CROWLEY, Aleister.

The World Tragedy [ The World's Tragedy ].

NP: No publisher, ND. Unauthorised Edition (?). Hardcover. Octavo. xxxviii + 114 pp. Black cloth with gilt title, etc. to spine. The title on the spine is mis-spelled "The World (sic) Tragedy." Bound without a title page or publication details. It comprises the Dedication, Preface, and text of Crowley's "The World's Tragedy." It has the same typography as the Regardie edition, although it lacks any of the preliminaries, foreword, or Introduction which that included. Given this, and the mis-spelling of the spine we are inclined to think that is either a pirated edition, based on Regardie's, or a privately bound up version of a Regardie paperback, although if the latter were the case it is hard to imagine why the preliminary material was omitted. "The World's Tragedy" was originally privately printed in Paris in 1910 in an edition of 100 copies, but most copies of this play were destroyed in a customs seizure or seizures, on account of the frank discussion of homosexuality in Crowley's autobiographical Preface. The play itself was a work which Crowley particularly valued, writing in his "Confessions" that "This is beyond all question the high-water mark of my imagination, my metrical fluency, my wealth of expression, and my power of bringing together the most incongruous ideas so as to enrich my matter to the utmost. At the same time, I succeeded in reaching the greatest height of spiritual enthusiasm, human indignation, and demoniac satire." As noted this edition is unidentified and thus presumably is pirated. Lacking publisher, date of publication, title page or copyright page, title misprinted on spine. From the collection of Clive Harper with his discreet book-label neatly tipped in at the rear. Harper is well- known as the bibliographer of Austin Osman Spare, for updating the Aleister Crowley bibliography in the 2011 Teitan Press collection of Gerald Yorke's writings, and as someone who has lent his expertise to numerous other publications. Very light rubbing and marks to cloth else appears unused - thus a tight, clean near Fine copy. No dust jacket. Unusual. Item #65737

Price: $75.00