Poetry and Plays and Music Scores

The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred Lord Tennyson

The most unusual and dramatic presentation of this high energy poem about the “Charge of the Light Brigade” against the Russian Batteries at Balaclava on 25th October 1854. It didn’t go well.

Landscape presentation with this unusual London Evening Star cover.

Published by Golden Press New York in collaboration with Paul Hamlyn in London in 1964. Unpaginated but twenty plus pages of verse strikingly illustrated by Alice and Martin Provensen probably America’s best ever illustrators of book for young people … this one with a much more adult tone .. a work of art really.

Tennyson and his “Charge” best presentation

$40.00

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The Divine Sarah – A Life of Sarah Bernhardt – Gold and Fitdale

Large octavo, 349 pages, plus addenda and after introductions. Published by Harpers in 1992. Nicely illustrated from period photographs etc. A very good near fine copy.

The adventurous Bernhardt not satisfied with being the most admired actor of the 19thC took to some strange activities … riding whales, collecting exotic animals, early ballooning and, was a accomplished artist and sculptor.

Sarah Bernhardt we love her at Voyager

$35.00

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Sete – Images of Provence – Seven Poems by Count Potocki of Montalk; Five Drawings by Marjorie Jackson- Pownall – Limited Numbered Eccentric Private Press

A scarce work by the rather odd Count Potocki of Montalk. Number sixty five of 120 copies set by hand by Count Potocki of Montalk, [which] have been printed by hand and foot by him.

Produced in the aforementioned style at The Melissa Press, Villa Vigoni, Chemin de St Martin, Draguignan, Var France – the authors home – 1972.

Printed on Fabriano watermarked paper – we are told in the introduction that “we went to Italy expressly to buy the art paper on which to print Marjorie Jackson-Pownall’s charming drawings, with their unambiguous clarity” ….

Large octavo, 18 pages, bound quarter green cloth over papered [wallpaper?] boards – a fine copy.

Copyright and limitation page, title, charming rather haphazard introduction, the poems and drawings – hints of risqué … see below authors background – artwork neat.

The Count was born in New Zealand in 1903. He is generally described as a poet, polemicist and pretender to the Polish throne – he did genuinely have connections. In 1926 he deserted his wife and child for Europe and the arts. First, to England where he developed his extreme right-wing views knew Mosley but, appears to have been more interested in Mosley’s wife. Moved to Draguignan in southern France after WWII mixed with fellow arty folks in the region and printed several unusual private press items. Backtrack – in England in the 1930’s he was sent to prison for attempting to publish what was then regarded as obscene literature – “the Lament of Sir John Penis” along with translations of Rabelais and Verlaine. He was supported in court by Leonard and Virgina Woolf. Aldous Huxley later arranged bail for another skirmish with the law and funded the purchase of Potocki’s first printing press.

Potocki was a truly odd one – often went about dressed in what he thought was medieval garb – tights, satin pyjamas all wrapped up in velvet curtains etc.

The eccentric Count Potocki of Montalk – a unique item

$120.00

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The True-born English-man: A Satyr – Daniel Defoe – 1716

A rare item by Daniel Defoe. The scarce “enlarged” edition printed and sold by James Roberts in 1716.

Small pocket sized 12mo, 12, 26 pages, bound in contemporary calf backed boards, some age and wear but solid and rare in this original state.

First edition thus. After the accession of Hanover Defoe added a new passage of 49 lines satirizing the English temper. It was hastily published and contains a number of hasty error which ironically confirm its pedigree

A True-born English-man, satirical poem of length about xenophobia … a few could learn from it today. Dutch born William of Orange has become King of England, and there was much tittle tattle about his lack of Englishness. Defoe, forever a wit, wrote this is support of old William of O, ridiculing the notion of English racial purity. Well the evidence is there.

Defoe … much quoted from his opening rant

“that het’rogeneous thing, an Englishman:
In eager rapes, and furious lust begot
Betwixt a painted Britain and a Scot
Whose gend’ring off-spring quickly learn’d to bow,
And yoke their heifers to the Roman plough:
From whence a mongrel half-bred race there came,
With neither name, nor nation, speech nor fame.
In whose hot veins new mixtures quickly ran,
Infused betwixt a Saxon and a Dane
While their rank daughters, to their parents just,
Receiv’d all nations with promiscuous lust.
This nauseous brood directly did contain
The well-extracted blood of Englishmen.”

Daniel Defoe and his True-born a delicious antiquarian rarity

$340.00

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Australian Private Press: The Dying Stockman – A Ballad … with Notes by Hugh Anderson and Lino Cuts by Ronald Edwards – No 1 of The Black Bull Chapbooks from The Ram’s Skull Press – Signed Limited No 50 of 75.

This is quite a story. Ron Edwards would eventually be given an OAM for his lifetime of work preserving Australian bush heritage. The Rams Skull Press still exists and is run by Ron’s son out of the Brisbane Valley. Ron himself moved from Ferntree, Victoria to equally beautiful Kuranda behind Cairns before he packed his bags.

This first of firsts printed in hand set Baskerville on Tudor Antique paper by R.G. Edwards at the sign of the Rams Skull Press … Lording Street, Lower Ferntree Fully, Victoria … limitation .. February, 1954.

Comprising music score, illustrated with woodcuts, hand sewn with leather ties, preserved inside original goatskin covers. A few insect nibbles to goatskin, otherwise all in excellent condition.

The verses are The Dying Stockman; Rosin the Beau; The Tarpaulin Jack and The Dying Digger … a bit of dying but they seemed to have had a good life and needed few possessions.

Scarce wondrous Australian bush verses printed on a flat bed everything by hand – dressed in goat skin.

$190.00

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Norfolk Island [Historical Verse] – Merval Connelly – First edition 1951

A first edition published by the quality Pegasus Press, Christchurch in 1951.

This continues a theme at Voyager … historical poetry of quality.

Octavo, 45 pages, illustrated with beautiful woodcut engravings by Gordan McAuslan. Good complete dust jacket. Very good condition.

Set out in two distinct parts …

Part I .. Captain Cook discovers the island; These sailed not for pleasure nor knowledge; First convict settlement; The years between; Second convict settlement; The second penal settlement closes; The coming of the Pitcairners.

Part II … Norfolk pines; In the valleys; Seascape; Cypresses and Banyan trees; Island nocturne; One wonders about the women; The legend of Bloody Bridge; Poem written at Kingston.

When we finished reading this book of poetry we were left with a better understanding of this unique place and its history and beauty.

Norfolk Island in verse – a delightful history.

$40.00

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The Charge of the Light Brigade – Alfred Lord Tennyson

The Divine Sarah – A Life of Sarah Bernhardt – Gold and Fitdale

Sete – Images of Provence – Seven Poems by Count Potocki of Montalk; Five Drawings by Marjorie Jackson- Pownall – Limited Numbered Eccentric Private Press

The True-born English-man: A Satyr – Daniel Defoe – 1716

Australian Private Press: The Dying Stockman – A Ballad … with Notes by Hugh Anderson and Lino Cuts by Ronald Edwards – No 1 of The Black Bull Chapbooks from The Ram’s Skull Press – Signed Limited No 50 of 75.

Norfolk Island [Historical Verse] – Merval Connelly – First edition 1951

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