemporary with the "Portrait of Cervantes," Dieulafoy wrote a similar 3-act comedy about Rabelais, "Le quart d'heure de Rabelais" [1799] and a small opera about Milton to music by Gaspare Spontini.) The second item on the program was a one-act musical comedy. The director, Frédérick Lemetheyer, later became director of the Theatre Odéon in Paris. more information

Third edition. London: Printed for G. and W. Nicol; Cadell and Davies; and R.H. Evans, by W. Bulmer & Co., 1817. 2vols. 8vo (23 cm); lxxxii, 384; 163 pages. Bound in dark green polished half calf over marbled boards, spines tooled in gilt, with leather labels titled in gilt. Marbled edges and endpapers. Mild wear to extremities. Foxing confined to endpapers and adjacent pages. Few pencil marks. A very good copy. more information

Dublin: Printed by B. Grierson, 1766. 8vo (21 cm) lx, ii, [4], [7]-436 pages. Lacks frontispiece. Bound in contemporary half calf over marbled boards. Corners worn. According to Adam Clarke, Bibliographical Miscellany (p. 229), "A better translation can scarcely be expected; it is such as Terence deserved, and done by a man of almost equal comic powers with himself. more information

London: Printed for T. Becket, P. A. De Hondt and R. Baldwin, 1768. 8vo (22 cm); 2 vols. lxxxiii, 332; 394 pages, and 8 folding engraved plates of comic figures and masks. Bound in contemporary full sheep, rubbed, worn at heel and crown, with portion missing from crown of vol. 1. Leather labels renewed. Joints cracked but holding. Hinges repaired with tape. Text very good. " Lowndes IV, 2607; Clarke, 228 ("A better translation can scarcely be expected"); Schweiger 1079. Funnier than modern editions. more information