Az Ember Tragédiája. Drámai Költemény (The Tragedy of Man)
Budapest: Az Athenaeum R. Tarsulat Kiadasa, 1893. First illustrated edition. Hardcover. Folio. 231, [1]pp. Original richly decorated, illustrated and multicolored cloth, with gold lettering on front cover and spine. All edges gilt. First published in 1861, Imre Madách's major work "Az ember tragédiája" (The Tragedy of Man) is a dramatic poem which elaborates on ideas comparable to Goethe's Faust. This dramatic poem is Madách's major and most enduring piece of writing. Today it is the central piece of Hungarian theaters' repertoire and is mandatory reading for students in secondary school. The piece was at first only published in printed form, not staged, because the many changes of scene (15 scenes) were hard to come by through the technical standards of the day. The main characters are Adam, Eve and Lucifer. The three travel through time to visit different turning-points in human history and Lucifer tries to convince Adam that life is (will be) meaningless and mankind is doomed. Adam and Lucifer are introduced at the beginning of each scene, with Adam assuming various important historical roles and Lucifer usually acting as a servant or confidant. Eve enters only later in each scene. This splendid first illustrated edition contains 20 striking engravings by Mihály Zichy (1827-1906), a renown Hungarian painter and graphic artist. Each engraved plate is protected with a tissue guard. Text within elaborate decorative frames. Upper corners bumped, thus slightly affecting pages throughout. 2" indentation on lower front board. Head and tail of spine slightly frayed. Moderate age-toning along paper margin. Sporadic foxing mainly on illustrated plates. Text in Hungarian. Binding and interior in overall good+ condition. g+. Item #7017
Price: $2,250.00