COVE

Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám: The Astronomer-Poet of Persia was published by Houghton Mifflin & Company, and illustrated by Elihu Vedder. In 1832, Houghton Mifflin & Co. was established, and William Ticknor and his partner opened their business to book publishers and sellers. It was a place where writers and readers could converse; people interested in the book world came together to create, refine, and enjoy stories. After years of establishing themself as an in-demand publishing company, they officially appointed Sarah Wyman Whitman as the principal book designer in 1887. As this edition of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám was published in 1894, it is highly likely that Whitman was a part of designing the cover. This process may also have been in consideration and conversation with the emergence of gift books, the designers thinking about the aestheticism of the cover as much as the practicality. In Bernadette Birzer’s Exploring 19th Century Gift Books in a Special Collection: A Collection Analysis, she states that gift books “were described as being very decorative and alluring with gilt edges, beautiful bindings, and lovely engravings to delight and impress the recipient” (2). This idea could very much be applied to this edition of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, as it is etched in a gold-blocked binding with decorative gold swirls on the front. Houghton Mifflin & Co. also worked with Riverside Press, based in Cambridge, MA. The press was founded in 1852, with the company emerging as a result of Houghton’s decision to partner up with the printing company of Freeman & Bolles. This decision led to Houghton’s primary client (Little, Brown, and Company) purchasing, renovating, and leasing to Houghton the estate used as a printing press, Cambridge Alms House. The press and publishing company ended up working in tandem to provide a variety of books and editions to the public, one of these being Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám: The Astronomer-Poet of Persia. 

Along with the aesthetic addition of the cover, the illustrator, Elihu Vedder, contributed to the edition by providing 47 drawings. He lived from 1836-1923, developing his career as an American symbolist painter, book illustrator, and poet. Though he was born in New York City, he lived the latter part of his life in Rome, Italy. It was there that he developed much inspiration from the Italian Renaissance and Classical works. In some of his other, individualist works, such as Medusa, 1867, and The Pleiades, we can see the similarities in the style and what we see on the pages in the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyám: The Astronomer-Poet of Persia. If we examine even the page with the press and publisher dedication, we can see the similarities in the fine, black and white line work. We can see the similarities in how the bodies are shaped and how others in the edition are draped in flowy, silk-like gowns. We can gather that the influence he acquired while in Italy, most likely was influential in the style he took for this edition. Especially considering that he first studied in Italy in the years 1858-1860, years before the edition would begin production. 

Within this specific copy of the edition, there are unfortunately no indicators on where it was purchased, how much it was, or how it came to be in the possession from person to person. Though the information is limited, the loose-leaf page at the beginning of the book is etched with the name Florence Fernald and the date 1897. There is no clear indication as to who Florence was, whether she was the first owner, whether that means she was the one to purchase it, or was gifted it. Either way, with the detailed illustrations by Elihu Vedder and the processing of it being made by Houghton Mifflin & Co. and Riverside Press, we can perhaps assume that this edition was one that would hold value to whoever may have owned it. 

Works Cited

Our Legacy | HMH. https://www.hmhco.com/about-us/our-legacy. Accessed 22 May 2025.

Elihu Vedder. https://elihuvedder.org/biography.html. Accessed 23 May 2025.

Industry in Cambridge. https://historycambridge.org/industry/riversidepress.html. Accessed 23 May 2025.

Birzer, Bernadette (2013) "Exploring 19th Century Gift Books in a Special Collection: A Collection Analysis," SLIS Connecting: Vol. 2: Iss. 2, Article 8.