London: Leonard Smithers and Co., 1899. First Edition, Trade Issue; one of 1,000 copies printed. Original rose-mauve/pink cloth with gilt floral motifs after Charles Shannon.
First edition of Wilde’s An Ideal Husband, the trade issue, one of 1,000 copies. The play had premiered at the Haymarket on 3 January 1895 and ran until 6 April. Wilde’s arrest the day before the production closed effectively ended his public career, and the play did not appear in book form until 1899, two years after his release from prison. George Bernard Shaw famously called Wilde “our only thorough playwright,” praising his ability to “play with everything: with wit, with philosophy, with drama, with actors and audience.” Wilde himself told Smithers that “I really think it reads the best of my plays.”
The edition also included 100 signed large-paper copies and 12 copies on Japanese vellum for presentation. Mason 385.
This copy retains more of its original colour than is usually seen: the rose-mauve cloth still shows its tone across the boards, with the predictable gentle sunning to the spine. The gilt floral motifs remain bright and well-defined. Boards show only light rubbing at extremities. Spine straight, binding firm, and hinges secure. No bookplate or markings.
Internally, the book has the characteristic offsetting to the endpapers, but the text block itself is notably clean and evenly toned. No intrusive foxing. All preliminary matter present: half-title, title page, dedication to Frank Harris, copyright statement dated July 1899, dramatis personae, limitation notice, and the full text of the play. The paper retains its softness and flexibility, with gatherings sound and undisturbed.
A quiet, honest survivor in the original Shannon-designed cloth, without restoration or intervention. Increasingly scarce in this state, as most copies show heavier fading, spotting, or repair.
