Ocean Waves in Lyric Strains, a Requiem; and Other Poems
Pittsburgh, PA: W. S. Haven, 1856. First Edition. Author presentation copy, presented by John Christian Schaad to the Mercantile Library Company of Philadelphia, with the library's contemporary presentation bookplate to the front pastedown, completed in manuscript “the Author.” Additional Mercantile Library circulating bookplate above, with manuscript shelf numbers. Octavo, viii, 88 pages. Bound in the original blind-stamped and gilt-decorated blue-green cloth. A scarce mid-nineteenth-century American volume of poetry by John Christian Schaad, a Swiss-born writer who published under the pseudonym “The Hermit of St. Eirene.” *Ocean Waves in Lyric Strains, a Requiem; and Other Poems* is notable for its combination of literary, religious, and philosophical themes. In his preface, Schaad relates that he was educated in Europe and did not acquire the English language until adulthood, lending particular interest to his decision to compose and publish a volume of English verse. He also sets forth an unconventional spiritual philosophy centered upon what he terms the “Church of the Future” and the “Church of the Johannic Age,” envisioned as an aesthetic and universal spiritual order founded upon ideals of peace, love, and beauty. An unusual and little-known work of nineteenth-century American poetry, reflecting the religious idealism and independent spiritual thought of its author. Lacks backstrip, hinges cracked, top board hanging on by a thread, some of the typical library markings, corners and edges bumped, slight discoloration, else in good + condition. Item #607
Price: $550.00