posted on 01 Oct 2016

Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam translated by Edward FitzGerald and illustrated by Willy Pogany

I know there are plenty of scholars who blanch at the mention of Edward FitzGerald’s ‘translation’ of the great Omar Khayyam but however much of a travesty of the original it is, I just love it. I have written elsewhere on this site about how much this poem moves me and so finding very beautifully illustrated editions is something I find irresistible.

This one was published by George Harrap in 1930 and has been sumptuously illustrated by Willy Pogany, a Hungarian artist who is probably best known for his work on a whole range of children’s books. Born in 1882 Pogany lived in many of Europe’s great cities – including London – before he ended up in the USA and his style reflects some of the great European fairy story illustrators of his time.

Pogany’s London years are generally thought to be his most productive and the period in which he produced his greatest work. Although he was certain one of the great children’s book illustrators he was, however, interested in much bigger projects and so he was drawn to the USA by the prospect of working as an artistic director on Hollywood movies. He was naturalised as an American citizen in 1921 and died in New York in 1955

In this book he has produced 16 beautifully coloured plates that have been tipped in at regular intervals throughout the text. However, to ensure that the book glows from almost every page, Pogany has also produced fabulous gold and black blocks of stylised decoration of every other page. The overall impression is of a precious gem that sparkles off the page.

I really was fortunate to stumble across this book in an antique centre where it was lying neglected under a pile of very dull volumes. I picked it up and was completely dazzled by the design and production and so assumed it would cost me a fortune. What I actually paid was an astonishingly pitiful £3.50 and checking on line that seems to be only a tenth of what I would have to pay from a second hand dealer. Sometimes you just get lucky.

 

Terry Potter

October 2016