Sassoon, Siegfried.

comprising greetings, reminiscences, and congratulations in prose and verse, with an introduction by Rupert Hart-Davis and coloured frontispiece by John Piper, including autograph poems by john betjeman ('Winter Seascape'), robert graves ('Two Fusiliers'), edmund blunden ('S.S.'), john masefield ('For the Birthday of Siegfried Sassoon'), Charles Causley ('At Heytesbury: 1966'), Ian Davie ('Maria Assumpta'), Christopher Hollis (untitled, beginning "Triumphant Siegfried with his horn..."), and Laurence Whistler ('At the Gate'), prose pieces by Geoffrey Keynes, recalling his friendship with Sassoon ("...I had the exciting duty of inventing for your Vigils a new form of book..."), Mother Mary Margaret, Harold Owen, and others, the signature of e.m. forster ("with Morgan's love"), illustrations including a sketch by cecil beaton of Sassoon in red pencil, a pen and ink illustration by osbert lancaster depicting English horseriders and a Classical muse, and a pen and ink drawing by nuns from Stanbrook Abbey depicting the printing of The Path to Peace, on hand-made paper with deckle edges, 111 pages, 4to, 1966, in burgundy morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, spine gilt in six compartments, slipcase

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

a unique evocation of sassoon's circle of friendship in his last years, including peers, younger poets, and friends gained through his conversion to Catholicism ("...We decided that we must limit the contributions to your nearest and dearest, since if we opened our pages to your myriad admirers the book would be too heavy for you to hold...") The volume was prepared by Rupert Hart-Davis, a trusted friend who was named as a literary advisor in Sassoon's will, and Dennis Silk, another younger friend, a schoolmaster who also played cricket for Somerset.

"...So on that other plain you stood
Watching the dark day break, and knew
The guns would always shake for you
The stillness of Heytesbury Wood.

And still with hunter's sight you go
Clear-footed through the forest-run
Seeing the iceberg in the sun,
Sensing the heat beneath the snow..." (Charles Causley)