WILDE, Oscar.

£45,000 · Offered by Peter Harrington · No longer available

The Importance of Being Earnest. First edition, signed limited issue, number 17 of 100 copies signed by the author and printed on large, handmade paper. Wilde's last and greatest play opened to huge acclaim on Valentine's Day 1895 but was withdrawn after Wilde's failed libel suit against Lord Queensbury led to his arrest. The play was not published in book form until February 1899, after Wilde's release from prison.The total edition comprised 1,000 unsigned copies, 100 signed large paper copies, and 12 signed copies on japon for presentation.

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