L’Annonciateur
First illustrated edition, with ten drawings by Louis-Édouard Fournier engraved by Lesueur.
One of 39 copies on Japanese paper (no. 138).
Among the twenty-eight tales that make up Contes cruels — Villiers de l’Isle-Adam’s most celebrated collection of short stories — L’Annonciateur occupies a singular place. In the first edition of 1883, the author had already marked this text out for special attention, setting it apart from the other tales with its own title page and presenting it as a true epilogue.
Drawing on mystical traditions close to the Kabbalah, the tale depicts a visit by the angel of death Azraël to King Solomon, creating a biblical and visionary atmosphere that makes it one of the author’s most metaphysical texts. It is among the earliest texts in the collection: several printed versions attest to this, spanning more than a decade. The story appeared in the press as early as the late 1860s, before being revised and profoundly reworked until its definitive inclusion in Contes cruels in 1883.
A fine copy.