Henry Kistemaeckers

Second edition, enlarged with the passages suppressed from the original edition of 1851.

Illustrated with a frontispiece portrait of the authors engraved by A. Descaves.

Contemporary red half shagreen, spine slightly faded, with five raised bands and black fillets, marbled-paper boards, upper board slightly and marginally faded along the left edge, marbled endpapers and pastedowns, original wrappers preserved and mounted.

Signed presentation copy from Edmond de Goncourt to the journalist and writer Louis Ulbach.

First edition of Mademoiselle Fifi, published in Brussels by Henry Kistemaeckers in 1882. The volume brings together seven stories previously published in Gil Blas between December 1881 and March 1882, then revised by Maupassant for their first appearance in book form. The edition comprised 2,000 copies on laid paper and a further 50 on Japan paper; the present copy is from the regular issue on laid paper. Etched portrait of Maupassant by Just as frontispiece. Untrimmed.

Half raspberry...

First edition clandestinely printed in 175 copies on laid paper, each individually numbered.
 
Bound in full mint green morocco, spine with five raised bands framed by black fillets, subtle restoration to spine colour, date gilt at foot, endpapers and pastedowns of combed paper, gilt fillet border on pastedowns, original wrappers and spine preserved, all edges gilt, chemise edged in mint green morocco, covers of cat's eye paper, white felt interior, an elegant binding signed by Alix.
 
A very rare and handsome copy bound by one of the most distinguished binders of the second half of the twentieth century.