One of 30 Copies of the Rare First
The Ballad of Reading Gaol. By C.3.3.
London: [1898].
Price: $27,500.00
About the item
First edition, ONE OF 30 COPIES on Japanese vellum. 1 vols. 8vo. One of 30 Copies of the Rare First. Cinnamon-colored cloth, vellum spine. Covers show slight insect damage and minor soiling, spine a bit soiled, otherwise a very good copy in a quarter blue morocco slipcase with chemise and with the bookplate and signature of actress LENA ASHWELL (1872-1957) on the front pastedown. Mason 372.
Item #259158
First edition of Wilde’s legendary poem, written while he was imprisoned, in its rarest state — being one of only 30 copies printed on Japanese vellum.
This copy comes from the distinguished library of the actress Lena Ashwell (1872–1957), who as a young actress toured in Wilde’s Lady Windermere's Fan in 1891, later becoming actor-manager of the Savoy Theatre. Ashwell was particularly troubled by the news of Wilde’s arrest, and wrote later: “… the atmosphere of London was horrible and cruel. His plays were so very brilliant, and I had seen this when I was in Lady Windermere's, so I felt that he was a friend and in desperate trouble.” Later, during WWI, she is known to have pioneered the organization of entertainments on a large scale for the British troops in France (Leask, Margaret, Lena Ashwell: Actress, Patriot, Pioneer, 2012).
An excellent association copy of an essential Wilde rarity.
