Printed Books and Manuscripts at Chiswick Auctions, May 25

Chiswick Auctions is hosting sale of Printed Books and Manuscripts, taking place on Wednesday 25 May at 1pm. 

Featuring in the sale will be the Surrealist Collection of the late John Lyle. (Lots 101-219). 

John Lyle (1932-2002) began life in the book trade in the 1950’s in London. By the mid 1960’s he had set up a company in Exeter specialising in surrealist books.  Lyle’s collection encompasses many signed items from notable figures in the surrealist movement, including: Andre Breton, Marcel Duchamp, Jacques Brunius, Rene Crevel, Philippe Soupault and Jacques Prevert. This will be the first out of two parts of the collection. Notable highlights include: Lot 102 - 13 editions of the Minotaure with a letter from Marcel Duchamp to Jacques Brunius (Estimate: £1,000 - £2,000) and lot 201 a presentation copy of La Pluie et le Beau Temps to Jacques Brunius from Jacques Prevert (Estimate: £400 - £600). 

Lot 201 - PREVERT, Jacques (1900-1977). La Pluie et le Beau Temps. [No place]: NRF, Le Point du Jour, [1955]. 8vo. (Some very light browning to pages). Original black cloth, illustrated and titled in grey and yellow. PRESENTATION COPY "A Brunius en amitie heureuse Jacques Reve-Vert". Prevert has also included a doodle in his dedication. Provenance: John Lyle (bookplate).

Estimate: £400-£600

Other lots of interest include: 

Lot 147: Woman Disrobed; A Curious and Amusing Love Tale; Comprising The Amorous Intrigues and Adventures of Don Ferdinand and Donna Marie. Estimate: £100 - £200

Lot 155: A quantity of surrealist publications/magazines including Revue de L'art Actuel (Mars/avril 1957),Dyn, 4-5 American Number, Dyn, Number 6, FkuxShoe (Beau Geste Press), Dyn, Mexico April-May 1942, Dyn, Mexico July-August 1942, Dyn 3 Fall 1942, Edda 3, Edda 4. (qty). Estimate: £300 - £500

Lot 156: GROPIUS, Walter & Laszlo MOHOLY-NAGY (editors).  Bauhausbucher. 2. Paul Klee. Padagogisches Skizzenbuch. Munich: Albert Langen, 1925. 4to. "Diagrams" by Paul Klee, publisher's advertisement at the end. Original wrappers with dust-jacket printed in black and white (frayed, a few short tears and chips, upper cover creased, backstrip worn). FIRST EDITION of a work originally handwritten by Paul Klee as working notes for his lectures on art theory to Bauhaus student. It was eventually printed and edited by Gropius and designed, with an introduction, by Moholy-Nagy, as the second in the series of the 14 Bauhaus books. Estimate: £200 - £300

Lot 158: CENDRARS, Blaise (1887 - 1961). La Fin du Monde Filmee par L'Ange N.-D. Paris: Editions de la Sirene, 1919. Folio. Illustrations (occasional light browning). Oriignal tan pictorial wrappers (some chipping, light staining and minor creasing). LIMITED EDITION OF 1,200 COPIES OF WHICH THIS IS NUMBER 558. [With]: a pamphlet extract pp.419-430 entitled Le Film de la Fin du Monde [?1919] loosely inserted. (2). Estimate: £500 - £800

Lot 171: ELUARD, Paul (1895-1952). Poesie et Verite 1944. [London]: London Gallery Editions, 1944. 8vo. Original grey wrappers titled in black (with protective glassine wrapper). PRESENTATION COPY, inscribed, "A. J. Brunius hommage de l' "editor" ... 9 Avril 1944". LIMITED EDITION OF 500 COPIES SIGNED BY ROLAND PENROSE AND E. L. T. MESENS, OF WHICH THIS IS COPY NUMBER 8. [With]: 2 leaf carbon copy of the poem "Pour L'amour de la Vie" with title and signature in ink by the author Paul Eluard and some annotation to the poem [?possibly in Eduard's hand].  Estimate: £400 - £600

Lot 179: PREVERT, Jacques (1900-77). L'ange Garde-Chiourme. [No place]: Fontaine, 1946. 12mo. Original brown pictorial wrappers (minor creasing and chipping). PRESENTATION COPY TO JACQUES BRUNIUS WITH A CARTOON BY PREVERT depicting two men urinating and a man sat at a table with a glass of wine, drawn in blue fountain pen ink. Inscribed, "Mon Jacques J B B Jacques Prevert".  Estimate: £700 - £1,000

Lot 37 will interest cricket fans. John Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack for 1896. London: John Wisden and Co., [1896]. 8vo. Yellow/brown pastedowns and endpapers, pastedown advertising "Crawfords Patent 'Exceller' Bats, front endpaper with "John Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack" for 1896, photographed plate of W.G. Grace (occasional spotting, previous, possibly a dealer's, label removed from front endpaper). Original brown cloth, spine titled in gilt with "1896. Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack. 1896". Front board with titles in gilt and John Wisden and Co., 21, Cranbourn Street, London, W.C. in gilt at the base of the board (tail and head of spine creased, corners bumped, dent to the right foredges some wear to cloth). The first edition to be produced in hardback. back. With John Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack for 1897. London: John Wisden and Co., [1897]. 8vo. Yellow/brown pastedowns and endpapers, pastedown advertising  "Crawfords Patent 'Exceller' Bats" depicting a cricket bat. Front endpaper with "John Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack for 1897", photographed plate depicting Five Cricketers of the Year (occasional spotting, previous, possibly a dealer's, label removed from front endpaper). Spine titled in gilt with "1897. Wisden's Cricketers' Almanack. 1897." Front board with titles in gilt and John Wisden and Co., 21, Cranbourn Street, London, W.C. in gilt at the base of the board (tail and head of spine creased, corners bumped,dent to the right foredges some wear to cloth). With Lillywhite's Guide to Cricketers with a Review and Averages of the Past Season. London: W. Kent & Co., 1865. 8vo. (Occasional light spotting). Original tan coloured wrappers (slight creases) and John Wisden's Cricketers Almanack for 1884. London: John Wisden and Co., 1884. (Occasional spotting.) Original salmon coloured wrappers (minor creasing). (7). Estimate: £5,000 - £8,000

The sale also includes a substantial amount of books on Lepidoptera - the study of insects including butterflies and moths (Lots 258-264). 

Lot 266 is of particular interest. BOCHIUS, Joannes (1555-1609). Historica narratio profectionis et inaugurationis serenissimorum Belgii principum Alberti et Isabellae, Austriae Archiducum. Antwerp: ex officina Plantiniana, J. Moretus, 1602. 2° (383 x 250mm). Title within a large engraved border, depicting a portrait of Albert and Isabella at the top, 3 engraved sectional titles, 28 plates, of which 15 double-page, by Pieter van der Borcht after designs by Josse de Momper, printer’s device on recto of final leaf, historiated and ornamental woodcut initials, head- and tailpieces (gathering C misbound after gathering D, clean tear in lower margin of second double-page plate just touching text, light marginal finger soiling throughout, a few margins with light waterstain). Contemporary vellum (front hinges cracked but cords firmly holding, vellum peeled off at 2 corners and foot of spine, lightly soiled). Provenance: Terlinden, with motto ‘jure injuria vincitur’ (bookplate); H.P. Kraus (bookseller's label). [?]FIRST EDITION OF AN ATTRACTIVE F?TE BOOK, which describes in great detail the welcoming celebrations held in honour of the visiting Archduke Albert of Austria and his wife, Isabella of Spain, by the cities of Brussels, Antwerp and Ghent. Van der Borcht’s splendid plates show the celebrations in detail. Only 775 copies of this work were printed (Funck). Berlin Kat. 2945; Cicognara 1408; Funck 281; Lipperheide 2657; Vinet 621. Estimate: £800 - £1,200