Wonderful stuff, as ever, in the latest catalogue from Weiser Antiquarian!
Aleister Crowley, his friends & Associates:
A Miscellany of Used and Rare Books
may now be viewed at:
www.weiserantiquarian.com/catalog
Weiser Antiquarian Books is pleased to announce the release of the forty-seventh of our on-line catalogs: which is another of our special lists on used and rare books and other items relating to Aleister Crowley and his circle.
The catalog starts with a selection of books by Crowley friends and associates. It includes a small group of early editions by Frater Achad (Charles Stansfeld Jones), several of which are signed, a selection of works by C. F. Russell, including a set of his Znuz is the Znees, Memoirs of a Magician (4 Volumes), and an inscribed copy of his Barbara Cubed, and two rare Masonic pieces by John Yarker, Crowley’s mentor in the rite of Mizraim, & Memphis.
The second section of the catalog lists a group of curiosities, mostly from the collection of Edward Noel Fitzgerald (1908-1958), Frater Agape, a IX degree member of the O.T.O., and friend and follower of Aleister Crowley’s. These include Five Glass Photographic Negatives and a single Cellulose Photographic Negative relating to Aleister Crowley, three original Tarot Cards from the very first test printing of the Thoth Deck in 1943, an Original Cast Metal Printing Plate of the Egyptian type surround, used in Crowley’s The Equinox of the Gods, a rare Rosicrucian Book given by Crowley to FitzGerald, and several mid-twentieth century magazines with articles about Crowley. The third section is devoted entirely to different editions of Crowley’s quirky magical / philosophical masterpiece, Liber Aleph .
The fourth section is devoted to Used and Rare books by Aleister Crowley, and comprises a mixed selection, from modern paperbacks to rarities. Amongst the stand-out items are rare copies of Crowley’s Amphora (1908) and Hail Mary (1911) a publication that was arguably also Crowley’s most famous practical joke. In 1908 Crowley anonymously submitted the text of this book of devotional verse to the well-known Catholic publishers Burnes and Oates who somehow managed to overlook the dubious theology and sexual undertones and published it under the title Amphora. Meanwhile Crowley published his own private edition with an obscene epilogue. Advanced copies of the Burnes and Oates edition sent out by the publishers were well received in Christian circles, and provoked some discussion as to the identity of the anonymous authoress. However it did not take long for the author’s real identity to be exposed, and Burnes and Oates rapidly withdrew the edition after only a small number of copies have been sold. Crowley somehow acquired the remaining copies, and reissued the book as Hail Mary under his ‘Equinox’ imprint a few years later. Other rarities in this section include a handsome, privately-bound (black leather and gilt) copy of the “Subscriber’s Edition” (only 250 copies printed) of The Equinox of the Gods (1937), and a copy of the special handmade paper issue of Gargoyles, (1906) limited to 50 copies & signed by Crowley.
The fifth and final section comprises seven handwritten letters from Frieda Harris, artist executant of the Thoth tarot deck, to Crowley. These again are from the collection of Edward Noel Fitzgerald who was a friend of both Crowley and Harris.
As usual we have a variety of other catalogs in preparation. Future catalogs will be devoted to Eastern Religions, Astrology, Mythology, Theosophy, John Dee, Grimoires, Witchcraft, and other of our specialties, with a few suprises along the way. Of course we will also continue to regularly issue our Aleister Crowley catalogs.