Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám: Astronomer-Poet of Persia

This 1907 edition of Omar Khayyám’s Rubáiyát, translated by Edward FitzGerald, was published as a collaborative effort between Ernest Nister of London and E.P. Dutton & Co. of New York. While the specific edition of FitzGerald’s translation isn’t explicitly identified, the text most strongly resembles his initial rendition — the one that first introduced these Persian quatrains to a wider English-speaking audience. The book contains 147 numbered pages, preceded by several unnumbered pages including the title page, the list of plates, and a frontispiece by illustrator T. Heath…

Although its popularity has declined in recent years, owning a copy of Omar Khayyám’s Rubáiyát was once a staple in households across Europe and the United States. Deemed one of the most popular ‘gift books’ of all time, Barbara J. Black discusses the Rubáiyát in her book On Exhibit: Victorians and Their Museums, and explores some of the underlying forces behind the poem’s quick ascent to cult status. During what Black refers to as the ‘Fitz-Omar craze,’ special editions of Edward FitzGerald’s translation(s) of Khayyám’s poem became increasingly sought after and…

XLI 

For “Is” and “Is-Not” though with Rule and Line,

And “Up-and-Down” without, I could define,

I yet in all I cared only to know,

Was never deep in anything but–Wine.

In Edward FitzGerald’s translation of Omar Khayyám’s Rubáiyát, the image of wine is used very frequently to represent a “carpe diem” philosophy. Many of the verses discuss wine as a simple pleasure of the human experience, a symbol for life’s fleeting nature and a reminder to take advantage of the joys available to us. The stanza above (XLI) is a fitting…

Before reaching the Special Collections & Archive Research Center (SCARC) here at Oregon State University, this particular copy of the “Heath Robinson edition” of Omar Khayyám’s Rubáiyát was influenced by editing, bookbinding, and publishing practices from across the Western world. Modeled after Edward FitzGerald’s original translation, printed in Bavaria, and published by Ernest Nister and E.P. Dutton & Co. in 1907, the distinguishing feature of this edition is the illustrator after whom it was named: Thomas Heath Robinson.

Hailing from a family of renowned English…

November 15, 1907

My dearest Lizzie,

I was overjoyed to hear of your recent safe arrival in America. Residing here in Boston these past few years since my own voyage has been a delight, and I hope to pay you a visit in New York as soon as my husband’s schedule allows.

You once mentioned in our previous correspondence a poet by the name of Omar Khayyám, and your passion in speaking of him inspired me to seek out his work and engage with his words as you have. A bookshop near my home owned by one Mr. Nister – whom I believe has recently relocated near your new estate –…