Edward William Lane’s Arabian Nights Entertainments
This weekend’s book purchase looks like an expensive volume but was actually pretty reasonably-priced for a book that’s 126 years old. This is no. III of a three-volume set of the Thousand and One Nights translated by Edward William Lane, published by Chatto & Windus in 1883. I bought it mainly for the copious wood engraving illustrations by William Harvey although the book itself is a beautiful, if battered, work of art: gold edging on the boards, marbled endpapers (something we did at Savoy for Lucy Swan’s novel) and marbling on the paper edges (Lucy’s book had gold edging). Like many fine old books the heavy boards and thick paper stock means it’s very heavy and it’s these quality materials which have helped it survive this long.
I wasn’t going to put this through the flatbed scanner so a few photo snaps follow.
Elsewhere on { feuilleton }
• The illustrators archive
• The etching and engraving archive
Previously on { feuilleton }
• The Adventures of Little Lou
10 comments or trackbacks
#1 posted by bluewyvern
Mar 15th, 2009
Congratulations on your beautiful acquisition. I would love to get my hands on a nice illustrated set of Arabian Nights (antique/rare status not required), but I haven’t found anything that looks right. I’m a completist, so no selections or abridgments for me — but of course finding the “real” or “complete” edition is no simple matter.
#2 posted by Nathalie (Spacedlaw)
Mar 15th, 2009
Wonderful. Were you lucky enough to get all three or was this just a stray?
#3 posted by mr.kenneth
Mar 15th, 2009
luvverly!
and the marbling looks gorgeous!
#4 posted by John
Mar 15th, 2009
Bluewyvern: the translations by Sir Richard Burton used to be the ones to get but there have been many others since, of course. Burton’s collection is ten volumes to Lane’s three and Burton’s pioneering interest in sex and the Arab world mean that he didn’t censor anything unlike Lane and others. There’s a PDF version available.
Nathalie: this was a lone volume, unfortunately. The illustrations are so profuse–and quite odd in places–I wouldn’t mind having a full set.
#5 posted by John
Mar 15th, 2009
Burton was never a man to mince words and he gives us his appraisal of the Lane edition in the introduction to his own translation. This goes some way to telling you why Burton’s version of the stories has been held in such high regard; he looked at the competition and found it wanting.
#6 posted by Miss L
Sep 18th, 2009
Hi there,
I’ve come across Volume I of EW Lane’s Arabian Nights (1850) in a Charity Shop. I am still considering whether to buy it or not (it’s not cheap and the first few pages are torn). Is it worth acquiring? Grateful for advice.
#7 posted by John
Sep 18th, 2009
Hi Miss L. I’m not a book dealer. If you want to know the going rate of a book I’d advise browsing Abebooks.
#8 posted by Linda
Oct 9th, 2009
I have 1 through 4 volumes of The Arabian Nighs Entertainments. Published by Hearsts Copyright 1914. Not illistrated. In very good shape.These books are called ‘the new national edition’. If anyone knows anything about them or if they are worth anything, please let me know
#9 posted by Rochelle
Jan 14th, 2012
I recently acquired a complete Lane Translation of the Arabian Nights – 1927..is there a market for these?
#10 posted by John
Jan 15th, 2012
Once again I have to shut down a comments thread because people are only interested in asking the value of books they’ve found. This is not a bookselling site.