Old Burma-Early Pagán (3 vol. set): I Text. II Catalogue. III Plates.

Locust Valley, NY: J.J. Augustin, 1969. 1st Edition 1st Printing. Buckram. Very Good Plus/No Jacket. 4to - over 9¾ - 12" tall. In English. Published in 1969 [Vol. I] and 1970 [Vols. II & III] for Artibus Asiae and the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University. Presumed first printing of the first edition. Printed in Germany by J.J. Augustin. Complete in three volumes: I, Text; 2, Catalogue of Plates Indexes; 3, Plates. 12 x 9 inches. Bound in red buckram, with crisp gilt-stamped lettering to the front boards and to the spines. Unbumped spine heads and tails, and with mostly sharp corners. Small wrinkle at base of spine of Vol. III, trivial. A few corners of Vols. II & III with minor bumping. Text blocks firmly bound in. Vol. I Text: Color frontis., glossy paper color map. folding table, xviii & 422 pp. Vol. II: Catalogue: B&W frontis. 337 pp. With 5 inserts at the rear pastedown, as called for. Includes 3 folding maps, a list of the kings of Pagán, and a calendar. All inserts pristine. Vol. III Plates: Color frontis., 455 B&W plates. Corrigenda sheet slipped in. Discreet stamp of London bookseller affixed to the bottom of the front pastedown of all three volumes. Else exceptionally clean interiors. No stains, stampings or underlining noticed. Deemed very gently read. No dust jackets, [as issued?]. Scarce. Very Good Plus. 13 lbs. 9 oz. "An homage to the founding of the Burmese city of Pagán, in the dry zone of central Burma: how it became the Buddhist capital of a united Burma, including Mons and Burmans, from about 1060 A.D.; and how after a century of building national character as well as pagodas, a sudden crisis after the Singhalese invasion led to a weakening of the union, but also the efflorescence of a strictly Burmese culture in the latter half of the dynasty." Divided into three parts: A, History. B, Iconography. C, Architecture. Gordon H. Luce, [1889-1979], was a preeminent scholar of Burmese history, and his magnum opus is Old Burma - Early Pagán. Luce was a member of the Bloomsbury group of scholars and writers: friends from Cambridge and London included Rupert Brooke, E.M. Forster, John Maynard Keynes, Arthur Waley and others. Apart from history, Luce had wide interests ranging from classical music, poetry, classical and English literature and the translation of the Bible into Asian languages. This book is from the personal library of James and Marilyn Alsdorf, among the most prominent Chicago-based collectors in the second half of the 20th century of significant Asian art. Studying and collecting art was their all-consuming passion, and it took them all over the world. As well as being great collectors, the Alsdorfs were loyal supporters of museums and cultural institutions across Chicago and the wider United States, including the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the Leigh Block Museum of Art at Northwestern University and the Art Institute of Chicago.