Author: Raztsvetnikov, Asen
Title: Zhertvenni Kladi (Sacrificial Pyres) [Signed/Inscribed by Author]
Description: Sofiia (Sofia), Pechatnitsa "Obzor, 1924. First Edition. First edition; 9 1/4 x 7; pp. [1], 2, [1], 4-24; beige paper over boards and 1/4 cloth; illustrated in black; several chips and spots to paper along spine; fraying with small loss of cloth to tips of spine; small puncture to lower margin of first few leaves; small, unobtrusive remnant of a label to upper corner of front board; good to very good condition. Cover art by Aleksandur Zhendov. Signed, inscribed, and dated by the author on the title page. A fabulous copy and an example of the limited, literary heritage left behind by one of the prominent "September Four" members - Asen Raztsvetnikov [pseudonim for Asen Petkov Kolarov] (1897 - 1951) - this was his first book of poems. Author, poet, translator, and librarian, Raztsvetnikov joined three other leftist writers - Angel Karaliichev, Nikola Furnadzhiev, and Georgi Tsanev - to form the "September" literary group in the 1920s, whose ideas and views formed the basis of this poetry collection. The four would be persecuted and convicted by the Communist Party for spreading social bourgeois mentality. The book was banned, still in printing, and many copies were destroyed, thus the back board featured two printed notes, one by the author and the second one, by the publisher: "There are crumpled, torn, and soiled leaves in almost all the copies: these are traces of the freedom of the press. I beg the readers' apology" and "Due to the great damage, caused by forces we could not control, the price of the books is raised to 12 levs." The creator of the stunning, Avant-garde cover art, Aleksandur Zhendov (1901 - 1953), working under the pseudonyms Spiridonov, Chicho Slon, Tsurven Nane, and others, was a painter, graphic designer, typesetting artist, author, and one of the fathers of the Bulgarian caricature. His membership in the Communist Party would be revoked, for his art would be deemed "incompatible with the official State Policy in the arts." OCLC lists one copy at the Univeristy of Chicago; none in the trade (as of February 2020). Good .

Keywords: Bulgarian Impressionism, Avant-Garde, Poetry, September Four


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