89 - [CURIOSA - MUSSET and BERTHOMMÉ SAINT-ANDRÉ]. *Gamiani, or Two Nights of Excess*.

[CURIOSA - MUSSET and BERTHOMMÉ SAINT-ANDRÉ]. *Gamiani, or Two Nights of Excess*. A rare clandestine edition of this masterpiece of erotic literature. A copy reprinted on Rives laid paper, embellished with a black-and-white suite of illustrations with annotations and a separate suite. No place of publication; edition produced under the supervision and for the exclusive benefit of the “True Romantic Amateurs ” [Henri Pasquinelli], n.d. [circa 1940]. In-4 (255 x 200 mm), paperback, plain gray cover with raised bands, plain cream half-cardboard slipcase, and publisher’s case. 100 pp., 20 color lithographs as inserts and 14 black-and-white lithographs in the text. A rare clandestine edition, reprinted with wide margins, of this famous work of 19th-century erotic literature attributed to Alfred de Musset. The book’s illustrations, which are very free in style, include 20 color lithographs as inserts and 14 black-and-white lithographs in the text. These anonymous compositions are the work of Louis Berthommé Saint-André (1905–1977), one of the most prolific and sought-after illustrators in the world of clandestine publications and curiosities from the 1930s to the 1950s. Limited to 697 copies, this is one of 100 numbered copies (128–227), reserved for honorary members and printed on Rives chiffon paper. It contains an additional black-and-white version with annotations of the 20 color lithographs and a separate, unbound suite—also on Rives paper—comprising 12 sheets folded into quarters, featuring some thirty freehand compositions, most of which do not appear in the main volume. [Pia, Enfer, no. 575—Dutel, no. 1650]. First published in 1833, *Gamiani* is the most frequently reprinted clandestine novel of the nineteenth century, with more than forty secret editions. While the attribution of the text to Alfred de Musset was long disputed, it is now firmly established by bibliographers. The story depicts two nights of initiation and debauchery experienced by Countess Gamiani in the company of Fanny and Alcide. The work has established itself as an absolute classic of the genre thanks to the quality of its writing, which is free of any triviality. A very fine bibliophile’s copy, in excellent condition.