Raspe/Burger/Rabelais

The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. From the Best English and German Editions

      Scribner and Welford, New York Circa 1878; no date is given. Browntone wonderful boards w/head of Baron Munchausen on the front, w/other little insets, and drawings of ducks in a circle around the Baron. Printed on back board is: "Baron Munchausen with Coloured Illustrations by Bichard," all in caps. 18 coloured illustrations (all present), including color frontispiece of cook in manor kitchen in disarray, w/the Baron hanging by his dressing jacket, having slid in from somewhere. Fantastical tales of the exploits and adventures of the Baron. 104+ pp. include preface by this publisher of olde relaying the history of the writing of these tales which first appeared in England in 1786 under another title, the origin of which were attributed to the learned German Rudolf E. Raspe who had to flee Germany; and before that, to the fictitious "Travels of the Sinkenritter," published 200 years before Raspe's time. Legend has it that the tales were translated by the poet Burger, "who improved upon them," but Burger contradicted this in his version published in 1787. Prior to this time, many of the tales' origins were attributed to Rabelais and traced to Greek origins. This edition is a compilation from the whole of the first part, or original Munchausen, Burger's German edition, and portions of the English sequel, arranged in a connecting and suitable chronological order. This edition contains the "new illustrations" of Bichard, appealing to young people of the then-current generation. (Description borrowed from the preface.) Some of the illustrations are loose; fep contains inscription to "Mattie Owen Hunt From her Papa, Dec. 25th, 1878." Christmas card inlaid tells us that the Hunts lived in Memphis, Tennessee. Illustrations are in wonderful condition. Boards are edgeworn, w/loose hinges; some pages are loose, majority are intact, all are present. RARE, SCARCE copy of this particular edition.