REF. 0959

Le Roi s'amuse

Victor Hugo
Publisher
Eugène Renduel
Place
Paris
Date
1832
Format
In-8 (215 x 140 mm)
Binding
Bound
Collation
(4) ff., XXIII-183 pp.
Artist
Tony Johannot
Language
French
Century
19th century

Condition report

Very good

€600
Reserve this piece

The piece is held for you for 7 days, with no immediate payment — choose the “Reservation” method at the payment step.

Reserve this piece

The piece is held for you for 7 days, with no immediate payment — choose the “Reservation” method at the payment step.

Reserve this piece

The piece is held for you for 7 days, with no immediate payment — choose the “Reservation” method at the payment step.

HUGO, Victor. Le Roi s'amuse.
Paris, Eugène Renduel, 1832.

Octavo (215 x 140 mm). (4) ff., XXIII-183 pp.
Half red roan, smooth spine with decorative gilt tooling, black morocco author and title label, author and title gilt (contemporary binding).

First edition.
Illustrated with an engraved frontispiece on china paper by Tony Johannot - engraved by Andrew, Leloir and Best.

The play was first performed on 22 November 1832 at the Comédie-Française - it was banned by the censors the very next day and would only truly become famous once Giuseppe Verdi decided to draw on it for his opera Rigoletto (1851), which together with Le Trouvère (1853) and La Traviata (1853) forms Verdi's popular trilogy. Ironically, the opera itself was initially subject to censorship as well.

Very minor rubbing to the corners and headcaps, a fine copy.