Sunday, December 28, 2008

The Hounds of Fate Original Artwork

Published in 1964 by Diogenes, Die Offene Tur is a book of stories by the English writer H. H. Munro (pen name Saki) with illustrations by Edward Gorey. This small, hardcover book with a dustjacket is a German language edition of these stories.

This collection, with the Gorey illustrations, was reprinted in English in 1981 as a leather bound book by the Franklin Library titled Saki Short Stories. The Franklin printing does not have all the stories (or illustrations) from the Diogenes printing, but does have one new illustration that was created by Mr. Gorey which did not appear in the German language version.

I have one piece of original artwork from this title which appears in the Diogenes printing, but unfortunately not in the English language edition. The intriguing title of the story it illustrates is The Hounds of Fate. Because I don't read German, I do not know the story that goes along with the illustration. This small piece of original art has a lot of atmosphere and evokes a mood of gloom. It is signed at the lower right.

2 comments:

ampootozote said...

After posting this blog entry, a very kind follower of Goreyana emailed me and sent me the following website where Saki's stories are published, including The Hounds of Fate. I can now read the story in full.

The link is: http:/haytom.us/showarticle.php?id=39

Thanks for this great information!

PB said...

The title in German translates to "The Open Door."