Weiser Antiquarian Latest Catalogue

My thanks to Keith at Weiser Antiquarian for permitting me to publish details of their latest catalogue, with items that you just won’t believe…

Weiser Antiquarian Books Catalog Eighteen:

Aleister Crowley. A Miscellany of Books and Manuscripts.

may now be viewed at:

www.weiserantiquarian.com/catalog

Weiser Antiquarian Books are pleased to announce the issue of our eighteenth on-line catalog. Once again the subject is Aleister Crowley, and we are pleased to be able to offer a selection of rare and unusual items, drawn from a number of private collections.

The first section of the catalog is devoted to ‘Rare Manuscript & Typescript Items,’ and contains a number of quite exceptional items, including two scarce examples of erotica. Crowley’s excursions into the subject are of course well known, and range from his spectacularly obscene poem ‘Leah Sublime,’ to books such as Snowdrops from a Curate’s Garden, White Stains, and the Bagh-I-Muattar. Manuscript examples of Crowley’s erotica are extremely scarce, with some of the material presumably destroyed alongside his printed books in customs seizures, and other of it disposed of by unappreciative individuals into whose hands it fell. We have two items from the genre in this catalog: the first being an extremely crude paen to one of his ‘tarts,’ written along with his daily appointments in a manuscript notebook from 1938. The second is the manuscript of what at first glance appears to be a conventional love poem, but can actually be read as a sustained erotic double entendre, the point being driven home by a lewd doodle which Crowley has drawn at the bottom of the page..

Another item in this section displays a very different preoccupation of Crowley’s: his love of chess. It is a hefty scrapbook or album that contains a large number of newspaper clippings of chess games, letters [not by Crowley] addressed to chess clubs, and manuscript records of games that Crowley had played. More conventional – though also extremely unusual – is an original typescript of ‘The Secret Conference,’ which was a short essay on the “mysterious Brotherhood” of occult initiates, the advent of The Book of the Law, and Crowley’s position as prophet. It was written pseudonymously by Crowley in 1925 in Tunisia, and was probably intended for publication as part of his ‘World Teacher’ campaign. Another interesting manuscript item is the original typescript of an O.T.O. First Degree Ritual, circa 1945, used in Agape Lodge of the O.T.O.

The second section of the catalog comprises a typescript, note, and several letters, sent by Crowley to his friend and student Edward Bryant. The typescript, mentioned by Crowley in his diaries as his ‘literature Century of Questions,’ comprises one hundred questions on the subject of classical literature, which Crowley composed entirely from memory. It is a stunning testament not only to his erudition, but also to his memory. Another small typescript / manuscript collection – this time concerning Crowley’s association with thespian John B. Jameson, forms the body of the third section of the catalog. The Jameson typescript is a detailed and very curious account by Crowley of his relationship with this friend and one time-business partner in the Amrita venture, whilst the manuscript is an original natal chart of Jameson drawn up by Crowley.

Another natal chart, this time drawn up not by Crowley, but by former follower and Head of Agape Lodge, Jack Parsons, is the sole item in section four. It is without doubt one of the most remarkable of the many rarities we have had of late, being the hand-drawn chart which Parsons drew tracing the nativity of Marjorie Cameron, the woman whom he believed came into his life as a consequence of a magical working he had undertaken aimed at bringing forth a ‘scarlet woman’, who would act as his magical partner. Parson’s desire to bring forth a ‘Moonchild’, and Crowley’s acid comments on the subject are almost legendary, and this document is a direct link with that dubious endeavour.

Section Five of the catalog contains a selection of printed books and ephemera by Crowley, including first editions of, The Banned Lecture, Clouds Without Water, The [Collected] Works of Aleister Crowley, The Scientific Solution to the Problem of Government, The Sword of Song, and The Winged Beetle. Of particular interest is a First Edition of the first volume of Crowley’s Thelema (popularly known as The Holy Books), which originally belonged to Olivia Haddon, a friend of Victor Neuburg’s, who joined the A.’. A.’. in 1912, as a Probationer under his guidance.

The penultimate section contains a small selection of works edited and compiled by Marcelo Ramos Motta, whilst the final section comprises a group of works from the Crowley section of a private library of considerable breadth that was put together by a European-born occultist who lived in the United States from the early 1960s onwards.
Aleister Crowley, An original Appointment Book for April–May 1938, with Crowley’s manuscript notes of addresses, appointments, etc. for that period, including the original mss. of an extremely crude pornographic poem on ‘Sally Pace’. Written in a plain, blank, soft-covered 5 x 6 inch book, that was obviously a printer’s dummy of the 1938 softcover edition of The Book of the Law. Approx 48 pages, some of which are loose as a consequence of Crowley having removed conjunct leaves, presumably for use as scrap paper (one page has had the bottom half torn off – presumably for the same purpose.)
The word ‘APPOINTMENTS’ is written boldly in Crowley’s hand across the front wrapper, and this was obviously a desk-top or briefcase appointment book in which Crowley kept track of meetings, telephone calls etc. Most of the entries are telegraphic, and are simply names (Frieda Harris, Edward Noel FitzGerald, and Gerald Yorke are amongst the better-known of the individuals mentioned), times, telephone numbers, addresses and such-like. A large number of his contacts were women including one Sally Pace, a married woman from Kilburn, who Crowley met regularly for sex – probably on a commercial basis – over a period of a few weeks. Pace is immortalized in a truly vulgar poem, reminiscent of Leah Sublime, which he penned in this Appointment Book. The poem is in four verses, each of about five lines. The first verse reads:
Sally is a darling little bitch / Slim and tall and wonderful a Witch
Her cXXX is hot and slimy / She is ready to defy me
To satisfy her everlasting itch….
It would be no overstatement to suggest that the poem descends yet deeper into the metaphorical gutter in the verses that follow. Crowley was obviously much taken with the poem (and Sally) and noted on the front of the book “(contains M.S. poem on Sally Pace)”, presumably as reminder to himself that it was there, so that he would not discard the notebook without first making a clean copy of it. Almost every page bar one has notes in Crowley’s handwriting on it, both in pen and ink. Overall the notebook is quite grubby – it has obviously been well used. Although undated the entries align with those that can be found in his Royal Court diary for the same April – May, 1938. Obviously unique. Not only is this an interesting, and very personal memento of the Beast, but original manuscript examples of his erotic or pornographic writings virtually never appear for sale, and this is written in a pre-production copy of the most important of Crowley’s works, The Book of the Law. (32625) $9500.00

Aleister Crowley, Original manuscript of a previously-unpublished love-poem with strong erotic undertones beginning ‘Tender trembing lips a-twitter with joy’ by Aleister Crowley, adorned with a small sexually-explicit sketch. ND. circa 1915 – 1919. A manuscript of an unpublished poem, handwritten in ink on the verso of a rather elaborate Dinner Menu from the restaurant of the Trouville Hotel, Long Beach, New York (sheet size 8 ¼ x 10 inches). A poem in two four-line verses, with a chorus of six short lines, alongside which Crowley has put down the notation for the rhyme and rhythm sequence. At first reading the poem appears to be a a sensitive love-lyric. It begins “Tender trembling lips a-twitter with joy / The golden down of the mouth, finer than puff-balls, is all …” etc. etc. However that there is a strong erotic subtext – or perhaps that the whole can be read as a double entendre – is revealed by an odd little sketch at the bottom of the page, about 2 ½ x 3 inches in size, of a head, seemingly about to fellate a detached penis of modest proportions which looms out of the nothingness before it. (Crowley has incorporated the hotel’s symbol of a winged lion, which is blind-embossed into the paper, into the head, which gives it an even stranger appearance). A curious memento of Crowley’s stay in New York during the First World War period. Some fold marks and light finger marks to the page edges, otherwise VG. The accompanying photograph obviously only shows a detail (part) of the recto. (32610) $1,950.00

Aleister Crowley, An original scrapbook or album assembled by Crowley on the subject of chess. The book contains a large number of newspaper clippings of chess games, as well as typescripts recording the details of games played by Crowley, manuscript records in Crowley’s handwriting of games that he had played, and some related correspondence (not by Crowley). All loosely inserted or pasted into a printer’s dummy of the Subscriber’s Edition of The Equinox of the Gods. Circa 1937-38. The books itself is hardcover, Quarto. Approx. 80pp. Plain buff colored boards with blue cloth back strip, pocket in back board (designed for insertion of the manuscript sheets of The Book of the Law). It is clearly a publisher’s mock-up or dummy of the Subscriber’s edition of The Equinox of the Gods and is blank, save for a single test printing of one bifolium that has been pasted in. The recto of the first leaf of this is headed CCXX COMMENT, below which are five lines of printer’s specifications detailing page and types size, number of pages, etc. etc. The second and third pages have a test printing of the first two pages of the sixth chapter of Genesis Libri AL. The fourth page is pasted to another leaf of the dummy, so its text, if any, is obscured. Loosely inserted into the book are three typescripts (2, 3 and 1 page respectively) which appear to record the details of two victories and one draw by Crowley with Frederick D. Yates. Yates (1884-1932), was six times British Champion, and if Crowley had indeed bested him at chess it is little wonder that he wanted to record the games. There is also an anonymous two-page typescript of text for a chess column, and 3 postcards by different individuals discussing chess problems, each addressed to William Hickey. Hickey was the pseudonym under which British journalist and later Member of Parliament, Tom Driberg wrote for the Daily Express. Driberg was a friend of Crowley’s and it seems likely from the inclusion of these pieces in the album that he occasionally sought the Beast’s help on matters pertaining to chess. Also loosely inserted, is a record of a chess game written in pencil on a sheet of scrap paper in Crowley’s handwriting, and about 17 clippings from Chess columns of various newspapers. About 40 pages have clippings from chess columns (about 120 in all) pasted onto them, and Crowley has also pasted in four handwritten records of games he had played, each on a single sheet of specially printed chess-club stationary, completed in his hand, and with his comments ‘Good’, ‘Very Good’ etc. Crowley has also used one page of the book to write the draft of a letter – in an almost illegible scrawl. There is a large discolored patch on the front board where a label has obviously been torn off, and overall the album has the condition and feel of ….. a well-used scrap-book. An unusual and unique record of the Beast as chess player. (32609) $4,250.00

[Aleister Crowley,] O.T.O. First Degree Ritual. Original typescript, ND circa 1945. A typescript, comprising fourteen 11 x 8 1/2 inch leaves, typed on one side only on quality typing paper. Secured in thick brown textured paper wrappers, with ‘1st’ written in an unknown hand on the front wrapper. Sheets secured by four staples down the left hand margin. An original typescript, as used for the performance of First Degree initiations in the O.T.O. in the U.S.A. in the 1940s. This typescript is from the library of Frater Zopiron: Gabriel Montenegro Vargas (1907-1969), IX degree, O.T.O., the last initiate of the Agape Lodge of the O.T.O. in California, and has his Thelemic bookplate on the inside front cover. The text appears to be the same as that published in Francis King’s Secret Rituals of the O.T.O. , with one slight (inconsequential) change in the layout. A VG copy of a scarce piece of ritual-related O.T.O. ephemera, with a interesting known provenance. (32608) $750.00

Aleister Crowley, [writing under the pseudonym Gerard Aumont]. Original Typescript of ‘The Secret Conference.’ [Tunisia – circa 1925] . An original typescript (probably carbon) of Crowley’s essay ‘The Secret Conference’, typed on the rectos only of 14 sheets of 8 x 10 1/2 inch onion skin typing paper. Several minor manuscript corrections in an unknown hand, which of course may be Crowley’s. ‘The Secret Conference’ is a short essay on the history of the “mysterious Brotherhood” of occult initiates, the “secret chiefs” who are said to guide them, the advent of The Book of the Law and Thelema, and the role which Crowley believed it cast upon him. It was written by Crowley in 1925 in Tunisia, under the name Gerard Aumont (a pseudonym he used in several other works) and was probably intended for publication as part of the ‘World Teacher’ campaign he had begun the previous year. This typescript of ‘The Secret Conference’ was one of several then-unpublished essays which Crowley sent to a Chicago resident, Walter R. Hixenbaugh, in 1926. Crowley hoped to interest Hixenbaugh in his teachings and to either obtain a substantial loan from him or persuade him to purchase a significant proportion of the back stock of his published works which were then in storage. Typically nothing appears to have come of the deal, although Hixenbaugh did develop and maintain an interest in Crowley’s works, and later had some contact with C. F. Russell and his Choronzon Club. Only three other copies of the typescript are known to survive, two in the Harry Ransom Collection, University of Texas at Austin, and one, previously in the possession of Kenneth Anger and now in the O.T.O. archives. The first publication of the text was apparently in the Thelemic journal ‘In the Continuum’, III, 7, 1985 (not seen) and it was later included as a prefaratory essay in the 1992 O.T.O. New Falcon edition of The Heart of the Master. The thin paper of the typescript is darkened and has some creases, and a few chips and tears around the edges: notably the corners. Still overall a VG and scarce original piece, dating from one of the more neglected periods of Crowley’s tumultuous career: his Tunisian residence and ‘World Teacher’ campaign. (32597) $1,500.00

A Quiz by Crowley and Several Letters. The typescripts, notes, and letters were sent by Crowley to his friend and student, Edward Bryant, in 1943. Bryant (1920-1998), had a life-long interest in the occult, and played an important part in the publication of The Book of Thoth, as well as in the composition of the ‘letters’ which would form the book later published as Magick Without Tears. Aleister Crowley, An Unpublished seven page typescript comprising 100 questions on Classical Literature, plus a short manuscript note in Crowley’s hand, signed with his initials, and a related 6 page manuscript document by one of Crowley’s followers. N.D. Circa 1940. A small but interesting group of material comprising:
(i) A typescript by Aleister Crowley, headed ‘Literature / (Classical Authors Only) / These questions were all written spontaneously, without reference to books. They are all serious; any educated person should be able to answer at least 80 per cent. No living author is involved.’ What follows are 100 questions, mostly on classical literary subjects. Typed on the rectos only of seven leaves of plain 8 x 10 1/4 inch buff typing paper. The typescript was sent by Crowley to his friend Edward Bryant, who has answered some of the questions in pencil.
(ii) A brief 40 word holograph note to Bryant from Crowley, signed by Crowley with his initials ‘A. C.’ Written on one side of a scrap of 3 1/4 x 4 inch buff paper. Crowley refers to the above questions in the note, saying in part ‘This is perfectly serious, though most people are proud to get one right – & that when prompted!’
(iii) A manuscript series of 50 literary questions and answers, in the handwriting of Edward Bryant, apparently composed in response to the questions composed by Crowley above. Some obviously humorous. Written on six sides of five leaves of ruled 6 1/2 x 8 inch paper, torn from an exercise book.
Crowley composed his ‘literature Century of Questions’ (as he called it) in January 1940, entirely from memory. He apparently sent it to some friends and acquaintances, as a test of their abilities, and perhaps also as a way of displaying his own erudition. The questions certainly show an extraordinary breadth of knowledge – and an amazing recall – though not all were perhaps entirely serious or to his credit: ie Question 100: “What Irish bastard wanted to build over our countryside with Jew architecture?”
Bryant pencilled a few answers onto the typescript, and, perhaps inspired by Crowley’s example, composed 50 Questions of his own. The manuscript of these, and their answers, is included above.
Overall condition is Very Good, though there is a dark, discolored shadow down the outer margin of the Bryant manuscript. A small but interesting collection that gives real insight into Crowley’s literary passion and knowledge. (32617) $1,200.00

Aleister Crowley, A handwritten Letter, Signed, from Crowley to E.B. [Edward Bryant ] , written from Newport, Monmouthshire, June 23 [1943] . Monmouthshire: 1943. Approx. 65 words. On a sheet of paper with the printed letterhead of Tredegar Park, above which Crowley has handwritten ‘c/- The Right Hon. Major Viscount Tredegar.’ 9″ x 63/4″. Written on one side only.
The letter begins and ends with the full Thelemic greetings. Crowley mentions that he is feeling ‘much rested and much refreshed,’ and seeks to make arrangements for a meeting, suggesting a number of possible times and places. The letter is signed by Crowley with his initials, though here the famous phallic ‘A’ seems a little flaccid. Although Crowley did not put a year on the letter, we know from his diaries that he arrived at Tredegar Park at the invitation of Evan Morgan Lord Tredegar on June 17, 1943, and stayed for a little over a week, so the letter was almost certainly written during his stay there that year.
Tredegar himself was an eccentric to rival Crowley – he worked for a time with the top-secret British Intelligence agency MI8 on schemes involving what might be termed ‘double-agent’ carrier pigeons. These proved to be uniformly disastrous. Personal indiscretions let to him being briefly imprisoned on charges of treason, although he was later released. One popular story suggests that Tredegar was so outraged that he got Crowley to place a curse on his arresting officer, who fell ill and almost died.
The letter is in Very Good condition, just the usual light crease that could be expected from having once been folded into an envelope. (32598) $950.00

Aleister Crowley, A handwritten Letter, Signed, from Aleister Crowley to Edward [Edward Bryant ], London, March 24 [1943] . Approx. 60 words. Written on one side only on a sheet of plain, good quality writing paper, approx. 9″ x 6″. Across the top of the page Crowley has written his address of the time: 93 Jermyn Street S.W.1, the date, March 24, and his telephone number.
The letter begins and ends with the abbreviated Thelemic greetings (’93’ etc.). It is a brief note in which Crowley queries Bryant’s absence “I thought we were going to work on the 7th’ and asks him about a lecture which Frieda [Harris] gave, and asks who also lectured with her. He then seeks to make arrangements for a meeting, suggesting possible times but that Bryant ring him first. The letter is signed ‘Fraternally, 666.’
Although Crowley did not put a year on the letter, most of his correspondence with Bryant dates from 1943 or 1944, and given that Crowley moved from the Jermyn Street address in early April 1944 to escape the German bombing, it was most likely written the preceding year.
The letter is in Very Good condition, with just the usual light creases that could be expected from its having once been folded into an envelope. (32599) $900.00

John B. Jameson (b. 1915), was an associate of Crowley’s during the years 1938-1939. At the time Jameson was a wealthy young man, a member of the Theatre Arts Club, who divided his time between partying, travelling, and his thespian activities. He also had an interest in the occult, and collected Crowley’s books, and eventually contacted the Beast with the hope of receiving occult tuition. Crowley apparently persuaded Jameson to purchase a ‘founder’s share’ in his venture selling Amrita, and it was from Jameson’s flat at 6 Hasker Street, SW1, that Crowley tried to launch the business. Crowley also took up temporary residence in the building, with Jameson his landlord. For a time relations were close, and Crowley suggested making Jameson an ‘heir’ of sorts, and apparently even declared him “Acting Grand Treasurer General of the O.T.O.,” although whether he ever did anything with respect to this office is unknown. Perhaps not surprisingly the two eventually fell out, most likely over disagreements about their financial and tenancy arrangements. Crowley later wrote bitterly in his diary:
John Jameson shows heroic rage / against sick men of thrice his age.
Against sick women in his care. / Nothing John Jameson does not dare.
Yet opposition soon dries up / The frenzy of the Pansy Pup.

Aleister Crowley, A Handwritten And Drawn Astrological Natal Chart Prepared By Aleister Crowley For ‘I. B. I.’ (John Bland Jameson ). (ND – circa 1938) . The chart itself, attendant symbols, and a dozen or so lines of astrological symbols and short notes, are penned in ink on one side of a single sheet of 10 x 8 inch plain notepaper. Beneath the chart there are also four lines of pencilled notes on the subject’s prospects, as well as – written in ink in a large impressive hand – ‘Danger from a woman on Sept. 10.’ Crowley has used the reverse side of the page as an address list, writing on it the names and telephone numbers of twenty friends, acquaintances, and local businesses (‘Soho Wine’), some of which he has struck through. Crowley has written ‘I.B.I.’ at the head of the chart, and these are the letters by which he sometimes referred to Jameson when writing of him in his diaries (they may perhaps have been an abbreviation of a magical motto, or it could have been an archaism, with Crowley adopting Elizabethan useage, where the old English letters ‘I’ and ‘J’ were interchangeable).
The chart has one large crease across the middle, and is generally rather grubby, with some stains, marks, and chips around the edges. (32626) $750.00

Aleister Crowley, A collection of typescript papers by Aleister Crowley outlining the history of his relationship with John Bland Jameson. Some pages with holograph insertions and corrections in Crowley’s handwriting. The papers comprise:
(i) A typescript, possibly carbon, ‘Memorandum’ by Crowley, on the rectos only of 23 leaves of (8 x 10 inch) off-white typing paper. The ‘Memorandum’ outlines the history of Crowley’s acquaintance with John B. Jameson during the period May 12, 1938 – November 4, 1938. The information in the ‘Memorandum’ was obviously reconstructed by Crowley from his diaries, letters, and memories, and seeks to document, on a day-by-day basis, all his dealings with Jameson in that period, and any arrangements or agreements that were made between them. There is something ‘legal’ about the tone and construction of the ‘Memorandum’ and it seems that it might have been prepared by Crowley in anticipation of a legal dispute. Despite this it contains much vintage Crowley: he writes in obvious dismay of his discovery that Jameson ‘was completely ignorant of art,’ and snobbishly described one of Jameson’s parties: “There was a considerable crowd of tenth-rate theatrical and screen people; nobody present was of any social or other importance. I was considerably surprised and a little disgusted.” The ‘Memorandum’ also reveals the basis for Crowley’s poetic charge that Jameson ‘raged’ against ‘sick women in his care.’ Much delightful and interesting biographical material throughout.
(ii) A collection of typescript copies and drafts of 8 letters between Crowley and Jameson. 30 pages on 25 leaves (8 x 10 inch) off-white typing paper. Of particular note is what appears to be the original draft of a lengthy (ten-page) letter from Crowley to Jameson, with numerous manuscript corrections and additions in Crowley’s handwriting. It is a broad ranging letter, in which Crowley berates Jameson for his lack of work, and in particular for giving “a very mechanical reading of the Hymn to Pan” on Crowley’s birthday. Much of the letter is devoted to a discussion of Crowley’s business prospects. Mention is made of the O.T.O. and Amrita, but the main focus is on his plans to take over (or reclaim) AMORC: “Louis Wilkinson and Frieda Harris are quite agreeable to come out to the States with me in August, where we have Mencken and Elmer Gertz, and a number of other quite important people waiting to push us along. We shall probably need an energetic business woman, of mature age and repulsive appearance, with utterly loathsome manners suited to the American public, to complete the party.” Also of considerable interest is the carbon copy of a short letter, dated February 7th, 1939, in which Crowley apparently refuses to accept Jameson’s resignation from the position of Acting Grand Treasurer General of the O.T.O. – citing a technical fault in the manner of address, and his failure to present the accounts.
Some creasing to the first leaf of the ‘Memorandum’, usual light age discoloration, otherwise near fine. (32627) $1750.00

A Rare Astrological Chart by Jack Parsons.

John Whiteside Parsons, [Jack Parsons] Original hand drawn and lettered Natal Charts of Marjorie Cameron and Robert Cameron, prepared by Jack Parsons. Circa. 1946. Drawn and lettered in pencil on both sides of a single sheet of paper with the printed letterhead of “The Parsons Chemical Manufacturing Company,” on the recto. The Natal chart of Parsons’s second wife Marjorie E. Cameron (1922–1995) is on the recto, and Parson’s brother-in-law Robert E. Cameron (1929–1988) on the verso. Although not mentioned, both were born at Belle Plaine, Iowa, USA. Both nativities are curiously titled “Horoscope of Toth by Fra\ 210 [Jack Parsons]” Jack Parsons (1914 – 1952), rocket propulsion researcher at the California Institute of Technology and co-founder of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), was appointed head of Agape Lodge, of the O.T.O. in 1942. Early in 1946 Parsons undertook a magical working aimed at bringing forth a ‘scarlet woman’, who would act as his magical partner. Not long after he met artist and poet Marjorie Cameron, whom he regarded as the answer to his call. Parsons resigned as head of the O.T.O., but continued to practice magic. He died in mysterious circumstances in 1952. ‘Cameron,’ as she was simply known, immersed herself in the Californian bohemian and artistic underworld, remarried, wrote poetry and painted, and went on to star in Kenneth Anger’s 1954 film Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome. Every bit as unusual as unusual and enigmatic a character as her first husband, Jack Parsons, Cameron continued to paint up to her death in 1995, and her artwork was recently the subject of a major retrospective in New York. Truly an extraordinary association item. A few light creases, otherwise Fine. The photograph obviously only shows a detail (part) of the recto. (32628) $1950.00

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Rare Books & Ephemera.

Aleister Crowley, Alice: An Adultery. Boleskine, Foyers : Society for the Propagation of Religious Truth, , 1905. Second Edition. Softcover. Small 8vo. xii + 86pp. Recently rebound in full bright red morocco with gilt author and title to spine. Fore and bottom edges untrimmed. Alice was amongst Crowley’s favourite poetical works: it is a sonnet sequence in which he recounts a particularly memorable affair that he had enjoyed with a married woman a few years earlier in Honolulu. Only 300 copies of the Second Edition were printed. There are several textual differences between this and the even-scarcer First Edition. The Second Edtion should include a ‘Publisher’s Note’ not present in the First Edition, which was printed on the verso of the half-title page. Unfortunately that leaf is lacking from the present copy (perhaps omitted during the rebind, or lost beforehand?) The book was originally issued in the notoriously fragile ‘camel hair wrappers’ which are absent, and probably explains the rebind. There are a couple of minor tears to some of the page edges, otherwise it is a near-fine copy, in an attractive and suitably lurid binding. (32612) $750.00

Aleister Crowley, Ambergris. A Selection From the Poems of Aleister Crowley. London: Elkin Mathews, 1910. First edition. Hardcover. xiii + 98pp (+ 2pp. adverts). Original composite boards with titling in gilt. Fore- & bottom-edges untrimmed. Gilt title etc. to spine and cover. Frontis Portrait. Contains a selection of Crowley’s early published poetry, made by himself and a group of friends. Writing in the Preface, Crowley declared that “In response to a widely-spread lack of interest in my writings, I have consented to publish a small and unrepresentative selection from the same. ….. This volume …. is therefore now submitted to the British Public with the fullest confidence that it will be received with exactly the same amount of acclamation as that to which I have become accustomed.” Crowley was correct, and the book was widely ignored in literary circles. Spine quite heavily rubbed and missing an eighth of an inch sliver from the tail and with a few short, closed tears, corner’s bruised and rubbed, some discoloration to boards, edges dusty, light browning to endpapers. Still a tight, clean near-VG copy of a book which is often encountered in much worse shape. (no dustjacket, none issued) (32624) $500.00

Aleister Crowley, The Banned Lecture. Gilles de Rais to have been delivered before the Oxford University Poetry Society by Aleister Crowley on the evening of Monday February 3rd, 1930 …. for sale to Members of University of Oxford. London: P. R. Stephensen, 41 Museum Street . 1930. First Edition. Softcover. 8vo. booklet. 16pp. Stapled in original pale blue-grey printed wrappers. In February 1930 Crowley was invited to give a lecture to the Oxford University Poetry Society on the notorious medieval French occultist and mass-murderer Gilles de Rais. However the lecture was cancelled at the last moment after pressure was brought to bear by the University’s Catholic Chaplain, Father Ronald Knox. Crowley retaliated by having his friend and publisher P. R. Stephensen quickly print copies of the lecture in booklet form, which were then sold on the streets of Oxford, thereby reaching a far greater audience than his original lecture would ever have attracted. Due to their ephemeral nature, the original booklets are now quite scarce, despite having probably had a relatively large print-run (1000 copies). From the library of Helen Parsons Smith (1910 – 2003), ex-wife of Jack Parsons, long time member of Agape Lodge of the OTO, and founder of Thelema Publications. A hint of discolouration to the back wrapper, otherwise an exceptionally clean copy. The booklet is loosely enclosed in a specially-made set of modern blue cloth boards, with gilt titling to the spine, which Parsons Smith had made as a protective outer cover. (32602) $450.00

[Aleister Crowley, & Mary D’Este Sturges] Frater Perdurabo & Soror Virakam. Book 4, Part I & Book 4, Part II (2 Volumes). London: Wieland, ND (1912 & 1913). First editions. Volume I is the scarce First issue of the First Edition, with the publisher’s address given as “3, Great James Street, Bedford Row, London, W.C.’ Volume II is the first (and only) issue of the First Edition. Both small, square 8vos (5 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches), Vol. I: x + 94pp (+2pp. adverts), 2 photographic illus, & Vol II: viii + 186pp, b&w illustrations, errata slip tipped in facing title page. Original decorated paper boards, treated cloth spines, Vol. II with paper title-label on spine (none issued on Volume I) The first two Volumes, complete in themselves, on mysticism and ‘magick’ respectively – of Crowley’s magnum opus, Book 4 (all issued thus). The third vol. (on the Book of the Law) did not appear as such during Crowley’s lifetime, the fourth Vol. (also called Magick in Theory and Practice) came out in different format in 1929. A complete edition of the work did not appear until well after Crowley’s death. In their distinctive ‘flashing bindings.’ An unusual example of the book as talismanic object, with the design by Crowley reflecting the (itself symbolic) number 4 (a theme carried through from the square shape; 4 equal sides; to the original prices, 4 groats and 4 tanners respectively). As far as is known, only 500 copies of the First printing of Part I were done, and a total of 500 copies only of Part II (there was no second issue of this edition of Part II). These from the collection of W. T. Smith, founder of Agape Lodge of the O.T.O. – with his personal sigil (a lamen-like seal with a phallic light house in the center) stamped in red on three pages. As often with this fragile set both volumes show some wear and tear. Vol. I is the worse of the two, its covers are a little marked and rubbed, and the spine has been reinforced with heavy clear plastic tape overlapping onto the boards. The volume itself is quite shaken, and a half-dozen or so of the gatherings have been reinforced with tape at the inner margins – in some cases the tape runs over portions of the text, which would make it difficult to remove without damage. A G+ copy only thus. Vol. II is in much nicer shape: as usual the boards are rubbed, and rounded at the corners, and there is a faded strip about an inch wide down the spine side of the back board. Unusually about 90% of the paper spine label is intact. Internally it is quite clean. A good solid example of a scarce set. (32601) $950.00

[Aleister Crowley,] The Rev. C. Verey, Clouds Without Water. Edited from a Private M. S. By the Rev. C. Verey. London [Actually Paris] : Privately Printed, , 1909. First edition. Softcover, xxii + 144pp. Small octavo. Original buff coloured “Jap vellum wrappers” folded over limp plain card cover. The wrappers have the title printed across the upper wrapper and lettered up spine, and with a publisher’s device in the centre of rear wrapper (all printed in black). This is the scarce deluxe issue, printed on Van Gelder hand-made paper – one of Crowley’s favourite paper-types (there was also a cheaper issue, printed on machine made paper and with different colored wrappers). Fore and bottom edges untrimmed. Clouds Without Water is another of Crowley’s works with a complex and chequered history. Despite the statement on the title page that it was published in London, Clouds Without Water was actually printed by Renouard of Paris (who had earlier published Crowley’s obscene homo-erotic parody, the Bagh-I-Muattar) The book is poetry with some erotic undertones – which is presumably why Crowley playfully published it under the name of a fictitious Priest “The Rev. C. Verey” and had the words “Privately Printed for Circulation Amongst Ministers of Religion” printed on the title page! Wrappers somewhat age darkened, a little light creasing to the spine, which also has a hint of chipping at the head and tail. Endpapers a littlle darkend by offset from wrappers. Still a near-Fine copy of what is by far the rarer of the two issues of the First Edition. (32605) $1,500.00

Aleister Crowley, The [Collected] Works of Aleister Crowley (3 Volumes in 1) . Foyers: Society for the Propagation of Religious Truth, , 1905 – 1907. First Edition Thus. Hardcover, Three volumes in one, 8vo, Vol. I: x + 270pp, Vol, II: viii (+ 2) + 282pp, Vol: III viii + 248pp. Original gilt stamped limp linen boards. Printed on India paper. Top edge gilt, other edges untrimmed. This copy formerly the property of Grady Louis McMurtry (1918-1985), Crowley’s American disciple and former Caliph of the Ordo Templi Orientis, with his handwritten ownership note “The McMurtry’s” on the front free endpaper. The single volume edition of the “Essay Competition” issue of the Collected Works (the words “Essay Competition Copy” are printed on the page facing the title page). This edition was speedily and simply produced (without plates) for rapid distribution to anyone planning on entering the competition for the best essay on his own works, which Crowley was then running. Cloth boards lightly rubbed and discolored as always, gilt titling still quite bright. Taped tear across pages 17/18 of Vol. II has discolored and offset onto facing pages. Otherwise a clean, unmarked VG copy. (32604) $1,400.00

Aleister Crowley, Liber LXXVII. (Liber Oz.) NP: [Privately Printed, The O.T.O.], ND [cicra 1942] . First Edition Thus. A single sheet of 9 x 6 inch handmade paper, folded so as to form an envelope, with a gummed strip down one margin. When closed, one side is blank, and the other side has the printed text of Liber Oz. When opened the left ‘page’ shows a photographic portrait of Crowley wearing a turban and smoking a pipe, and the right is blank. One of the less common variants of Liber Oz – a concise lyrical statement of the core beliefs of Thelema – which Crowley sent out quite widely during the war-years. One largish light brown stain (tea?) across the top edge, otherwise VG+ (32611) $150.00

[Aleister Crowley] writing as the Comte de Fenix. The Scientific Solution to the Problem of Government. London: Issued by the O.T.O., ND (circa 1937). First Edition. Softcover. Tall octavo, 4pp., Original printed wrappers. Intact serated order form for The Equinox of the Gods on the bottom wrapper. A short pseudonymous work expounding Crowley’s Law of Thelema – presumably distributed to create interest in Crowley’s The Equinox of the Gods and forthcoming new editions of The Book of the Law. Amongst the scarcer of the Crowley booklets. Yorke. 96. A small blemish on the back wrapper, otherwise about Fine. (32603) $650.00

Aleister Crowley, Songs of the Spirit. Foyers: S.P.R.T., 1905. New Impression. Hardcover. Small 8vo. x + 110pp. Original buff paper-covered boards with white buckram spine with paper title label. A ‘New Impression’ published by Crowley under his Society for the Propagation of Religious Truth imprint at Boleskine, in 1905 (the First Edition had been published by Kegan Paul in 1898). This copy is from the library of the British Druid leader George Watson MacGregor Reid, with his ownership signature on the front free endpaper and a poem about Crowley (‘To A. C.’) in Reid’s hand on the second blank. Reid was the founder of the Church of the Universal Bond, which held rituals of sun-worship at Stonehenge. Reid was certainly personally acquainted with Crowley, they saw each other quite often in the mid-1930s, and Reid is rumoured to have had a number of Crowley’s manuscripts and typescripts. The presence of the poem in the book, which would appear to be contemporary to its publication, suggests that they may in fact have known one another longer than was previously thought. Writing of Songs of the Spirit in his Confessions, Crowley observed: “The ‘wish-phantasm’ of the book is principally that of a wise and holy man living in a lonely tower, master of the secrets of nature. In practice, I was living for pleasure.” The boards are bumped and rubbed at the corners, and generally show some age discoloration. A little light foxing, mostly confined to the preliminaries. Otherwise a tight, clean, VG + copy. No dustwrapper (none called for). (32606) $950.00

Aleister Crowley, The Sword of Song. Called by Christians The Book of the Beast. Benares [Actually Paris]: Society for the Propagation of Religious Truth, 1904. First Edition. Softcover, large Quarto (viii) + xii + 194 + (ii)pp, Original gold-printed blue paper wrappers, rebacked with new backstrip, now housed in a custom made protective cloth box. Extremely scarce: edition limited to only 100 copies (there were also 10 advance copies in printed red wrappers). The 100 copies were divided into four ‘editions’ with a number of copies (presumably 25 of each) having respectively ‘Second Edition’, ‘Third Edition’ and ‘Fourth Edition’ printed on the title page. This copy does not have any of these ‘edition’ statements, so can be counted as the First Issue of the First Edition, of which there were probably only 25 copies. One of Crowley’s most significant early works, it was the first work in which Crowley publicly identified himself as ‘The Beast.’ Referred to by Richard Kaczynski as ‘Crowley’s first great talismanic book,’ it is a handsomely produced work, printed throughout in red and black on heavy glazed paper. The wrappers are gilt printed on navy-blue background. The front wrapper has a square comprising ‘666’ printed thrice, beneath the title, the back wrapper has a magic square made up of Crowley’s name spelled out in Hebrew letters to add up to ‘666.’ The first half of the book comprises the poems ‘Ascension Day’ and ‘Pentecost’, works after Robert Browning’s Christmas Eve and Easter Day, along with notes and Introductions. They are followed by three Appendices, each a work in itself: ‘The Three Characteristics,’ a parody of a Buddhist ‘Jataka story’, featuring characters that are obviously Allan Bennett and Crowley himself, Ambrosi Magi Hortus Rosarum, an allegorical account of the aspirant’s journey, and the essay, ‘Berashith. An Essay in Ontology with Some Remarks on Ceremonial Magic.’ A final essay, ‘Science and Buddhism’ is followed by an Index and short Epilogue.
‘The Sword of Song’ is the classic Crowleyan mixture of serious philosophy, humour, and vulgarity (‘Ambrosi Magi Hortus Rosarum’ has hanging line notes, which spell out the words ‘quim,’ ‘arse,’ ‘frig,’ ‘puss,’ and ‘cunt.’)
Due to the soft paper wrappers the spine of this volume is often lacking or in tatters. In this case the volume has been expertly rebacked, with a reproduction spine, preserving the original wrappers. The book is housed in a special, custom-made dull gold silk-cloth clamshell box, with gilt title etc. to spine. About half-a-dozen pages have some neat pencil annotations (these could probably be erased without great difficulty if so desired), and the last forty or so pages have a faint damp-mark in the upper margin, not touching the text). Moderate foxing throughout, otherwise a VG + copy of a scarce and significant work. (41987) $2,250.00

[Aleister Crowley,] Thelema [popularly known as The Holy Books, [Vol. I] Liber LXI vel Causae and Liber Cordis Cincti Serpente Vel LXV, [London]: Privately Printed, ND [1909 / 1910]. First edition. Hardcover, small 8vo, 5 1/2 x 3 3/4 inches, 64pp. Original full vellum binding with elaborate gilt stamping to front cover. Printed on Japanese vellum. Text printed within border of gold rules. A First Edition of the first volume of Thelema – commonly known as The Holy Books – a series of ‘inspired writings’ by Crowley which made their first appearance in print in 1909 as three slender volumes, each of which bore the single-word title Thelema (in Greek) within a decorative border embossed on the front panel of the binding. Each volume was assigned to one of the initiatory levels in the Outer College of the A.’. A.’. as the lower grades of the Order were known. Thus Probationers were required to purchase and study the first volume, which contained Liber LXI, The Preliminary Lection, and Liber LXV, vel Cordis Cincti Serpente. If and when the Probationer passed successfully to the grade of Neophyte – he or she then bought and studied the second volume, and so on. The print run of the volumes is unknown, but it was certainly extremely small and the volumes are genuinely rare. This copy was originally issued to Olivia Haddon, and has her A.’. A.’. motto – ‘Nihil Obstat ‘ – in the space on the final page of the volume which was left blank for the aspirant who purchased the volume to complete as a sort of pledge. Haddon was a friend of Victor Neuburg’s, who joined the A.’. A.’. on 24 September 1912, as a Probationer under his guidance. She does not seem to have made a great impression on Crowley, although he did include a somewhat cryptic reference to her in his Commentary on Chapter 81 of The Book of Lies, where he observed … “Nor does he agree even with the aim of the Anarchists, since, although Anarchists themselves need no restraint, not daring to drink cocoa, lest their animal passions should be aroused (as Olivia Haddon assures my favourite Chela), yet policemen, unless most severely repressed, would be dangerous wild beasts.” Gilt design on front board a little rubbed and dulled, a few light signs of use, still a near fine copy (unusually so, as the vellum boards are often bowed). (32615) $3250.00

Aleister Crowley, The Winged Beetle. London: Privately Printed, 1910. First edition. Hardcover. 8vo. x + 228pp. Original pressed-paper boards with gilt titling and winged scarab design on top board. ‘Glossary of Obscure Terms’ bound in at rear. Edition limited to 300 copies numbered from 51 – 350 (there was also a printing of 50 copies on handmade paper numbered 1 – 50 ). The Winged Beetle is a collection of poetry by Crowley with some extremely memorable dedications whilst the ‘Glossary of Obscure Terms’ gives an alarming and rather blasphemous alternative meaning to the third stanza of the main dedication, which could probably have only been published in this encrypted form. The book is far scarcer than its limitation suggests, a circumstance explained both by its non-durable binding and the loss to flood damage of nearly a third of the print run (see Martin Starr’s Introduction to the facsimile edition). A hint of light shelfwear but otherwise a near-Fine copy. A scarce book at the best of times – it is seldom found in such good condition on account of its notoriously frail binding. (32607) $1,850.00

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Works Edited by Marcelo Ramos Motta.

Aleister Crowley, [Edited etc. by Marcelo Ramos Motta, Preface by James Wasserman). The Commentaries of AL Being the Equinox Volume V, No. 1. London, England: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1976. First UK edition. Hardcover, large 8vo, [xxii] + 288 pp [+ 22 pp of plates + 26 pp Index]. Red cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover, color plates. An important collection of Crowley’s commentaries on Liber AL, collected and edited by Marcelo Motta. Corners lightly bumped and rubbed, a little bit of light shelf-wear, still a tight, clean VG+ copy, lacks dustjacket. (32644) $125.00

Aleister Crowley, [Edited etc. by Marcelo Ramos Motta]. The Equinox (Vol. V., No. 2) The Official Organ of the A. A. The Review of Scientific Illuminism. Nashville, TN: Thelema Publishing Company, 1979. First edition. Hardcover, large 8vo, vi + 404 pp + 4 pp of adverts. Red cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. Very light bruise to lower corner of upper board, hint of foxing to page edges, otherwise a sound and bright, near Fine copy in VG+ dust jacket. (There is a small, light blemish – perhaps glue residue from a price label – no bigger than a thumb-nail on the spine of the dustjacket, and a couple of tiny tears, it is not clipped and now in a protective mylar cover). (32623) $200.00

Aleister Crowley, [Edited etc. by Marcelo Ramos Motta]. The Equinox Volume V, No. 3. The Chinese Texts of Magick and Mysticism. The Official Organ of the A.A. The Review of Scientific Illuminism. Nashville, TN: Thelema Publishing Company, 1980. First edition. Hardcover, large 8vo, xviii + 486 pp, Green cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. Contents include Crowley’s versions of the Yi Jing [Yi King], Dao De Jing {Tao Teh King], Jin Gan Jing [Khing Kang King], plus commentaries by Crowley, Motta and others. Page edges dusty and spotted, small closed tear across bottom of spine, corner bumped and rubbed. Has clearly been used, but still a solid, VG copy (lacks dustjacket ) (32621) $200.00

Aleister Crowley, [Edited etc. by Marcelo Ramos Motta]. The Equinox Volume V, No. 4. Sex and Religion. The Official Organ of the A.A. The Review of Scientific Illuminism. Nashville, TX: Thelema Publishing Company, 1981. First edition. Hardcover, large 8vo, xx + 696 pp. Gilt decorated boards with gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. An important collection of Crowley’s worked gathered together around the theme of sexuality. They include the poem Leah Sublime, his Diaries for 1906-07, The Paris Workings, The Bagh-i-Muattar, etc. as well as Ida Craddock’s Heavenly Bridegrooms and writings and commentaries by Marcelo Motta. A tight, clean, absolutely Fine copy. The dust jacket has a couple of match-head sized nicks at the edges, and a small, light blemish (perhaps glue residue from a price label) no bigger than a thumb-nail on the spine, but is also otherwise Fine. (32622) $400.00

Aleister Crowley, (Edited by Ray Eales & Vance Borland). The Equinox: Volume VII, Number 1 The Official Organ of the A.A.. The Review of Scientific Illuminism. Tampa, FL: Silver Star Publications, 1992. First edition thus. Hardcover, 8vo, (xii) + 260 pp, Red cloth with gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. Follows on from The Equinox series started by Marcelo Motta. Essays and magical instructions by Crowley, Motta, and some of Motta’s associates, including: Liber VII. Liber Liberi vel Lapidis Lazuli (Crowley), Liber DCL vel De Fons Aquae Vitae (by Marcelo Motta), Map of the Coins of the Ge Yuan (by Marcelo Motta), Liber CCXXXI Visions by S.T.S. (circa 1978-1980), Liber Cheth vel Vallvm Abiegni (Crowley), Liber Tzaddi (Crowley), Liber LXI (Crowley), Postcards To Probationers (Crowley), Yaweh is Egyption for Moon (David Bersson), Liber Thisharb (Crowley), Magick and Film (by Ray Eales), Antecedents of Thelema (“found in a rough typescript with annotations in AC’s hand”), The Journey and the Waiting (by Ray Eales) . A tight, clean, Fine copy. No dustjacket, as issued. (32629) $175.00

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Books From the Working Library of a Twentieth Century Occultist.

The books that follow are from the Crowley section of a private library of considerable breadth that was put together by a European-born occultist who lived in the United States from the early 1960s onwards. Whilst the books listed here are generally in Very Good or better condition, it was a working library, and a number of them do have the owner’s signature, annotations, or such-like, whereas others are quite unmarked. So please do read the descriptions carefully. If no markings or flaws are listed, then of course it means that none are present.

Aleister Crowley, (With Mary d’Este Sturges. Preface by Israel Regardie). Book 4 Part 1 Meditation & Part 2 Magick. Dallas, TX: Sangreal Foundation Inc., 1969. First Edition Thus. Hardcover, 8vo, 128 pp, Red cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover, illustrations. The text of the first two parts of Crowley’s Book 4, with a new Introduction by Israel Regardie. Previous owner’s inscription on front free endpaper. About six pages have a small amount of yellow highlighting, otherwise a tight, clean, VG+ copy.(no dustjacket – believe none issued on this edition) (32632) $40.00

Aleister Crowley, The Book of Lies. Which is Also Falsely Called Breaks, The Wanderings or Falsifications of the one thought of Frater Perdurabo (Aleister Crowley) which thought is itself untrue. A Reprint with an Additional Commentary to each Chapter. Devon, England: The Haydn Press, 1962. Hardcover, small 8vo, 196 pp. Original black cloth, with gilt title, etc. to spine. Frontis photo of Frater Perdurabo. The first edition of Crowley’s Book of Lies to be published with his commentaries – it was published by Karl Germer with the help of Gerald Yorke. Previous owner’s name and purchase details ‘New York, … 63’ written in a neat sloping hand across the title on the title page. Extensive, neat, and unusually sensible owner’s notes on endpapers. No marks inside the actual text of the book. Some light wear and discolored patches to the cloth, still a VG+ copy – no dustjacket (none issued). (32631) $120.00

Aleister Crowley, 777 Revised. Vel Prolegomena Symbolica Ad Systemam Sceptico-Mysticae Viae Explicandae, Fundamentum Hieroglyphicum Sanctissimorum Scientiae Summae. A Reprint of 777 with Much Additional Matter by the Late Aleister Crowley. London: The Neptune Press, 1955 . First Edition thus. Hardcover. xxviii + 156pp. Demy 8vo. parchment spine with gilt-dec. buckram boards. Tables & diagrams. Limited edition of 1100 copies. A reprint of the Qabalistic masterwork with much additional material, published by Crowley’s American student and occult heir Karl Germer in collaboration with Gerald Yorke a few years after the death of ‘the Beast.’ The parchment spine has a little creasing, but is unusually clean and strong, the cloth boards have a somewhat glossy sheen to them, as though some protective finish had been applied to it. Previous owner’s name and purchase date ’11 -VI-57′ written in a neat sloping hand across the title on the title page. Extensive, neat, and unusually sensible owner’s notes on blank page preceeding rear endpapers. A few discrete owner’s notes pencilled in amongst the tables, three or four columns of which have been neatly filled in with a color pencil. Still a tight, solid, near-VG copy. (no dustwrapper, none issued). (32633) $140.00

[Aleister Crowley], The Master Therion. Magick In Theory and Practice (being part III of Book 4) . Paris, France: Lecram Press, [ 1929 ]. First Edition. Hardcover. Quarto. xxxii + 122pp.; [82pp.]; [94pp.]; [132pp.]. Early rebind, with the original red paper wrappers over boards, and red cloth spine. Color plate in Section 1. Tables, diagrams, etc. etc. The true first issue of Crowley’s magnum opus, Magick in Theory and Practice (also known as Book 4, Part III). The first issue was originally issued in 4 separate, paper-wrappered parts, and included a color plate that was omitted from the later hardbound edition. The paper wrappered edition was not particularly durable, and someone has had this set rebound as a hardback, using the original paper wrappers of Part I as the covering for the front and rear boards. The original color plate has been cropped and neatly excised – perhaps so it could be removed for use in meditation – but is included loosely laid in. The binding was obviously professionally done, probably in the 1940s or 1950s, and in the process the margins were trimmed slightly, meaning the book is of slightly smaller format than usually encountered. Previous owner’s name and purchase details: ‘London, 26 -IX-59’ written in a neat sloping hand across the title on the title page. Some small, neat, owner’s notes in English and Spanish on the front and rear free-endpapers. A few neat pencil notes in English, and one small ink notation in French, in the margins, otherwise the text is clean. Edges lightly foxed, not running into text, internal hinges cracked but holding. An attractive VG copy, that was obviously intended for serious study. (32635) $450.00

Aleister Crowley, (Master Therion). Liber Aleph. The Book of Wisdom or Folly in the Form of an Epistle of 666 The Great Wild Beast to his Son 777 being the Equinox Volume III No. VI. California: Thelema Publishing Company, 1962. First edition. Hardcover, Quarto, xii + 220 pp. Contemporary half-leather, with raised bands and gilt tooling, marbled paper boards, and marbled endpapers. Tipped in frontis portrait of Crowley, errata slip facing p. xii. The first edition of this important work, published by Crowley’s successor, Karl Germer. Previous owner’s name and purchase details: ’23-VII-62′ written in a neat sloping hand across the first section title, pencil circles drawn around the title and author’s name on title page, and occasional pencil annotations throughout. The binding itself presents something of an enigma. We know that the book was obtained by its owner shortly after its publication and that it was originally published in quite a strong glazed cloth binding with dustjacket. It seems odd that he would then have had it rebound in what would have been a reasonably expensive quite high quality binding of this type. It seems possible that this might have been some sort of presentation binding, but if so the circumstances of its commission remain unknown. The leather of the spine is a little rubbed at the head and tail, and there is a sheen to the marbled paper on the boards that suggests that they have been lacquered for protection. An attractive VG+ copy. (32636) $250.00

Aleister Crowley, The Equinox Vol. III, No. 1. [ The Blue Equinox ] The Official Order of the A.:A.: The Official Organ of the O.T.O. The Review of Scientific Illuminism. The Method of Science. The Aim of Religion. New York, NY: Samuel Weiser Inc., 1974. Third Impression of 1972 Second Edition. Hardcover. Large 8vo. 308 + 132pp. Blue cloth with red “eye in triangle” design and titling on upper board, gilt titling etc. to spine. Color frontis portrait of Crowley by Leon Engers Kennedy, and color reproduction of Crowley’s painting May Morn, plus 5 black and white plates, all with original captioned tissue guards. Crowley was the editor and principal author of most of the The Equinox series, which contained a variety of poetry, fiction, and reviews – generally with esoteric themes – alongside a number of articles of occult instruction. This volume was the last of the ‘real’ Equinoxes published during Crowley’s lifetime – he continued to use the Equinox volumes and numbers, but for what were effectively separate monographs of a quite different format to the original series. The contents of this volume include Crowley’s Gnostic Catholic Mass, the publication of which caused considerable outcry, and calls for the book to be banned, as well as providing inspiration to James Branch Cabell, who adapted part of it for use in his equally-contentious, but best-selling novel, Jurgen. Cloth slightly darkened, still, a sound unmarked near-fine copy. (32600) $185.00

[Aleister Crowley, et al ] Introduction by Israel Regardie. The Equinox, Vol. I, Numbers I – X. New York, NY: Samuel Weiser Inc., 1974. Reprint. 10 Volumes, Hardcovers, small Quartos (10″ x 7″), white decorated cloth, with Equinox coat of arm and bannerheads on front boards and gilt titles etc. on spine. Over 400 pages, numerous color and black and white illustrations. A complete set of the facsimile edition of the ten numbers which make up the first series (or ‘volume’) of The Equinox, which was published biannually between 1909 & 1913 Crowley was the editor and main author of The Equinox, which contained a variety of poetry, fiction, and reviews – generally with esoteric themes – alongside a number of articles of occult instruction. This is the 1974 reprint of the edition first published by Samuel Weiser in 1972. It includes a specially commisioned Introduction by Israel Regardie. The spines are a little mottled and flecked – as often with this edition (although for some reason the photograph makes this appear a little worse than it actually is) – and there is a little yellowing to the boards. Edges a little dusty, otherwise this set is near to Fine, bright, tight, clean and free of any markings (no dustjackets, none issued). (32638) $795.00

Aleister Crowley, (Preface by Israel Regardie). The Holy Books. Dallas, TX: Sangreal Foundation, Inc., 1969. First Edition Thus. Hardcover, 8vo, 116pp. White cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine and front cover. Printed through out in black and dull gold. With a short introduction by Israel Regardie. As has often been observed, this edition could more accurately have been entitled ‘Three Holy Books’, as it contains only Liber Liberi vel Lapidis Lazuli Sub Figura VII, Liber Cordis Cincti Serpente Vel LXV, & Liber DCCCXIII vel Ararita. Still, it was a ground breaking edition in terms of making these Holy Books available to a broader public – for many years it was the only relatively easy way to access the texts. There is just a hint of dust and flecking to the white covers, previous owner’s inscription on front pastedown, otherwise a tight, clean, near-Fine copy (no dustjacket – believe none issued with this 1969 edition). (32639) $85.00

Aleister Crowley, ( Preface by Israel Regardie ). Eight Lectures on Yoga. The Equinox Volume III, Number Four. Dallas, TX: Sangreal Foundation, Inc. , 1969. First edition thus. Hardcover. 8vo. 80 pp. Original blue cloth with silver title etc. to upper board and spine. Frontis. Widely regarded as one of Crowley’s best works, and as one of the wittiest and most insightful studies of the subject ever written by a Westerner. Small bumps to the head and tail of spine, otherwise a Fine copy (no dustjacket – believe none issued with this 1969 edition) (32640) $70.00

Aleister Crowley, The Book of the Law. Liber AL vel Legis Sub Figura CCXX. New York: Ordo Templi Orientis and Magickal Childe, 1990. First edition thus. Hardcover, pocket sized edition of Crowley’s Book of the Law. 12 mo, 93pp. Red leatherette with gilt title and spine, silk page marker, all edges gilt. NOTE – This is the original 1990 edition issued by the Ordo Templi Orientis and Magickal Childe, not the 2004 reissue using the same sheets which is frequently mistaken for and advertised as the original edition. A Fine copy. (32641) $175.00

Aleister Crowley, Little Essays Toward Truth. Malton, Canada: Dove Press, [ 1970 ]. First Edition Thus. Hardcover, 8vo, x + 84 pp, Black cloth, gilt title, etc. to spine. Previous owner’s name and purchase details: ‘Dallas, Jan. 12, 1971’ written in a neat sloping hand across the title on the title page, an I Ching hexagram pencilled neatly on the front free endpaper, otherwise a fresh, clean, near-Fine copy in VG+ dustjacket, (one chip, about the size of a small fingernail, affecting the ‘C’ for ‘Crowley’ at the top of the spine.) (32642) $85.00

Aleister Crowley, The Equinox of the Gods (being The Equinox Vol. III, No. III) . London: The O.T.O. / Samuel Weiser, 1937 / 1956 . (Second Printing, Second Issue). Hardcover. Quarto, vi + 138pp, Red cloth. Colour plates of the Stelae of Revealing, diagrams. This is a 1950s reissue of the Second (1937) edition of Crowley’s Equinox of the Gods. Crowley first released the book in 1936, bound in white buckram, and with a specially-made pocket at the rear of the volume which held an envelope containing a facsimile of the original manuscript of The Book of the Law. In 1937 Crowley had the book reprinted, though the printers retained the 1936 publication date on the title page etc. A small number of the copies were printed on machine-made paper and were used for a ‘Subscriber’s Edition’ bound in cloth-backed boards. A larger number were printed on ‘Japanese paper’ and were again bound in white buckram. A significant number of the sheets of this latter issue remained unbound, and after Crowley’s death were sent to Karl Germer, who in 1955 passed approx. 500 sets of sheets to Samuel Weiser, bookseller and publisher in New York. Weiser had the generous margins cropped, and the sheets bound in maroon cloth, creating this hybrid issue. This issue did not have a pocket for the loose sheets of Liber AL, although a small number of copies were sold with them included as a separate item – the loose sheets were housed in a printed wrapper, which was itelf placed in a larger printed buff folder that was sold with the book. This copy, like most, does not have the facsimile sheets and folder. Overall a tight, clean, near-Fine copy. Unusual in such good condition – the cloth is usually discolored (no dustjacket – none issued). (32643) $295.00