Lot 25
  • 25

Eliot, T.S.

Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 GBP
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Description

  • Eliot, T.S.
  • Prufrock and other observations. London: The Egoist Ltd., 1917
  • paper
8vo (184 x 121mm.), FIRST EDITION OF THE AUTHOR'S FIRST BOOK, ONE OF 500 COPIES, PRESENTATION COPY INSCRIBED BY THE AUTHOR ("Inscribed for the Revd William J. Gormley. C.M. by T.S. Eliot 13. vi. 57") on title page, original printed wrappers, collector's cloth folder and morocco-backed slipcase, slight offsetting from old tape to title-page and final leaf, wrappers slightly soiled and browned at edges, backstrip slightly worn and discoloured

Provenance

Roger Rechler (his sale, Christie's New York, 11 October 2002, lot 64)

Literature

Gallup A1; Cyril Connolly, The Modern Movement, 30

Condition

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, when 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."

Catalogue Note

A RARE PRESENTATION COPY OF ONE OF THE FIRST GREAT MODERNIST WORKS OF ENGLISH POETRY.

Parts of the title poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" had appeared in the Harvard Advcocate in 1906 while Eliot was still a student. He later read the poem to Ezra Pound in England and Pound arranged for it to be included in the prestigious American journal Poetry in 1915 stating it was "The best poem I have yet had or seen from an American." 

Initially the manuscript of the collection of poems was turned down by English publishers, but at Pound's insistence, Harriet Shaw Weaver of The Egoist, where Eliot was working as Assistant Editor, printed 500 copies. Although the work was met initially with indifference from the wider public, Eliot's peers recognised the importance of the poems as being "something quite new in English verse".

William J. Gormley was an American priest who formed an important collection of Catholic books during the 1940s to 1960s. His collection included major works by Greene, Joyce, Waugh and Eliot, many acquired through Marguerite Cohn of House of Books in New York. It was during Eliot's tour of America in 1957 that she asked him to inscribe this copy for her customer.