Search Results: Titles starting with D from Swan's Fine Books

Hamburg: Hirundo Press, 2000. First and Limited Edition. Original wraps. Fine. Saltzwedel, Caroline. Deluxe version of only 20 copies, this no. 8, folio size, text volume 14 pp., signed by both Kevin Perryman and Caroline Saltzwedel, text in German, etchings unbound, each signed and numbered by Caroline Saltzwedel. Caroline Saltzwedel, born in England, has lived in Hamburg since 1995 as a graphic artist and painter. She studied German at the Universities of Durham, Oxford and Bonn, and printed graphics at the Ruskin School of Fine Art, Oxford. In 1998 she founded the Hirundo Press for artists' books in small editions; her works are in numerous public and private collections including the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek, the British Library, the Bodleian Library, Stanford University, and the Widener Library (Harvard) among many others. Saltzwedel's works are often paired with original, new works of poetry or are based on mythological figures - this work, "Daidalos", allows the viewer to trace the path… Read More

Cambridge: Printed at the University Printing House for The Limited Editions Club, 1969. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Nebel, Gustave. No. 351 of 1500, duodecimo size, 112 pp. signed by Gustave Nebel, with prospectus and announcement. Henry James (1843-1916) was an American author who wrote in the genre of both literary realism and modernism and is best known for his novels "Portrait of a Lady" and "The Ambassadors"; his works examine the often inscrutable relationships between characters. "Daisy Miller" is a novella that deals with both the interior motives of the characters' psyches and the outward traditions and prejudices encountered in society. This publication by The Limited Editions Club contains illustrations by French artist Gustave Nebel (1904-1988), whose watercolours are elegantly reproduced throughout the volume. ___DESCRIPTION: Full red leather, gilt initials on the front board, four raised bands on the spine, gilt ruled borders, lettering, and ornaments on the spine, top edge… Read More

Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/near fine. First Printing of this publication, octavo size, 239 pp. From the jacket flap: "The Dao De Jing is one of the richest, most suggestive, and most popular works of philosophy and literature...This edition is distinguished by the literary quality of the translation, its new renderings for a number of the stanzas, and by Roberts' knowledgeable contextualizations." ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in quarter red cloth with ivory paper over boards, gilt lettering stamped onto the spine; octavo size (8 5/8" by 5 5/8"), pagination: [i-vi] vii-xii, 1-226 [1, colophon]. In the publisher's dust jacket, unclipped yet unpriced, summary of the book on both flaps, short bio of translator on the back flap. ___CONDITION: Volume fine, with clean boards, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and the text entirely free of prior owner markings; a short pencilled… Read More

New York: William R. Scott, Inc., Publisher of Young Scott Books, 1947. Hardcover. Near fine/good +. Shaw, Charles G. Quarto, [36] pp., in dust jacket. An endearing children's book discussing the wonderful things to be found in the dark...such as the moon, the stars, and Santa Claus. It is also about the people of the night, such as policemen and firemen, but "mostly it is about how different people feel about the night" (n.b, from dust jacket flap). With wonderful illustrations by Charles Green Shaw (1892-1974), "a key figure in early American abstract art", whose works are in major institutions around the world, including the Met, the MFA, the Museum of Modern Art, the Smithsonian, and the Musee d'Art Moderne de Paris (n.b., quote and information from Wiki). While this not the first printing, the book is relatively scarce in the online marketplace (as of this writing, there is only one copy online) and this copy in near fine condition (with a Good plus jacket). ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full… Read More

New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1906. Hardcover. Fine. Duodecimo size, 392 pp. A lovely decorated binding, although we cannot find any signature of the binder, alas. Bound in yellow cloth, the front board with red and green lettering, an art deco floral design on the bottom two-thirds of the board in red, green and yellow; spine has a similar design, black and white illustration as frontispiece. Front board is fine with the lettering and decoration in perfect condition, bright and unrubbed; the spine is minimally rubbed. The interior is bright and clean, free of prior owner markings. ___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that additional postage may apply as the standard does not always cover costs; please contact us for details. ___Swan's Fine Books is pleased to be a member of the IOBA and we stand behind every book we sell. Please contact us with any questions you may have, we are here to help.

[London]: Hacon & Ricketts [and] Iohannes (John) Lane [Vale Press], 1901. First and Limited Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. Ricketts, Charles. One of 310 copies (unnumbered), quarto size, 31 pp., the first printing with Ricketts illustrations, all text in Latin. The story of "Cupid and Psyche" has been retold countless times, appearing first in Ovid's "Metamorphoses" and thereafter "in poetry, drama, and opera, and depicted widely in painting, sculpture, and even wallpaper" (n.b., per Wiki). This incredibly lovely version with five in-text wood engravings, an opening border with one large initial by Charles deSousy Ricketts (1866-1931), whose talents ran from costume and scenery design to book illustration to book design and typography. The border surrounding the initial page of text is particularly noteworthy, for "Ricketts was unrivalled in his design of woodcut borders; his inventive, intricate patterns succeed with several different motifs, whether vine-leaves and grapes, wild bryony, hops, or… Read More

New York: Farrar, Straus and Young, Inc, 1950. Hardcover. Near Fine/near fine. Duodecimo size, 142 pp. English poet George Barker (1913-1991) wrote numerous works of both poetry and prose, often part of the New Apocalyptics movement, a refutation of the realism of the 1930s using mythical themes. "The Dead Seagull", although a work of fiction, draws from Barker's love affair with poet and novelist Elizabeth Smart (who also wrote about the affair in her book "By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept"). A surprisingly scarce novel in the first or early editions, "'The Dead Seagull' is a work of great originality, a poet's novel written with the richness of colour, the concentrated violence of style that have distinguished George Barker's verse" (per the dust jacket flap). The date of publication and "First American edition" are noted on the front free endpaper by a prior bookseller. ___DESCRIPTION: Full orange cloth, black cloth spine labels with gilt decorative borders and lettering, title page… Read More

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1973. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/very good +. First printing, octavo size, 283 pp., inscribed by Cecelia Holland. Cecelia Holland (b. 1943) has written, to date, over twenty historical novels which span both the globe and time. In addition, she has authored a multitude of other fictional series, as well as short stories, children's books, and non-fiction. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1981-1982. In this work, "The Death of Attila", her seventh published historical novel, Holland reaches back to the fifth century (453 CE). In the harsh world of the Huns, an unlikely friendship springs up between a Hunnish warrior and the son of a subject king. Note that we have several other volumes of Holland's historical fiction, many of them signed; if you are searching for a particular title, please do let us know. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in full black cloth over boards boards, gilt debossed lettering on the front board and spine, red top-stain, inscribed by the… Read More

Burton, MI: Subterranean Press, 2000. First and Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine/fine. No. 141 of 500, octavo size, 544 pp., signed by Tim Powers. Historical events are often reimagined through works of fiction, but few writers bring the creative force and eloquent style of Tim Powers (b. 1952), who incorporates supernatural elements into his stories as motivations for the characters. In his work, Powers demonstrates an adherence to real-life events and people; for example, the British spy and double agent Kim Philby features in the book "Declare", a spy novel and secret history of the Cold War. "Declare" won the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel and the International Horror Guild Award for Best Novel in 2001; the book is a fascinating look at mid-twentieth century history with gripping supernatural elements operating behind actual events. ___DESCRIPTION: Full blue cloth, "Ankh" symbol in silver on the front board, silver lettering and ornament on the spine, endpapers with black-and-white… Read More

Los Angeles [Lunenburg, Vermont]: The Symposium Press [printed at The Stinehour Press], 1979. Limited Edition. Wraps. Fine. Letter I of those lettered A to AA, of a total edition of 300 copies, quarto size, 27 pp., signed by Turner Cassity and Charles Gullans. American playwright and poet Allen Turner Cassity (1929-2009) produced this collection of poems with the Symposium Press; many of the poems seem to allude to his time spent in Puerto Rico where he was stationed from 1952 to 1954, having been drafted into the US Army. They are, however, decidedly non-military and contain a smooth rhythm with his observations of the world he saw around him. ___DESCRIPTION: Green paper wraps, black lettering on the front wrap, title page in green and black, fore- and bottom edges uncut; quarto size (10.25" by 7.25"), pagination: [1-6] 7-25 [26-27], letter I of those lettered A to AA, of a total edition of 300 copies, signed by Turner Cassity and Charles Gullans on the colophon. ___CONDITION: Volume is fine,… Read More

[San Francisco]: Pacific Editions, 2013. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Hobson, Charles. Number 6 of 34 copies, quarto size, signed by Charles Hobson. This work concerns Charles Hobson's "nearly life long interest in Edgar Degas", and "focuses on his time in Rome as a twenty-three year old when he was just coming into his true power as an artist." In the form of a fictional diary which covers a week in 1857, with imaginary entries and drawings; Beatrice-like, "Rome takes the form of a beautiful woman who escorts Degas to the City's masterpieces" (from prospectus). Each of the five signatures has a design from an actual Degas sketchbook, inserted into a slotted pocket in the back page of each is a card accessed by a ribbon pull, which contains historical and cultural notes relating to the fictional entry; the reverse of each card is a horizontal slice of a Degas self-portrait done in oil on paper in 1857; the pieces can be laid out to form a complete picture of Degas as he looked to himself at the… Read More

California: Ettan Press, 1978. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Mengershausen, Cornelia von. Number 85 of 90 (total edition 100), quarto size, [20] pp., each plate hand-numbered and signed by the artist, in German. Friedrich Hölderlin's (1770-1843) hexameter poem, his longest, comprised of 296 verses. The poem represents through both lamentation and hymnal-like praise the Greek philosophy of "pantheism" or the divine existing in all things; Archipelagus is geographically the Aegean Sea, but for the poet a vessel for revealing divinity in the natural world. The accompanying etchings were made from a combined photogravure aquatint technique; the images at first glance appear to be abstracted landscapes located in or around the Aegean Sea, but a deeper look reveals human features. This layering creates another dimension of meaning to the text, reflecting Hölderlin's intention to both mourn and exalt the ancient world. German artist Cornelia von Mengershausen (b. 1945); in the U.S. her work is… Read More

Mill Valley, California: Sunflower Press, 1993. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Collin, Marcie. No. 19 of 55 copies, miniature book, [36] pp., signed by Carol Cunningham, in the original gift box. A charmingly illustrated tale, "[b]ased on a Middle Eastern proverb 'The Boots of Hunain' which refers to something that is not such a bargain as it seems" (n.b., quote from the book). The hand-coloured illustrations by Marcie Collin are delightful; Marcie "once lived in the Middle East" (per the colophon) and her love for the land and people shines through. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in paper over boards, hand-coloured illustration of a camel and black lettering on the front, yellow endpapers, illustrated half-title, illustrated double-spread title, lavishly illustrated with just a few pages with text only, most of the pages with either a full-page or an in-text illustration, numbered and signed by Carol Cunningham at the colophon; printed letterpress from hand-set type (per the colophon), miniature book… Read More

San Francisco: The Book Club of California (printed by Robert Grabhorn and Andrew Hoyem), 1969. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. One of 500 copies, oblong elephant folio size, [178] pp. The Book Club of California publication number 133, being a sequel to Robert Becker's earlier club publication of 1964 (no. 118). This time Becker focuses on the map makers rather than the land cases, some of whom were anonymous, others well-known, most notably John Bidwell, James Alexander Forbes and Abel Stearns. "During the printing of this book, the original diseños, on loan to the Press from The Bancroft Library, were deposited at night in a vault of the Wells Fargo Bank in San Francisco" (N.B., from the BCC bibliography). Included in the Exhibition of Western Books (Rounce & Coffin Club). ___DESCRIPTION: Quarter brown suede and brown cloth covered boards, yellow endpapers, title, printer's notice and list of maps in terra cotta and black, opening initial letter, rules, decorations and divisional titles… Read More

New York: Oxford University Press, 2009. First Edition. Hardcover. Fine/near fine. Three volumes (complete), quarto size, 2823 pp. " 'The Development of Ethics' is a selective historical and critical study of moral philosophy in the Socratic tradition, with special attention to Aristotelian naturalism. It discusses the main topics of moral philosophy as they have developed historically, including: the human good, human nature, justice, friendship, and morality; the methods of moral inquiry; the virtues and their connexions; will, freedom, and responsibility; reason and emotion; relativism, subjectivism, and realism; the theological aspect of morality...[Irwin] presents the leading moral philosophers of the past as participants in a rational discussion that is still being carried on..." [n.b., from the rear panel]. ___DESCRIPTION: Bound in black cloth over boards, gilt lettering stamped on spines; quarto size (9.9" x 6.8"), pagination: Vol. I, From Socrates to the Reformation [i-xxviii,1] 2-812.… Read More

London: The Hampshire House Workshops, 1915. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Very good. Gill, Eric. No. 28 of the first 200 copies of this edition, designated "proof" copies, duodecimo size, 136 pp., signed by both Eric Gill and Douglas Pepler. Eric Gill (1882-1940) and Douglas Pepler (1878-1951) worked together for many years, founding the St Dominic's Press and creating numerous splendid works of art and writing. This collection of essays takes a look at the society of the time, examining the relationships among people, situations of work, and the effects of the Industrial Revolution. Eric Gill provides woodcuts to illustrate the text, several full-page images and several in-text; with a simplistic approach to detail, Gill creates scenes of both acute observation and satire. ___DESCRIPTION: Quarter tan cloth with red paper boards, lettering and woodcut by Eric Gill in black on the front board, black lettering on the spine, fore- and bottom edges rough cut, frontispiece a woodcut of a sword with… Read More

Buenos Aires: (Colombo), 1958. Limited Edition. Wraps. Near fine/near fine. Number 45 of 48 copies on Fabriano, quarto size, [12] pp. A lovely small book of poetry (in Spanish), with woodcut illustrations in purple and green. Offered as issued in unbound signatures in original wraps, with original glassine jacket. ___DESCRIPTION: Heavy paper self-wraps covered with pale pink paper, itself covered with a glassine jacket, white endpapers, unbound leaves, printed in purple, green and black, textual illustrations, Fabriano paper, quarto size (10" by 6.25"), [12] pp., limited edition, this number 45 of 48 copies on Fabriano (total edition of 64). Note that the date on the title page is 1953 (MCMLIII) while the colophon carries the date of 1958. ___CONDITION: A bright clean copy, practically without wear, marks or foxing, in the original glassine; other than some minor bumping at the head of the backstrip, a fine copy, a lovely example. ___POSTAGE: International customers, please note that… Read More

London: Harvill Secker, 2007. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. No. 75 of 100, octavo size, 239 pp., signed by J. M. Coetzee. J. M. Coetzee (b. 1940) is a South African novelist, essayist, linguist, translator, and recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature as well as the Jerusalem Prize, CNA Prize (thrice), the Prix Femina Étranger, and the Booker Prize (twice), among many other accolades. In this novel, each page consists of a short essay above two diary entries from two separate characters, focusing on a variety of topics including politics, terrorism, children, and the weather; the book illuminates the two characters and their unlikely relationship as the understanding and ideas shared between them grow. This volume is beautifully bound in blue leather and housed in a red cloth slipcase, and is signed by J. M. Coetzee. ___DESCRIPTION: Full blue leather with gilt lettering and ruled borders on the front cover and spine, marbled blue, red, and yellow endpapers, red silk ribbon marker; octavo… Read More

Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979. Hardcover. Near Fine/near fine. Eleven volumes (complete), octavo size, approximately 4700 pp. "Samuel Pepys is as much a paragon of literature as Chaucer and Shakespeare. His Diary is one of the principal sources for many aspects of the history of its period. In spite of its significance, all previous editions were inadequately edited and suffered from a number of omissions—until Robert Latham and William Matthews went back to the 300-year-old original manuscript and deciphered each passage and phrase, no matter how obscure or indiscreet. The Diary deals with some of the most dramatic events in English history. Pepys witnessed the London Fire, the Great Plague, the Restoration of Charles II, and the Dutch Wars. He was a patron of the arts, having himself composed many delightful songs and participated in the artistic life of London. His flair for gossip and detail reveals a portrait of the times that rivals the most swashbuckling and romantic… Read More

San Francisco: The Book Club of California [printed at the Allen Press], 1946. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. Dean, Mallette. One of 300 copies, octavo size, [68] pp. "The publication of the most famous of all documents relating to the Donner Party," published at the centennial of the author's original accounting of the tragic and horrifying ordeal, with a complete facsimile of the 29-page manuscript, previously published only by the Academy of Pacific Coast History in 1910. This volume is an early publication by the Allen Press, still using the imprint "L-D Allen Press", with the relief-cut illustration on the half-title page, decorations and patterned boards by Mallette Dean. ___DESCRIPTION: Quarter white cloth with illustrated quill motif paper boards printed in green and brown, title in green on the spine, fore- and bottom edges rough cut, title page printed in brown and black with green quill motif, headers printed in brown with ornamental type, quills printed in brown ornament the… Read More