480.00€
An exceptionally rare and historically important signed Greek edition of Charles Baudelaire’s Les Fleurs du Mal, translated, illustrated and artistically designed by the distinguished Greek painter, engraver, caricaturist and writer Antonis Protopatsis (1897–1947).
Printed in January 1944 in Mytilene (Lesvos), Greece, during the German occupation of Greece in the Second World War, this remarkable edition was issued in an extraordinarily small limitation of only 150 copies, intended exclusively for the translator’s close friends and fellow intellectuals.
Today it ranks among the scarcest twentieth-century Greek literary editions.
Bibliographical Details
Author: Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867)
Greek Title:
Πενήντα από τα περίφημα Άνθη του Κακού του Charles Baudelaire
(Fifty of the Famous Flowers of Evil)
Translator, Illustrator & Designer: Antonis Protopatsis (“Pazzi”)
Publisher: Tachydromos Printing House
Place of Publication: Mytilene (Lesvos), Greece
Date: January 1944
Edition:
First Greek edition of this selection, signed and dedicated by Protopatsis
Limitation:
One of only 150 copies printed
Binding:
Original publisher’s illustrated softcover
Historical Significance
This edition was produced under extraordinary circumstances during the final phase of the Axis Occupation of Greece.
Fearing that years of intellectual and artistic work might be lost amidst the destruction of war, Antonis Protopatsis selected fifty poems from Baudelaire’s masterpiece and privately printed this edition in an extremely limited number for personal distribution among trusted friends and literary figures.
Unlike commercial editions, this publication was conceived as both a literary testament and an artistic object. The volume remained virtually unknown to the wider reading public for decades, with Protopatsis’ translation only becoming more broadly accessible through later reprints.
Every aspect of this edition reflects Protopatsis’ artistic vision.
The book features:
Original cover design by Antonis Protopatsis
Original woodcut illustrations
Decorative typographic ornaments
Carefully composed page layouts
Fine provincial wartime printing from Mytilene
Rather than simply translating Baudelaire, Protopatsis created an integrated artist’s book that combines poetry, illustration, typography and graphic design.
Antonis Protopatsis (1897–1947)
Born in Mytilene, Protopatsis studied briefly at the Athens School of Fine Arts before returning to Lesvos and beginning a successful artistic career.
From 1922 he lived in Paris, contributing cartoons and illustrations to major French publications including Le Figaro, Le Journal, and Les Nouvelles Littéraires. He became widely known under his artistic pseudonym “Pazzi”.
Returning to Greece in 1939, he continued his work as painter, engraver, illustrator, writer and political cartoonist until his death in 1947.
Today he is recognised as one of the most distinctive artistic figures associated with twentieth-century Lesvos.
Condition
Good overall condition.
Original illustrated softcover. Complete.
Wear consistent with age and wartime publication. Interior clean and well preserved.
A well-preserved example considering the fragile nature of provincial wartime Greek printing.
Please examine all photographs carefully, as they form an integral part of the description.
Collector’s Note
Signed editions of this extraordinary publication seldom appear on the international market.
Its combination of:
only 150 copies printed
Signed Copy
World War II occupation imprint
Greek provincial press
original artwork by the translator
Baudelaire bibliography
makes it one of the most desirable twentieth-century Greek literary publications for collectors of private press books, wartime printing, European Symbolism, artists’ books, and modern Greek literature.
