Description

A GREAT MODERN RARITY: FIRST EDITION THE WASTE LAND, SIGNED BY T.S. ELIOT

ELIOT, T.S. The Waste Land. New York: Boni and Liveright, 1922. Octavo, original flexible black cloth, uncut, original dust jacket; housed in a custom chemise and slipcase.

First edition of one of the most important poems of the 20th century, number 435 of only 1000 copies, this copy signed by Eliot on the title page. One of the first 300 printed, in earliest binding and in extraordinarily scarce original glassine and dust jacket. One of the highspots of all modern literature.

Perhaps the greatest and most important poetic work of the 20th century, Eliot’s Waste Land “came as a profound shock? Within less than a decade, The Waste Land had attained a kind of eminence from which it has never been dislodged” (Ackroyd, 127-28). “Of The Waste Land I shall say nothing but that we should read it every April. It is the breviary of post-war disillusion? hard to listen to without tears? Waste Land is, I think, the justification of the modern experiment since 1900’ (Pound)” (Connolly, 30b). The first edition consisted of 1000 copies: approximately the first 500 copies were bound in flexible black cloth; later copies were bound in stiff black cloth. Early in the printing a letter dropped out of the text (the “a” in “mountain” on page 41, line 339). This copy has the earliest binding, and the letter “a” has not been dropped, suggesting it was printed early in the first 500 copies. Without scarce original glassine. Gallup A6a. Sackton A6a.3-4. Contemporary owner signature.

Book fine. Wear and some tears to extremely rare original glassine. Exceedingly scarce dust jacket with some wear to extremities and closed tears to folds of jacket flaps. An exceptional copy, most rare signed and in original dust jacket and glassine.