Description:

James Joyce
[Paris, France], ca. 1921
James Joyce "Ulysses" Pre-Publication Advertisement, Along With Early Shakespeare & Company Material, 3 Pcs
Pamphlet/Booklet

An interesting lot relating to Irish writer James Joyce (1882-1941) and his involvement with Sylvia Beach's Shakespeare & Company, the famous English-language bookshop and lending library in Paris, France. The lot includes a pre-publication advertisement for Joyce's seminal work "Ulysses" as well as two early advertisements for Shakespeare & Company, ca. 1921. [Paris, France.] With expected wear which will be elaborated below, else very good. The largest item measures 6.5" x 8.5."

James Joyce wrote the manuscript "Ulysses" over the course of about seven years, from 1914-1921. Previously appearing piecemeal in serial form, "Ulysses" was not published in its entirety until February 2, 1922, when it came out under the Shakespeare & Company imprint in a private, first limited edition run. The advertising material below dates from the earliest years of Shakespeare & Company. Shakespeare & Company was an expatriate haven established by American Sylvia Beach in 1919 and later frequented by Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gertrude Stein, and other luminaries of the English-speaking literary scene.

The lot is comprised of:

1. A printed double-sided advertisement, possibly a printer's shop mock-up, of Sylvia Beach's Shakespeare & Company advance announcement of the publication of James Joyce's "Ulysses." The page is headlined: "Ulysses by James Joyce will be published in the Autumn of 1921 by Shakespeare & Company…" Shakespeare & Company's address at 8, Rue Dupuytren in Paris, France means that this piece dates from before 1921, when the store relocated to 12, Rue de L'Odéon in the 6th arrondissement. As we know, Joyce's "Ulysses" was not published until some six months later, in February 1922. On the reverse, a photograph of Joyce is hinged at the top above advance press notices contributed by Ezra Pound and other English and French literary critics. Even toning, with flattened transmittal folds and a few extra wrinkles and isolated stains. Two minor closed tears affect the right edge recto. Possibly once part of a larger booklet. Else very good. 6.5" x 8.5."

2.-3. Two pieces of early advertising ephemera from Shakespeare & Company, both possibly being printing proofs, as there are typed revisions or pencil emendations throughout. The first is a printed stock card describing the store as specializing in "Modern English and American Literature," with a revised telephone number, toning and scattered foxing, 5.5" x 4.125"; and the second is a 4pp pocket-sized printed booklet detailing bookshop's subscription rates and late fees, with pencil emendations, 5.25" x 4.125."

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: largest item measures: 6.5" x 8.5"
  • Medium: Pamphlet/Booklet

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