T E Shaw Translator T E Lawrence (2 results)
Published by Armed Services Inc, New York, 1945
- Softcover
Seller: Ground Zero Books, Ltd., Silver Spring, MD, U.S.A.Ground Zero Books, Ltd.
Contact seller5-star sellerWraps. Condition: Fair. Format is approximately 6.5 inches by 4.5 inches. 384 pages, plus covers. Illustrations. Introduction by John Finley. Cover is worn, torn, soiled, creased, and cover partially reglued to spine. This is the complete book--not a digest. The prose translation by T. E. Shaw (known to hundreds of thousands as…Lawrence of Arabia( of Homer's great Greek epic poem was first published in 1932. At Shaw's instance, it appeared without any mentioned of the translator's name. Hailed by the Book-of-the-Month Club News as :one of the notable books of our time: and by the New York Herald Tribune as 'perhaps the most interesting translation of the world's most interesting book," it immediately became a best seller. Not until the tragic death of Shaw in 1935 were the publishers permitted to reveal that Lawrence of Arabia was responsible for this outstanding translation, a translation which the eminent critic, Dr. Henry Seidel Canby, has heartily recommended 'for everybody over twelve." In all editions of the book subsequent to his death, Shaw's name has appeared as translator. This special edition of The Odyssey of Homer has been made available to the Armed Forces of the United States through an arrangement with the original publisher, Oxford University Press, New York. Overseas edition for the Armed Forces. Distributed by the Special Services division, A.S.F. for the Army, and by the Bureau of Naval Personnel for the Navy. U.S. Government Property. Not for sale. Published by Editions for the Armed Services, Inc., a non-profit organization established by the Council on Books in Wartime. This overseas edition/Armed Services Edition is among the rarest, if not the rarest, of the posthumously published work of T. E. Lawrence/T. E. Shaw. As can be imagined, although there were a large number of copies printed, relatively few have survived the ravages of combat, the other ravages of time, the ephemeral nature of these softcover wartime editions, and both intentional and inadvertent destruction. This 'fair condition' copy has literally been through the wars. It's survival over nearly eight decades rivals, in some ways, the survival through the oral tradition of the Odyssey of Homer until such time as it's majestic words could be captured in written form. Not only is this work of inestimable value to the serious Lawrence of Arabia collector, but it is equally significant to the classical scholar and those who appreciate a rowdy good tale. Edith Hamilton, whose reputation as a scholar of the ancient Greeks has no equal, wrote: Homer's poetry turned to prose. "I did not know that it was possible for a translation to reproduce so closely the beauty and delightfulness of Homer. I feel that Colonel Lawrence (T.E. Shaw) has given the poem back to the world that has ceased to read Greek. The Translator [Shaw/Lawrence] wrote: "For years we were digging up a city of roughly the Odysseus period. I have handled the weapons, armour, utensils of those times, explored their houses, planned their cities. I have hunted wild boars and watched wild lions, sailed the Aegean (and sailed ships), bent bows, lived with pastoral peoples, woven textiles, built boats and killed many men. So I have odd knowledges that qualify me to understand the Odyssey, and odd experiences that interpret it to me." Armed Services Edition; Overseas Edition.
More imagesPublished by Sir Emery Walker, Wilfred Merton, and Bruce Rogers, [London], England, 1932
- Hardcover
Seller: The Kelmscott Bookshop, ABAA, Savage, MD, U.S.A.The Kelmscott Bookshop, ABAA
Contact seller5-star sellerCondition: Used - Fine
£ 7,698.82
£ 5.98 shippingShips within U.S.A.Quantity: 2 available
Add to basketHardcover. Condition: Fine. Hardcover. One of 500 copies offered for sale of 530 copies of this monumental edition of Homer's Odyssey. The book was printed at the works of Emery Walker, Ltd., under the supervision of Bruce Rogers. Walker and Rogers were two of the most influential figures in the world of books, design, and print…ing in the late 19th and early 20th century. Emery Walker (1851-1933) was an English engraver, photographer and printer. Walker took an active role in many organizations that were at the heart of the Arts and Crafts movement, including the Art Workers Guild, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings, and the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society. He also was a key figure in the world of design, typography and printing, in the teaching and dissemination of those crafts, and in the cultural landscape of late nineteenth and early twentieth century Britain. Bruce Rogers (1870 - 1957) was an American typographer and type designer, acclaimed by some as among the greatest book designers of the twentieth century. Rogers was known for his "allusive" typography, rejecting modernism, seldom using asymmetrical arrangements, rarely using sans serif type faces, often favoring faces such as Bell (at the time known only as Brimmer), Caslon, his own Montaigne, a Jensonian precursor to his masterpiece of type design Centaur. His books can fetch high sums at auction. [Wikipedia] In his book, "Paragraphs on Printing" on pages 148-160, Rogers recounted the four year creation of the Odyssey, from his asking Lawrence to translate the work, to creating the perfect paper and making ink, and the special gold and seven-step printing operation of the rondels. It was widely recognized that Rogers had created a masterpiece (see Blumenthal, Art of the Printed Book). Rogers had been inspired by his reading of "Seven Pillars of Wisdom" to persuade Lawrence to undertake this new translation. Lawrence began his work in 1928, and after some years produced a translation of the classic using his personal experience in the fog of war as well as faithfulness to the text as his guidelines. Bound in full black Niger morocco with gilt toes and lettering on the spine in gold. Printed on special paper made by J. Barcham Greem & Son in 16-point Monotype Centaur. There are 26 decorations of Homeric figures from Greek vase-paintings that are printed in black on roundels of gold leaf that at the head of each Book and on the title page. There is a two inch long ink line on the front free endpaper and the usual discoloration from the leather turns. Otherwise a fine copy. Accompanied by the prospectus. Not in original slipcase. Now housed in a very good fleece lined black clamshell box with a leather spine and black cloth covers. With a bit of scuffing and signs of handling. With an unusual Velcro closure. Measures 8.25 - 11.5 inches. Unpaginated [358 pages]. PRI/092724.
