Arthur Rimbaud, Les Illuminations. Lausanne: Grosclaude, Éditions de Gaules, 1949.
Original lithographs by Fernand Léger (most are colored by hand or stencil); preface by Henry Miller; edition limited to 395 copies.
After completing Illuminations, a collection of prose poems composed in England, the tempestuous Rimbaud stopped writing verse at the age of 21. Verlaine first pulished the manu a dozen years later, in 1886, reestablishing Rimbaud's reputation as a major poet. Numerous editions of Illuminations have followed, and various artists have contributed illustrations to complement the text. The copy shown here was hand bound (1985) by Kerstin Tini Miura in full brown morocco with colored leather onlays, red leather doublures, a half-leather chemise with marbled paper, and a matching marbled slipcase. Miura's cover design echoes Léger's lithograph illustrations that appear in the work.
This copy represents the Library's millionth volume, acquired in the spring of 2006.
Gift: Estate of Jane Webster Pearce.