[Rarebooks] FS - The Collected Tales of Pierre Louys, fine press erotica

[Michael Watson]

FS - The Collected Tales of Pierre Louys, fine press erotica

$50.00 USD postpaid in the USA. Others please inquire.

Louys, Pierre [Pierre Louis]
The Collected Tales of Pierre Louys
Argus Books, 1930, 1st Thus, Hardcover, Large 8vo  9" - 10" tall, 294 
pp., Very Good+/

Lacks the dust jacket. Faint marring to the cloth just above the tail 
edges of the boards. Tiny spot or stain to the tail edge of one leaf. 
Slipcase has wear to all corners and wear around the finger cutouts at 
the fore edges.

A collection of short stories, either sensual or erotic, by Louys. Most 
are works that did not appear as separate editions.

Louys was very popular in the 1920s; a French author of erotic poetry 
and literature, some set in the ancient world and often with lesbian 
themes. One of his most famous works in this book, Woman and Puppet, 
links violence and eroticism: methinks Pierre was a troubled soul.

Fifteen of John Austin's engravings printed black and white, each 
covered by a transparent guard embossed with a spider web design. 
Another engraving in color opposite the title page which has a 
highly-stylized engraving of a bust of nude woman, printed in gold and 
polychrome, another transparent guard separating the two leaves.

Black cloth over boards. Some boards of this edition are beveled, some 
are square-edged: these are the latter. Title, illustration, etc. in 
gilt to the spine and cover. Nicely-printed with wide margins on fine 
paper that's "dandy rolled" with a wavy pattern to the surface. Text 
block is uncut at the fore and tail edges.

Published by Argus Books, the imprint of the press run by Ben Abramson 
of the Argus Book Shop. Argus Books was known for promoting Louys' works 
of erotica and other fringe topics. Though most of their books were set 
and printed in-house, with binding by a third party, this copy is one of 
an unnumbered edition of 2000 in cloth "Designed, set-up, and printed" 
by The Peacock Press, Incorporated, Chicago. It is unknown if the 
binding is by The Peacock Press or another binder. Title page states 
1930 and the colophon states "completed, December, 1929."

Like other Louys books that were published in the US, this Argus Books 
edition was a lavishly-illustrated fine press book intended to present 
itself as art rather than the smut that the contemporary authorities 
viewed it as. As a whole, a fine presentation with striking 
highly-stylized engravings. A clean, VG+ copy.

http://www.20ants.com/images/covers/697.jpg

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