Collection: Poésie

Poetry holds a special place in bibliophilia. First, for reasons of print runs. How many poems were published in journals before being gathered into collections that would become the original edition, soon supplanted by a second edition, itself enriched and partially original? How many fragile booklets, self-published, of which only a handful of copies are still "alive"? How many works that went unrecognized at the time of their publication are rediscovered many years later and collected with great frenzy?
In poetry, the editorial and material history of a book is not a technical detail: it documents the moment a text found its first readers and a voice its audience.
Our collection covers two centuries of poetic creation and includes among its shelves pieces that have marked French poetry, such as the original editions of Les Fêtes galantes, which Rimbaud found strange and adorable, and La Bonne chansonby the former Parnassian Paul Verlaine, transformed into a pioneer of symbolism (Alphonse Lemerre, 1869 and 1870, two works bound together in one volume). One of the 350 copies on Hollande paper for the first title, self-published, one of the 590 on vellum for the second. A very fine copy from the library of Albert Pascal, but especially from the former President of the Republic Georges Pompidou, famous for also having authored an Anthology of French Poetry.Les Calligrammesby Apollinaire (Mercure de France, 1918): original edition where the typographical layout creates an image, the poem becoming its own drawing; red Jansenist morocco binding signed by Pierre-Lucien Martin, portrait of the author as a frontispiece after Picasso, woodcut by R. Jaudon. Le Devoir et l'Inquiétudeby Paul Éluard (A.-J. Gonon, 1917): the author's first book, one of 200 copies on Arches laid paper, full maroon morocco binding signed by J.-P. Miguet, woodcut frontispiece by André Deslignères; the copy bears an autographed inscription signed to Sébastien Voirol, critic and secretary of the avant-garde review SIC, dated January 20, 1919.

For poetry, two particularities guide our selection. First, rarity: for already limited print runs, the copy on Hollande, Arches, or Japan paper is what distinguishes the common piece from the rare one. Second, the inscription: an inscription from a poet to a critic or a colleague, when the recipient is identified and the context established, transforms the book into a document. We systematically identify the recipient and circumstances before any description.
Members of SLAM since our founding in 2011, we apply the union's standards to each appraisal. To learn more: [what is an original edition]· [what makes a book rare] · [how to appraise an old book] · [what is an old book] · [19th century literature] · [20th century literature] · [signed and dedicated books] · [illustrated books]

• What distinguishes this collection from the 19th and 20th Century Literature pages?
  It does not classify by century or movement, but by how the poetic form is housed in the book: verse, poetic prose, calligram, first collection, poet-to-poet inscription, illustrated book. The same author may appear here for their poetry and on a century page for their prose.
• Why is fine paper particularly important in poetry?
  Because poetry print runs are often already limited. For a collection printed in a few hundred copies, the proportion of fine paper (Hollande, Arches, or Japan) is reduced to a few dozen pieces. This is where rarity plays out, much more than with the regular print run.
• Does a first collection have special value?
  That depends on the author. For Éluard, yes: Le Devoir et l'Inquiétude is rarer than his mature works, and a numbered copy with an inscription to an identified recipient adds to its interest. For others, the major works of their maturity remain the most sought after.
• How do I get a poetry collection appraised?
  Send a photograph of the title page, the print justification if it exists, the inscription or dedication if applicable, and the cover. As members of SLAM, we provide free appraisals. For important libraries, we travel by appointment throughout France.