The Knight in the Panther's Skin

First edition, 1977, second printing after the 1938 first. Progress Publishers, Moscow. Large octavo, original yellow cloth, with copper casings fastened over both boards, designed by Koba Gouruli.

The Knight in the Panther's Skin is an unequivocal work by medieval Georgian poet Shota Rustaveli, this translation by Marjory Waldrop was the first prose translation in the English language. This copy bound in a unique copper relief casing featuring a traditional Georgian portrait to the front with a bold pattern and Georgian script to the rear board.

A prolific translator, Waldrop travelled to Georgia in the late 1800s when it was still part of Imperial Russia, and published three English translations of Georgian titles in the following five years. The Knight in the Panther's Skin was the fourth and final translation, but was only published in 1912 three years after her death. Waldrop refused publication in her lifetime, feeling it wasn't up to snuff. It remains the translation against which all others are judged.

Wardrop's interest in Georgian culture was piqued when her brother, Sir Oliver Waldrop a British Diplomat, traveled before studying at Oxford, and later as the United Kingdom's first Chief Commissioner of Transcaucasia. Despite typical barriers to education, Waldrop taught herself Georgian and travelled there, and became renown for bringing Georgian culture to an international audience. She also became an icon to Georgian women as they fought for their political rights.

Original spine exposed with the purple title label stamped in gilt. Slight staining to edges. Decorative endpapers boldly printed in green, black and white. 20 black and white illustrations throughout. A unique copy in very good condition.