An exceptionally rare book, which adds significantly to the biography of a shadowy female Parisian pornographer.
A memorial volume (the title translates roughly as First Sheaf) to a man who died young, consisting of his verse with prefatory material. The frontispiece shows a knowing fresh-faced young man hiding behind a beard. The introductory prose and poem demonstrate a seemingly sincere, if poetic, sense of loss at the author’s early death, with references to his weakness and insomnia.
The name Duringe is associated with a “mysterious” (Mendes) figure of that name who operated on the fringes of the Parisian book world, collaborated with Leonard Smithers on at least four books and published pornography under his own name [Yvonne, or, The adventures and intrigues of a French governess with her pupils by Mary Suckit is a characteristic title] and in the “Erotika Biblion” series. Mendes didn’t know his first name, but states that he continued to publish beyond 1905, which strongly suggests that poet and pornographer are not the same person.
The publisher Hirsch was a London and Paris pornographer and more general bookseller, who played a central rôle in the creation of the notorious Teleny. The joining of his name with that of Duringe can’t be coincidence, and although we’ve managed to find no biographical information on the family, the likeliest answer is that Henry was the tragic son (or nephew) of Duringe the pornographer.
Not in the Biblioteque Nationale, British Library Catalogue, or COPAC. WorldCat lists only one copy‚ in the National Library of Poland.
Pale violet colour evenly faded to pale grey. Slight soiling to front cover. Foxing of prelims, especially heavy in the borders of the frontispiece.
