Member: BorisG

One thing I neglected to add in my hastily written previous note (sorry for all the typos!): my 1940 edition--the very first printing) has an unusual anomaly not found in any other copy I have seen--one of the color plates is printed out of register--the red ink pass--giving an odd double image almost like one of the old red-green 3D images seen without glasses. I suppose this is a good indication that the plates were not tipped in by hand, but done mechanically, as otherwise I'm sure this flaw would have been caught.

posted by Django6924 at 10:26 am (EST) on Oct 15, 2009

(And do you think the binding would also bear on the engraving quality of the illustrations? The 1940 edition seems to have the plates tipped-in, both in the leather and the cloth version.)

As with other Heritage Press books, the question of date is a tricky one, as the copyright date on the book itself isn't a reliable indicator of when the book in hand was made up. I happen to own both the padded blue leather version as well as 2 versions with blue cloth spines and printed paper sides. From them, and from Michael Bussacco's informative "Heritage Press Catalog and Checklist," I can offer the following:

The very first issue of the Szyk Rubaiyat was in Series "C"--which ran between June 1939 and May 1940. It had tipped-in plates engraved by the Sun Engraving Company under Mr. Szyk's supervision and the book was printed at the Fanfare Press in London. The pages are printed in the French-fold fashion.

In Series "E," which ran from june 1941 to May 1942, a special version of the 1940 Rubaiyat was offered as a special extra (not a regular monthly offering--and this is identical to the 1940 version except it was bound in blue padded leather with the design zyk created for the original paper boards stamped in gilt with no further decorations (other that the title on the spine, of course. Also French-fold (I asume this was made up of extra pages and illustration made but not bound in the original print run.

In Series "K," June 1946--May 1947, the Rubaiyat was again offered as an option for members. This was apparently exactly like the original 1940 printing--blue cloth spine, printed paper boards, French-fold, qand from what I learned, also tipped-in illutrations from Sun Engravinf (perhaps still using left-over reproductions and pages from the original print run.

I say apparently, because my "1946" Rubaiyat is actually from 1971--the Szyk Rubaiyat was apparently tied up in copyright issues for almost 25 years before it was offered to heritage Club members in Series 36, June 1971--May1972. The format is identical to the original 1940 issue, paper boards, French-fold pages, but the illustrations are not tipped in, and the book was printed by the Holyoke Lithograph Company in Springfield, MA.

As for differences in quality: virtually indistinguishable as to the illustrations. There is, perhaps, a suggestion of greater contrast in the Sun Engravings that are tipped in--and I do mean suggestion, as the more I stare at each one with a magnifying glass, the more identical they appear. It is most noticeable from a distance, and seen, as it were, out of the corner of your eye. Oddly, I much prefer the paper boards to the leather. The leather is thin and scuffs easily, and Szyk's design, so detailed and precise on the printed paper boards, turna to much gilt-stamped on the leather==the design on the paper boards is also much more elaborate, with a bueatiful border like a Persian rug or miniature.

My advice: skip the leather and spend the money on a mint 1940 original with paper sides.

posted by Django6924 at 12:21 pm (EST) on Oct 14, 2009

BorisG, I haven't been paying attention to eBay lately, but I noticed today the LEC edition of Tennyson's [Idylls of the King] with illustrations by Lynd Ward was being offered at a very reasonable price, and I should have mentioned it when you asked for recommendations. If you liked [Ivanhoe], I'm pretty sure you would like this. There is only a short tie remaining, so I hope you see this message in time.

posted by Django6924 at 11:43 am (EST) on Mar 6, 2009

I don't expect this will turn out properly. It is in excel format. Go to my profile for my direct email if you are interested, and I will send you the file i made today. There are 2 other members that are in contact with me now as well, a John and a Chase. You can see my eBay profile feeback is 100% with 1369 unique buyers over the years.

Regards,
Paul

Book Year Printed by Folio Society Author Misc
Sherlock Holmes Complete Stories 1993 Arthur Conan Doyle 5 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
Hemingway ? Still shrink wrapped 5 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
Jane Austen Collection 1975 Jane Austen 7 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
The Icelandic Sagas 2001 1 book 809 pgs
The Icelandic Sagas 2002 Various 1 book 757 pgs.
Short Stories from the Strand 1992 Various 1 book Gold Sleeve
Rumpole 1994 John Mortimer 1 book grey sleeve
Folk Tales of the British Isles 1985 1 book green sleeve
Irish Short Stories 2000 1 bookGreen Spine
The Greek Myths 1996? 1 book 700 pgs
British Myths&Legends 1998 1 book 708 pgs
Myths of the Near East 2003 1 book642 pgs
Myths+Legends of India 2001 784 pgs
Complete Tales of the UNEXPETED 2001 Roald Dahl 768 pgs
Classic Japanese Short Stories 2000 445 pgs
The Franchise Affair 2001 Josephine Tey 254 pgs
What are the seven wonders of the world 2005 304 pgs
Adventure Stories from the Strand 1995 329 pgs
Crime Stories from the Strand 1991 350 pgs
Classic Short Stories ? Still Shrink Wrapped 3 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
American, Russian, English Shrink has 2.5 inch tear on base at back
Collected Short Stories 1998 4 volume W. Somerset Maugham 4 Volumes in 1 Sleeve

The Comlete Novels, Raymond Chandler ? Still shrink wrapped Raymond Chandler 7 Volumes in 1 sleeve
Legends of King Arthur 2002 3 Volumes in 1 sleeve
Crime Collection, The Dorothy L. Sayers ? Still shrink wrapped Dorothy L..Sayers 5 Volumes in 1 sleeve
Great Stories of Crime and Detection ? Still shrink wrapped Various 4 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
The Black Death 1997 Philip Ziegler 1 book 280 pgs
The Man in the Iron Mask 2001 Alexandre Dumas 1 book 591 pgs
Twenty Years After 2001 Alexandre Dumas 1 book 683 pgs
The Three Musketeers 2001 Alexandre Dumas 1 book 568 pgs
Huckleberry Finn 1993 Mark Twain 1 book 288pgs
Treasure Island 1994 Robert Louis Stevenson 1 book 238 pgs
The Count of Monte Cristo 1999 Alexandre Dumas 1 book 1016 pgs
Robinson Crusoe Second Print 1998 Daniel Defor
The Adventures of Robin Hood 2001 Roger Lancelyn Green 1 book 222 pgs
The Plums of P.G. Wodehouse Sixth printing 2004 1 book 255 pgs
The Genius of James Thurbur Third printing 2000 1 book 256 pgs
The Pick of Punch Third printing 2001 1 book 272 pgs
More Pick of Punch 2001 1 book 272 pgs
The Best of Dorothy Parker 1995 Dorothy Parker 1 book 233 pgs
The Best of the Raconteurs 2000 1 book 288 pgs
Classic French Short Stories 1998 1 book 412 pgs
The Folio Book of Short Novels 1998 1 book 408 pgs
1066 and all that Ninth Printing 2001 1 small book 116 pgs
Tangle-Wood Tales 2002 Nathaniel Hawthorne 1 book 236 pgs
P.G. Wodehouse Jeeves and Wooster ? Still shrink wrapped 6 Volumes in 1 Sleeve
Journey tothe Centre of th Earth 2001 Jules Verne 1 book 231 pgs
Short Stories 1986 Hemingway 1 book 273 pgs
Short Stories 2000 Katherie Mansfield 1 book 414 pgs
Ghost Stories and other Horrid Tales 1997 1 book 319 pgs
Short Stories Second Print 2002 Anton Chekhov 1 book 480 pgs
The Maltese Falcon 2000 Dashiell Hammett 1 book 239 pgs
The Hole in the Wall 1978 Arthur Morrison 1 book 199 pgs
The Red Badge of Courage 1969 Stephen Crane 1 book 159 pgs
The Father Brown Stories 1 and 2 1996 G.K. Chesterton book 1 358 pgs, book 2 448 pgs

posted by thepmac at 4:33 pm (EST) on Feb 12, 2009

Boris,

I discovered this last night after I posted the comment about The Society getting it right on all counts. I like this cover better. So much so, that I ordered one!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Illustrated-Scre...

In case the link doesn't work, it's The Illustrated Screwtape Letters published by Harper-Collins, unfortunately, only in (withhold urge to regurgitate) paperback . I think that they did a much better job on the cover. However, I'm sure that everything else in the FS edition is superior in quality. I REALLY like these illustrations! The Society needs to use this person for some of their other publications. BTW, if you feel that you need any Christian interpretation during your perusal of The Screwtape Letters, I;ll be glad to oblige.

teebweeb

posted by teebweeb at 5:02 pm (EST) on Dec 3, 2008