- 143
Saint-Exupéry, Antoine de
Estimate
4,000 - 6,000 GBP
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Description
- Saint-Exupéry, Antoine de
- The Little Prince. Translated from French by Katherine Woods. New York: Reynal and Hitchcock, 1943
- Paper
small 4to (223 x 172mm.), ONE OF ONLY 525 LIMITED FIRST AMERICAN EDITION COPIES, SIGNED BY THE AUTHOR, lettered "C" on the limitation and in the author's hand at the base of dust-jacket spine, numerous illustrations by the author, original tan cloth lettered in burgundy, FIRST STATE DUST-JACKET (with publisher's address listed as "386 Fourth Avenue" on front flap, priced $2.00), collector's green morocco-backed box, head and spine slightly bumped, dust-jacket frayed at edges and slightly browned
Catalogue Note
As stated on the dust-jacket: "There are a few stories which in some way, in some degree, change the world forever for their readers. This is one."
SIGNED COPIES of The Little Prince are particularly rare as Saint-Exupéry left the U.S. shortly after the book's publication in April 1943 to serve in the French Free Air Force in North Africa and, just over a year later, he and his plane were lost over the Mediterranean.
As such, the limited edition comprises the majority of known copies bearing the author's signature. While several have appeared at auction over the years, most are numbered between one and 500. A further 25 were reserved for Saint-Exupéry and his publisher to distribute themselves. This copy, lettered "C" rather than numbered, can be assumed to be one of these seldom seen 25.
SIGNED COPIES of The Little Prince are particularly rare as Saint-Exupéry left the U.S. shortly after the book's publication in April 1943 to serve in the French Free Air Force in North Africa and, just over a year later, he and his plane were lost over the Mediterranean.
As such, the limited edition comprises the majority of known copies bearing the author's signature. While several have appeared at auction over the years, most are numbered between one and 500. A further 25 were reserved for Saint-Exupéry and his publisher to distribute themselves. This copy, lettered "C" rather than numbered, can be assumed to be one of these seldom seen 25.