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1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac
1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac

1909 Rare First Edition - Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Illustrated By Edmund Dulac

$365 USD - $365 USD
$365 USD
$365 USD - $365 USD
$365 USD

Author: Omar Khayyám. Rendered into English Verse by Edward FitzGerald. Illustrated by Edmund Dulac.
Title: Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. With Illustrations by Edmund Dulac.
Publisher: London, Hodder and Stoughton, no date (circa 1909). First Hodder and Stoughton edition, printed from FitzGerald's second edition "by kind permission of Messrs. Macmillan & Co. Ltd."
Language: Text in English.
Size: 11 x 9 inches.
Pages: Unpaginated. The 110 quatrains printed on the recto of each leaf.
Binding: Attractive and very good original cream full-cloth binding elaborately decorated and lettered in gilt on the front board and spine. Hinges sound. Spine gently toned and a few minor marks to the cloth, as shown. Protected in a removable mylar cover.
Content: Very good content. Bright, tight and complete. Foxing present primarily on the preliminary leaves and a few scattered text pages, largely confined to the opening section of the volume, as shown. The magnificent color plates remain clean and vibrant.
Illustrations: Complete with all 20 superb tipped-in color plates by Edmund Dulac, each protected by its original captioned tissue guard, together with numerous decorative borders and ornamental designs throughout.

Estimate: (USD $450–600).

The book: One of the most beautiful illustrated editions of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, this celebrated volume unites the timeless poetry of the Persian philosopher-poet with the extraordinary imagination of Edmund Dulac at the height of the Golden Age of Illustration.

Originally composed in Persia during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, the quatrains attributed to Omar Khayyám achieved worldwide fame through Edward FitzGerald's poetic English rendering. The verses explore themes of mortality, destiny, love, pleasure, and the fleeting nature of existence. Their combination of skepticism, wisdom, and sensuality captivated Victorian and Edwardian readers and inspired generations of artists.

Dulac's interpretation is widely regarded as one of the finest artistic responses to the Rubáiyát. Drawing upon Persian, Middle Eastern, and Art Nouveau influences, he created a sequence of richly atmospheric images filled with palaces, gardens, musicians, scholars, and dreamlike landscapes. The sumptuous decorative borders and elegant typography transform the book into a complete work of art, making it one of the most sought-after illustrated books of the early twentieth century.

The author: Omar Khayyám (1048–1131) was a Persian mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, and poet born in Nishapur, in present-day Iran. Renowned in his own lifetime for his scientific achievements, he later became famous throughout the world for the philosophical verses attributed to him. His Rubáiyát reflects on the mysteries of life, the uncertainty of human destiny, and the importance of embracing the present moment. Through FitzGerald's celebrated translation, Khayyám became one of the most widely read Eastern poets in the Western world.

The translator: Edward FitzGerald (1809–1883) was an English poet and writer whose free adaptation of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám first appeared anonymously in 1859. Although initially overlooked, the work gradually became one of the most beloved poems in the English language. FitzGerald's version is admired not only as a translation but also as an independent literary masterpiece whose lyrical beauty introduced generations of readers to Persian poetry.

The illustrator: Edmund Dulac (1882–1953) was one of the foremost illustrators of the Golden Age of Illustration. Born in Toulouse and later naturalized British, he achieved international fame through his lavishly illustrated gift books for Hodder and Stoughton. His work is distinguished by exquisite draftsmanship, luminous color, and a unique blend of Eastern and Western artistic traditions.

Among all of Dulac's masterpieces, the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám occupies a special place. The artist's evocative imagery perfectly complements the mystical and contemplative spirit of the text, producing one of the most elegant and enduring illustrated books of the Edwardian era.