1911 The Sphinx by Oscar Wilde Limited Edition Thomas B. Mosher Portland, ME

Description: The Sphinx. By Oscar Wilde. Printed for and Published by Thomas B. Mosher. Portland, Maine. 1911. 27 pp, 5.5 x 4.5", 18mo. In poor condition. As is. Decorated paper covers chipped, toned, and scuffed at all edges. Clear tape has been used to repair tears: 4 pieces on the spine, 4 pieces on front board's fore edge, and 1 piece on rear board's fore-edge. Title label on front board overall attractive & clean. Ink marginalia found on both front and rear paste-downs. Sphinx bookplate (or possibly sticker) found on front paste-down, causing light off-setting to front end-page. Front end-page split at gutter; fragile. Ink marginalia found on front fly-leaf. Text-block exhibits light toning around edges of leaves, but is otherwise clean. Binding is intact, but fragile. Please see photos. The Sphinx is a 174-line poem by Oscar Wilde, written from the point of view of a young man who questions the Sphinx in lurid detail on the history of her sexual adventures, before finally renouncing her attractions and turning to his crucifix. It was written over a period of twenty years, stretching from Wilde's years as an Oxford student up to the poem's first publication in an édition de luxe in 1894. The Sphinx drew on a wide range of sources, both ancient and modern, but particularly on various works of the French Decadent movement. Though at first coldly received by critics it is now generally recognized as Wilde's finest Decadent poem, and has been described as "unrivalled: a quintessential piece of fin-de-siècle art. FORN-SHELF-0718-BB-2406-HK1809

Price: 50 USD

Location: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

End Time: 2024-09-28T17:38:51.000Z

Shipping Cost: 4.63 USD