Beschreibung:

T.E. Lawrence
A collection of Golden Cockerel Press publications, comprising:
i. T.E. Lawrence. Crusader Castles. I. The Thesis. II. The Letters. [With Forwards by A.W. Lawrence and Mrs. Lawrence]. Golden Cockerel Press, 1936
FIRST EDITION, one of 1,000 copies, 2 volumes, crown 4to, title-pages printed in red, photographs, maps, and drawings by the author, complete with the two loose folding maps in a pocket, original orange half morocco, spines lettered in gilt, cream cloth sides, top edges gile, others uncut, cloth sides slightly darkened, but a very good set
ii. T.E. Lawrence. Secret Dispatches. Golden Cockerel Press, [1939]
FIRST EDITION, one of 1,000 numbered copies, royal 8vo, frontispiece, original black quarter morocco, spine lettered in gilt, white cloth sides, top edge gilt, others uncut, an unusually clean copy
These dispatches were printed from the Arab Bulletin, a secret document confined to 26 copies an issue, circulated by G.H.Q. at Ismalia during the First World War. "The majority of Lawrence's contributions to the Arab Bulletin are published in this volume. In addition to these items, 'Syrian Cross Currents' previously unpublished, is included.... this is the most extensive of the Golden Cockerel volumes by Lawrence" [O'Brien A226].
iii. T.E. Lawrence. Men in Print: Essays in Literary Criticism. Introduced by A.W. Lawrence. Golden Cockerell Press, [1940]
FIRST EDITION, COPY NUMBER 301 OF 500 NUMBERED COPIES, royal 8vo, original quarter blue niger morocco, white linen sides, top edge gilt, others uncut, a very nice copy
This selection of essays includes two reviews published in the Spectator under the pseudonym "C.D." (Colin Dale). [O'Brien A229; Pertelote 148]
iv. T.E. Lawrence. Shaw-Ede: T.E. Lawrence's Letters to H.S. Ede 1927-1935. Golden Cockerell Press, [1942]
FIRST EDITION, ONE OF 30 SPECIALLY BOUND COPIES from a total edition of 500 copies, with collotype facsimiles of 5 of the letters, crown 4to, original dark blue morocco, spine lettered in gilt, top edges gilt, others uncut, some scuffing to lower edges with a small abrasion on lower cover, otherwise a very good copy
Forty-three letters are contained in the volume, only six of which appear in The Letters of T.E. Lawrence. H.S. Ede contributes a Foreword and a running commentary. "From these letters it is apparent that Lawrence's friendship with Ede was spontaneous and cordial. Mutual interest in the topics of art, literature, morals, and life in general, prompted an intimate, revealing, and introspective honesty in their correspondence. More than in any of his others, Lawrence's culture, taste, and wisdom are revealed in sharp contrast to his surprising idiosyncrasies". [O'Brien A234; Pertelote 151]
PROVENANCE:
i. Crusader Castles: pencil ownership inscription of W.H. Shepardson in each volume (i.e. Whitney Hart Shepardson, 1890-1966, American businessman, foreign policy expert, and head of the Secret Intelligence Branch of the Office of Strategic Services during World War 2).
iii. Men in Print: from the library of Colonel Stuart Francis Newcombe, with Golden Cockerell Press era postcard loosely inserted with the typed note "Sent at the request of A.W. Lawrence" (who wrote the Introduction); by descent; Bonhams, 19 March 2014 ("Papers and Books of Colonel S.F. Newcombe, RE, DSO, sold on behalf of his descendants"), part lot 153