ALEISTER CROWLEY'S COPY, SIGNED & ANNOTATED by HIM! , OCCULT, GREENE, with COA
Aleister Crowley's personal copy, with the ownership signature to front free endpaper and holograph manuscript annotations to bookplate and pages 63, 64, 71, 182, 185,196, and 235. Octavo, vi, 236 pages, publisher's yellow cloth covered boards. The book was formerly in the Foyles Circulating Library system, and has their large yellow bookplate on the front pastedown. Above the words "Foyles Libraries" Crowley has written "Bought from" and have struck through Foyles' printed London address has added "at Biggins Chemist Aston Clinton" so it effectively reads Bought from Foyles Libraries at Biggins Chemist Aston Clinton. " That, and his large signature, with the "phallic A" in "Aleister on the facing front free endpaper are in ink.
63, 64, 71, 182, 185, 196, 235 have penciled annotations in Crowley's handwriting. In a couple instances these are little more than a few marginal lines and a word or two, but the majority are of one or more sentences. Some are quite interesting, as in the note on p. 84 where Crowley quotes Liber AL vel Legis, Chap.
III, 18 Mercy let be off: damn them who pity! " in connection with Greene's comments on "the horrible and horrifying emotion of pity.
235 in response to Greene's observation "If one loved, one feared" Crowley has added "But not when love is under will". There is what appears to be a faint blood spray (as from a hypodermic syringe) on p. 1 and the adjacent black, and on pp. As it is known that Crowley was injecting prescription heroin on a daily basis at the time it is tempting to ponder that this may be an artifact of that process, although this must remain speculative. Lacks the dust jacket, fading to spine, boards slightly splayed, bruised, and marked, else in good + condition.
The signature and the annotations in the volume are all clearly in Crowley's handwriting (and appropriate to that period) and this book comes with a signed Certificate of Authenticity from Keith Richmond of Weiser Antiquarian Books. An unusual and highly desirable example of a book that was owned, read, and annotated by Crowley in the final years of his life. If you have any questions feel free to ask and don't forget to check out my other listings. The item "ALEISTER CROWLEY'S COPY, SIGNED & ANNOTATED by HIM! , OCCULT, GREENE, with COA" is in sale since Sunday, September 16, 2018. This item is in the category "Books\Antiquarian & Collectible". The seller is "dirkdensity" and is located in West Chester, Pennsylvania. This item can be shipped worldwide.
- Year Printed: 1943
- Country/Region of Manufacture: United States
- Topic: Literature
- Binding: Cloth
- Region: Europe
- Author: Graham Greene
- Subject: Literature & Fiction
- Original/Facsimile: Original
- Language: English
- Publisher: William Heionemann Ltd
- Place of Publication: London
- Special Attributes: 1st Edition, Signed, Annotated