The Library of Stephen J. Farber

Small 4to (210 x 150 mm). 10 line-block plates by Aubrey Beardsley; 16pp. publisher’s ads at end dated January 1894. (Minor marginal dampstaining to top right corners). Original pale blue cloth gilt, upper cover with central gilt device after Beardsley (some dampstaining to upper right corner, rubbing, spine ends worn).

FIRST EDITION IN ENGLISH, the first edition to include Beardsley’s illustrations, one of only 500 copies printed Oscar Wilde began writing Salome shortly after completing his first play, Lady Windermere's Fan. Originally written in French, Wilde submitted the play to actress Sarah Bernhardt, who staged it for the first time during the 1892 season at London's Royal English Opera House. The first English edition was translated by Wilde's lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, with extensive rewrites by Wilde himself, while artist Aubrey Beardsley was commissioned to create the illustrations. These illustrations were a source of tension between the author and artist, as Wilde felt that Beardsley's illustrations overshadowed his text. This tension made it into the final version of the book, as Beardsley included two illustrations openly mocking Oscar Wilde. The 1892 theatrical production would face its own issues, as officials in Lord Chamberlain's office banned the play on the obscenity grounds. Mason 350; Ray 315A.

[With:] WILDE. Salome. London and New York: John Lane, 1907. Small 4to (216 x 165 mm). (Offsetting throughout.) Original decorative green cloth gilt (rubbing, 1 1/2 in. split to front hinge).