COVE

Overview

This edition is titled Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám. Its author is Omar Khayyám, and it was translated into English by Edward FitzGerald. It was published in 1947 by Random House, Inc., and was simultaneously published in Canada by Random House Canada, LTD. It is 149 pages long and contains four different editions of the Rubáiyát – the first, third, fourth, and fifth. The “primary” edition is the first, and a separately titled section of the book contains the third, fourth, and fifth editions. Before the first edition, there is an additional introduction by Louis Untermeyer, an American poet and essayist, and United States Poet Laureate of 1961. The illustrator is Mahmoud Sayah. Sayah is an Iranian artist who graduated top of his class from the Engineering and Art University of Tehran and worked as a political cartoonist before moving to the United States at the age of thirty. In the U.S., Sayah worked as a correspondent for various Iranian newspapers, and as an art correspondent for the Journal Ettala’at – the oldest-running newspaper in Iran, and the leading newspaper in Tehran at the time. The illustrations in this edition of the Rubáiyát are in full and bright color.

Features

This edition of the Rubáiyát has many interesting features. As this book is one of over one hundred donated to Oregon State University by one Kenneth Teter, it contains a book plate on the inner cover denoting that it was gifted in memory of Dr. Sigurd H. Peterson, who was a professor in the English Department at Oregon State. The primary feature that makes this book special in regards to the collection donated to Oregon State University is the inscription on page i, which reads, “for Ken Teter [line break] plus (in a small way) Louis Untermeyer.” A smaller inscription written in a different handwriting at the bottom of the page reads, “Vancouver, Washington [line break] Wednesday, January 18, 1956.” The fact that this copy of the Rubáiyát was gifted to Teter is special because the reason why Teter chose to donate copies of the Rubáiyát is currently unknown. (see second image)

Other special features include the introduction by Louis Untermeyer, the three additional editions of the Rubáiyát, and the appendix including FitzGerald’s prefaces and notes. (see third image) The additional editions are special because, aside from it being unusual for a book to contain more than one edition, all four editions are given the same amount of space – two stanzas per page – and all editions are accompanied by different unique illustrations. One might expect that, after the first edition, the book would compress the three variations and not allow them the fanfare of illustrations, but it treats each edition with the same respect. (see fourth image)

Lastly, the construction of this tome, while not exorbitant, is interesting. The book is hardcover, canvas-like, with a red and black grapevine filigree pattern. While the spine reads “Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám,” the cover has no title written on its front. The book is accompanied by a red dense cardboard slipcase, also with no title or other official markings. The pages inside are thick and sturdy, and the illustrations are printed on the same type of paper as the text. There are no annotations inside the book, and the cover is in good condition – minimal scuffing of the corners. The slipcase, while also scuffed and blackened or darkened in some areas, is also in otherwise good condition. The pages open flat easily for about the first half, at least through the end of the first edition of the poem, but become more difficult to keep open in the latter half of the book. (see first image)