The Arabian Nights. [LYONS (Malcolm and Ursula)].

The Arabian Nights. Tales of 1001 Nights.Translated by Malcolm C. Lyons, with Ursula Lyons. Introductions and Annotated by Robert Irwin.

First Edition. Three volumes. 8vo. [244 x 155 x 174 mm]. Bound by Bayntun-Riviere in light blue, dark blue and black morocco, the covers tooled to a horizontal design stretching across all six covers and smooth spines, with dotted gilt lines interspersed with ogee arches, and a solid white line, lettered on the spines, the turns-ins and matching inside joints tooled with a dotted fillet, framing burgundy suede doublures, Japanese chiyogami endleaves, gilt edges. In a burgundy morocco slipcase covered with chiyogami paper, lined with felt, with silk draw strings.
London: Penguin Classics, 2008

"This new English version of The Arabian Nights (also known as The Thousand and One Nights) is the first complete translation of the Arabic text known as the Macnaughten edition or Calcutta II since Richard Burton's famous translation of it in 1885-8. A great achievement in its time, Burton's translation nonetheless contained many errors, and even in the 1880s his English read strangely. In this new edition, in addition to Malcolm Lyon's translation of all the stories found in the Arabic text of Calcutta II, Ursula Lyon has translated the tales of Aladdin and Ali Baba, as well as an alternative ending to "The seventh journey of Sinbad", from Antoine Galland's eighteenth-century French. (For the Aladdin and Ali Baba stories no original Arabic text has survived and consequently these are classed as "orphan stories")" - Editorial note.

Malcolm Lyons was Sir Thomas Adams's Professor at the University of Cambridge. Ursula Lyons was a Lecturer at the Faculty of Oriental Studies at Cambridge. The reviews for this edition were overwhelmingly positive - "the most ambitious and thorough translation into English of The Arabian Nights since the age of Queen Victoria" (Guardian); "this new translation of the world's greatest collection of folk stories restores their colour and verve" (Sunday Times); "this new Penguin edition is the one to have" (Christopher Hart).

We bought these three volumes on the day of publication in 2008 and entrusted the forwarding and design (and slipcase) to Derek Hood, who worked at the Bayntun-Riviere bindery from 2003 until 2010, and tragically died in 2021. The finishing was executed by Tony Evans, under Derek's supervision. It has not been offered for sale until now.

Stock no. ebc9131