Bidspirit auction | 1903. Le Gallienne, Richard. Odes

1903. Le Gallienne, Richard. Odes from the Divan of Hafiz. Privately Printed. First Edition. - A first edition of Richard Le Gallienne's English rendering of the Odes from the Divan of Hafiz. The volume is bound in publisher's original green cloth-covered boards with a cream-colored cloth spine. The front board is decorated with a gilt-stamped aesthetic movement border enclosing the title and author's name in gilt. The spine features a green paper title label with gilt ornamentation and text. The interior is printed on heavy, textured cream paper with wide margins and deckled (uncut) edges. The work includes a comprehensive translator's preface spanning at least fifteen pages, followed by the numbered odes, totaling at least 187 pages. A handwritten provenance inscription in black ink on a front flyleaf reads, Mabel Butler. Feb. 1906. The copyright page states, Copyrighted 1903 by Richard Le Gallienne. No publisher's imprint is visible in the provided images, consistent with the privately printed first edition issued for subscribers. The binding is structurally sound but shows significant age-related wear. The green paper spine label has suffered substantial loss, with approximately 30 percent of the label chipped away at the edges, particularly affecting the top and bottom sections (photo 3). The cream cloth spine is darkened with gray and brown staining throughout its length (photo 3). The green cloth boards show shelf wear, rubbing at the corners, and a few small dark spots on the rear cover (photo 2). The interior pages show light, uniform toning consistent with age. A contemporary ownership inscription is present on the front flyleaf (photo 4). The text block edges are uncut and show typical dust soiling (photo 12).