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Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam is a collection of poems authored by Persian astronomer and mathematician Omar Khayyam. The poems in this title are written into quatrains, Rubaiyat being arabic for root of four, as in four line verses of which quatrains are made up of. This popular edition of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam is the edition by Edward Fitzgerald, who translated this work in the late 19th century.
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Bookwomble
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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Pickpick

"Irâm indeed is gone with all its Rose,
And Jamshyd's Sev'n-ring'd Cup where no one knows:
But still the Vine her ancient Ruby yields,
And still a Garden by the Water blows."
- Verse V
The introduction and notes in this edition [9780713604184] are illuminating, and got me doing something I realise I haven't done before: searching the internet for Rubaiyát references. The most interesting thing I learned was that Khayyám's mention of "Irâm" ??

Bookwomble ... being "gone with all its Rose" is a reference to a lost city, called by T.E. Lawrence the Atlantis of the Sands, and which the Koran mentions as, perhaps, being destroyed for its sins. There have been expeditions to locate Irâm, "The City of the Pillars", and, like Atlantis in the West, many disputed claims for its discovery.
Depleting my store of cultural ignorance is a never-ending, but worthwhile, task.
3y
SRWCF Gorgeous illustration! 3y
Bookwomble @SRWCF Yes 😊 I should have mentioned that it's from the book, accompanies the verse I quoted, and was painted by Gilbert James 🌹 3y
SRWCF @Bookwomble Lovely! 3y
29 likes4 comments
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Bookwomble
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A new year, so another "new" volume of Fitzgerald's Khayyám to read. This one has nice painted illustrations, though as is often the case with Rubaiyát editions, the page decorations are also attractive.
The introduction for this edition, by Reynold Alleyne Nicholson, looks rather more robust than the usual page or two of basic biographical information.

GondorGirl This edition is so pretty! I have several versions given to me over the years (this is my grandfather's favorite book), and they all are beautiful! I wish more books had this kind of ascetic appeal. 3y
21 likes1 comment
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Bookwomble
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Well, two more editions of The Rubáiyát to add to my collection! The one on the right has lovely, if rather stylistically traditional and languid, illustrations by Gilbert James- first published 1909, mine being a 1973 reprint.
The book on the left has illustrations of a more energetic style by Otway McCannell, first published 1953, from what I can make out. The dust jacket is missing a chunk, but I'm still happy with my purchase

LeahBergen I love the dust jacket on the left! 3y
Bookwomble @LeahBergen It really caught my eye as I was browsing. I've not come across this Illustrator before, and I do like his style. 3y
Cathythoughts ❤️❤️❤️ 3y
Leftcoastzen Amazing finds ! 3y
DivineDiana Congratulations on finding these beautiful editions! ❤️ 3y
26 likes5 comments
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QBub
Bailedbailed

I tried. Poetry is not in my wheelhouse. I did read long enough to find this gem: You know, my Friends, with what a brave Carouse / I made a Second Marriage in my House; / Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed, / and took the Daughter of the Vine to Spouse — Rubaiyat #60

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StaceGhost
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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My positive(ish?) thought 💭 @BookNAround @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @dgingo @bookish_wookish illustration by Obvious State 🖤

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks ❤️❤️❤️ 4y
dgingo Such a good reminder! Have you ever read this book? I haven‘t, but my interest was piqued when it scandalized the women in Music Man (one of my favorite musicals). 4y
StaceGhost @dgingo hahaha! I totally forgot about that! Yes, it‘s wonderful! I‘m reading it now :) I can see why they were scandalized lol 4y
dgingo @StaceGhost Please let me know if you recommend it after you finish! I may have to add this to be TBR! 4y
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Bookwomble
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"Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse- and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness-
And Wilderness is Paradise enow."

- Quatrain XI

Cuilin ❤️ lovely 4y
MariaW I‘ve read to different translations of the Rubaiyat - Whinfield and Fitzgerald. I prefer the latter. 😍 4y
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Bookwomble
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In light of recent and ongoing events, I thought a poem about the uncertainty of life and the inevitability of death might cheer me up... 😒

(It's only my sunny disposition that keeps me going.)

Leftcoastzen That‘s pretty! 4y
Bookwomble @Leftcoastzen The illustrations and decorations of this edition are by Willy Pogány. They are lovely 😊 4y
24 likes2 comments
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MariaW
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Since I am not able to calm myself enough to read a whole novel (even though I am still buying everything which looks interesting), I started to read the translated poems of Omar Khayyam again. This time the translations of Edward Henry Winfield. #omarkhayyam #orientallit

Bookwomble I've not read this translator - his verses are interesting. I've got a soft spot for Fitzgerald, though, even if he's very loose in his translation, and easily charged with Orientalism. 4y
MariaW @Bookwomble I bought a version with both translations, the one of Fitzgerald and Whinfield. I started with Fitzgerald and have to say I do prefer his translations over the ones of Whinfield as well. 4y
35 likes2 comments
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MariaW
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You know, my Friends, with what a brave Carouse
I made a Second Marriage in my house,
Divorced old barren Reason from my Bed,
And took the Daughter of the the Vine to Spouse.
#omarkhayyam #therubaiyat

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MariaW
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Alike for those who for To-day prepare,
And those that after some To-morrows stare,
A miezzin from the Tower of Darknesa cries
“Fools! Your Reward is neither Here nor There!”
#omarkhayyan #therubaiyat

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MariaW
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Ah, make the most of what we may yet spend,
Before we too into the Dust decend;
Dust into Dust, and under Dust, to lie;
Sans Wine, sans Song, sans Singer, and - sans End!
#omarkhayyam

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MariaW
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And David‘s Lips are lock‘t; but in divine
High piping Pehlevi, with „Wine! Wine! Wine!
Red wine!“ - the Nightingale cried to the Rose
That yellow Check of hers to incarnadine.
#omarkhayyam

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MariaW
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Same procedure as every Friday. But this time with literature deriving from the region I now live in. #omarkhayyam

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Bookwomble
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For some we loved, the loveliest and the best
That from his Vintage rolling Time hath prest,
Have drunk their Cup a Round or two before,
And one by one crept silently to rest.

#poetrymatters #silence @TheSpineView

TheSpineView 😍😍 5y
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Bookwomble
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Three of my editions have inscriptions from previous owners:

- To Joan, Christmas 1945, from Ivy

- To Alice, For her faith, Irene. Monday, June 19th 1967

- Lilian Bright, June 1912. First Prize in "May" Essay Competition. Busy Bee Society

I love second hand books - they have more than one story to tell ???

saresmoore Eep, this is so neat! Thank you for sharing! 6y
DivineDiana Yes! I feel the same! 6y
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GingerAntics That is so cool!!! 6y
Leftcoastzen Very cool! I really love the ones that say something like “I know you will treasure this forever.”apparently not. (edited) 6y
Bookwomble @Leftcoastzen Depends on the age of the book - death may have a hand in the parting! ☠ 6y
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Bookwomble
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Pickpick

This edition (9780004105512) contains the full texts of FitzGerald's 1st, 2nd and 5th editions, together with details of the textual variations of the 3rd and 4th editions. There are brief biographies of FitzGerald and Khayyám, a Comparative Table of Quatrains (which is really useful for looking at how FitzGerald rethought certain lines), FitzGerald's Notes to the 2nd Edition (in a more complete form than in other editions I've seen)... 👇🏻👇🏻

Bookwomble ... a brief but useful Glossary, and, finally an Index of First Lines. All of which makes it a most interesting and practical addition to my library.

The illustrations by Robert Stewart Sherriffs are done in a flat, 'children's book' 1970s style, being colourful and simply composed, though not at all childish or childlike. He represents scenes from the Quatrains not often depicted in the other illustrated editions I know. I like them!
6y
15 likes1 comment
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Bookwomble
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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I have more copies of The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám than any other book, mainly the Fitzgerald translation, partly because of the different versions he published (five, of which the 1st, 2nd and 5th contain significant differences), and partly for the different illustrators. I've also got a couple of editions of more literal translations, but I've a soft spot for Fitzgerald, who took liberties with Khayyám but created something with its own merit.

Quirkybookworm Interesting ! 6y
LeahBergen Cool! 6y
Bookwomble @Quirkybookworm @LeahBergen Only on Litsy would my collection of books be described as interesting and cool! 📚😎😂❤ 6y
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saresmoore This is amazing! I recently inherited a crumbling leather-bound copy from my grandmother. There‘s no publication date, but the original owner marked it as acquired in 1926. You‘ve inspired me to look at it more closely and it‘s a fascinating volume! 6y
Bookwomble @saresmoore That sounds fantastic, Sarah, and special that it has a family connection for you. The Rubáiyát was incredibly popular in late Victorian times and the early 20th Century, so lots of editions were published then. I think the themes of mortality and of living life now rather than in the past or for the future really spoke to the generation who'd suffered so much and lost so many loved ones in the Great War. 6y
saresmoore That‘s a great insight. Your breadth and depth of knowledge always impresses me! I‘m looking forward to a close read of this. 6y
Bookwomble @saresmoore Thank you, though I'm more of a parrot than a sage 🐦🦉🙂 Do you know which edition you have? It usually says somewhere on the title page or in the introduction, but I could check it against the number of verses if it doesn't. 😊 6y
saresmoore It is a fifth edition with comparisons to the other editions included. It also has a short biography of FitzGerald and Tennyson‘s epilogue from Tiresias, and Other Poems. Fascinating stuff! 6y
Bookwomble @saresmoore That sounds fantastic, Sara.Tennyson's cool too 📚💗 6y
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review
Bookwomble
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Pickpick

Here with a Loaf of Bread beneath the Bough,
A Flask of Wine, a Book of Verse - and Thou
Beside me singing in the Wilderness -
And Wilderness is Paradise enow.

(Verse XI, First edition)

DivineDiana Beautiful! 6y
Bookwomble @DivineDiana The illustration is from a lovely volume reissued by The Bodleian Library in 2014 (ISBN 9780004105512) from an edition originally published in 1913. The illustrator is René Bull, who I'd not previously heard of. This Bodleian edition uses the text of Fitzgerald's fifth edition, but the quote I've used is actually from the first edition. 6y
DivineDiana I like that there was a reissue to honor the gorgeous artwork. ❤️ 6y
Bookwomble @DivineDiana Whoops, wrong ISBN. The Bodleian one (just for the sake of accuracy 🙂) is 9781851244171. 6y
DivineDiana 👍🏻 6y
13 likes5 comments
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Bookwomble
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“Be happy for this moment.
This moment is your life.”

Leftcoastzen 👍 6y
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Wineandbooks
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6 likes1 stack add
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wasimAalam4478

I love this quote
"Be happy in this moment.
This moment is your life "
What is your opinion
Past we don't remember
Future we don't know
All we have is this moment your present

RaimeyGallant Welcome to Litsy! #LitsyWelcomeWagon Some of us put together Litsy tips to help new Littens navigate the site. It's the link in my bio on my page in case you need it. Or if you prefer how-to videos, @chelleo put some together at the link in her bio. 7y
Chelleo Welcome 🤗 7y
Jess7 Welcome Here is the link to @RaimeyGallant ‘s tips! They‘re really good for new Littens: https://raimeygallant.com/2017/10/31/litsytips/ 7y
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maidez_taider
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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Cathythoughts
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#QuotsyDec17 #Light @TK421 from The Rubaiyat.....” AWAKE ! For morning in the bowl of night Has flung the Stone That put the Stars to Flight : And Lo the Hunter of the East has caught The Sultans turret in A noose of Light “. ✨✨✨

JazzFeathers 😍😍😍😍 7y
batsy Stunning! 😍 7y
Cathythoughts @JazzFeathers @Batsy I love this too ✨, I had to check the quote. But I‘ve always remembered it from years ago ! ✨✨✨ 7y
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TrishB A lovely picture and quote ❤️ 7y
Cathythoughts @TrishB 🙏✨✨ 7y
Louise What a gorgeous cover! 😍 7y
Cathythoughts @Louise I think so too ❤️ 7y
GripLitGrl What a gorgeous cover!!💜😍 7y
Cathythoughts @GripLitGrl ❤️❤️❤️🙏 7y
merelybookish Beautiful! I was once in a home and the owner had a room dedicated to this book. He had hundreds of editions. It was pretty cool! 7y
Cathythoughts @merelybookish wow. He was a fan. I love this book too. We only have this one copy. I wouldn‘t mind getting a fancier copy. The writing ( print) in ours isn‘t great. Must start looking around. My husband reckons as translations go, this one isn‘t so bad. ✨✨✨✨ (edited) 7y
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Lcsmcat
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SandyW Beautiful illustrations! 7y
LeahBergen Gorgeous! 😍 7y
diovival Wow! 7y
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rwmg
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
Mehso-so

Poetry buried by uninspired commentary so a so-so for this edition

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rwmg
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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A cup of tea and a new book

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damyantig
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I've been #reading #poetry first thing in the morning for a long time now, and like one of those fragrance diffusers, this practice perfumes my days.

There might be deadlines, dental appointments, news of deaths and devastation, but this practice keeps a calm center to each day, and guides me back home within myself, when I go to bed.

Do you read or write #poetry ?
What place does it hold in your life?

mcipher I miss poetry! I do try to read one some days, but I used to read tons, and I also wrote it for years. Then I had my son and stopped - and 15 years later I haven't started up again! Your practice sounds like a lovely daily meditation. 😊 7y
damyantig I have poetry books lying around the house. I just pick one at random and read as I drink a glass of warm water first thing in the morning. I also get poems sent to my email, so I always have one on easy access 😊 7y
17 likes2 comments
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Cathythoughts
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#CoverLovers #AwesomeAutumnBooks @Jess7 Beautiful inside & out 🙏

TrishB Lovely 💟 7y
Cathythoughts Thanks @TrishB. It is too 💜 7y
batsy Wow 😍 7y
Cathythoughts @batsy 😍😍💜! 7y
Jess7 🤗 7y
27 likes5 comments
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whereistexasjen
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Found at my parents house. This edition was published by Random House in 1947. On the inside cover my great-grandma wrote her name and the date 1950.

whereistexasjen The entire book has the illustrations along the edge of the paper that reflects some theme in the writing. 7y
4 likes1 comment
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Donna_sBookMinute
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This lovely book caught my eye at the library's used book store. It was on the bottom shelf of a cart. I take my time in this store for this very reason. I knew this one had to be something special. It's so beautiful I would've bought it if it were written in a foreign language. It's a book of poetry. A serendipitous find because, at the time, I didn't realize it was #NationalPoetryMonth. The top panel background is from the endpapers.

DivineDiana Fantastic find! 8y
Donna_sBookMinute ⭐️ @DivineDiana -- I thought so too! Thanks. 8y
HotCocoaReads I've had this book for a while but haven't yet read it. You have a beautiful copy! 8y
Lesliereads Lovely! I have a friend who collects Rubaiyats because of the poetry and variety in editions. 7y
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Lcsmcat
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We went antiquing looking for furniture, but I bought these instead. 😀 #bookhaul

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MrBook
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As we start into a new year... ☺

TheLondonBookworm Lovely thought 🙂 8y
BookBabe 😊🙌🏻🌈☀️ 8y
MrBook @TheLondonBookworm 😎👌🏻! @BookBabe 😍😍😍! 8y
LitsyGoesPostal 😊👍🏻 8y
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raelaschoenherr
Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam | Edward Fitzgerald, Omar Khayyam
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I've never read this and it's kind of likely I never will, but this book was in my grandparents' library and I snagged it from them--almost entirely because of the reference to it in Music Man 😂 Needless to say, it was definitely originally #notinEnglish! #seasonsreadings2016

rubyslippersreads This lovely copy looks like it might have been checked out by Zaneta Shinn (and returned by her mother). Ye gods! 😄 8y
raelaschoenherr @rubyslippersreads While Mayor Shinn gets this premises off his oldest girl! 8y
35 likes3 comments