Signé ; Paul Fort; illustrations de Paul Welsch - Vol d'oiseaux noirs. Au temps des cerises - 1938

This volume is part of his famous and monumental series of the French Ballads. Printed in Paris by the typography of Armand Jules Klein around 1937-1938, this specific copy is a hors librairie edition, often numbered and issued in a limited edition on high-quality paper (such as Arches vergé) for subscribers or relatives of the author.

This copy contains a magnificent autograph inscription (a handwritten dedication) signed by Paul Fort himself.

Exceptional copy because it is a unique nominative print, specially printed for its addressee.

In the luxury and bibliophilic edition, nominative copies are printed in very small numbers (often reserved for the author, the editor, or very close intimate associates). The fact that the name of Dr. Paul Sourdat is directly typeset in the book, combined with the long handwritten dedication by Paul Fort seen in the previous photo, makes this work a unique collectible.

Very restricted overall print run: The note indicates that the edition comprises only 30 copies on imperial Japan and 300 copies on Arches vergé paper in its form (numbered 1 to 300 and initialed by the author).

This work is part of the “four hundred-and-fifty nominative copies initialed by the author, printed on Arches vergé paper for MMs. the Members of the ‘Group of Friends of Paul Fort’ and the tributes.”

• Frontispiece, a cover vignette and a drop cap (cul-de-lampe) by the artist-painter and engraver Paul Welsch.

Head print on Arches off-prints, nominative copy, long handwritten dedication and signed place this book in the category of high bibliophilic pieces for 20th-century poetry enthusiasts.