GUMILEV NIKOLAI (1886-1921), UNIQUE AUTOGRAPH Letter to M.V. Farmakovsky, two poems, dedication inscription. [Paris, 1908. St. Petersburg, 1918]. Romanticheskie tsvety: Stikhi. [Romantic Flowers: Poems.] 1903-1907. 3rd ed. St. Petersburg: Kn-vo “Prometei” N.N. Mikhailova, 1918.

74, [6] pp.; 22x15 cm. In a contemporary full-cloth (silk) ownership’s binding . Leather sticker with gold embossing indicating the author and title on the spine. Good condition. Scuffs, loss of fabric fragments, cracks on the spine. The poet’s dedication on the flyleaf, the name of the addressee has been erased: ‘na dobruiu pamiat’ ot iskrenno uvazhaiushchego N. Gumileva / 20 sent. 1918’ [“In fond memory from your sincerely respectful N. Gumilev / Sept. 20, 1918.”] On a loose leaf of the flyleaf is a photograph of N. Gumilev – owner’s insertion. A double sheet with the poet’s handwritten autograph is pasted in front of the frontispiece on [4] p.: a letter addressed to M.V. Farmakovsky, followed by two poems, “Androgynous” and “Possessed.” Undated, presumably written from Paris in March 1908. ‘Dorogoi Mstislav Vladimirovich! Prostite, chto ya tak dolgo ne otvechal na Vashi milye pis’ma, no do poluchki deneg byvshei tret’ego dnya ya ne mog pozvolit’ sebe etoi roskoshi (25 sant. ne shutka), a posle ya tol’ko i delal, chto el i pil, tak chto tozhe ne udavalos’... Rasskazyvayu, chto zavel neskol’ko poleznykh znakomstv, s sotrudnikom “Russkogo Bogatstva”, poznakomilsya s grafom A.N. Tolstym, kotoryi rekomendoval moiu knigu poeta K. Chukovskomu. Interesuyus’ “Podpisalis’ li Vy na ‘Vesy’, esli net, to toropites’. Eto stanovitsya polozhitel’no obyazatel’nym dlya kul’turnogo cheloveka...” Ya posylayu Vam 15 shtuk ‘Tsvetov’. 5 mozhet byt’ Vy ustroite v Odesse, a desyat’ v Kieve. Zaraneye blagodaryu Vas za khlopoty. Akh da! Ryabushinsky v Parizhe, skryvaetsya, no ya napal na ego sled...’ [“Dear Mstislav Vladimirovich! I apologize for taking so long to respond to your kind letters, but until I received my paycheck three days ago, I could not afford this luxury (25 cents is no joke), and after that, all I did was eat and drink, so I was unable to respond...” He recounts that he made several useful acquaintances, including an employee of Russkoe Bogatstvo, and met Count A.N. Tolstoy, who recommended a book by the poet K. Chukovsky. He inquires, “Have you subscribed to Vesy? If not, hurry up. It is becoming positively mandatory for a cultured person...” “... “ Next: “I am sending you 15 copies of Flowers. You can arrange for five to be delivered to Odessa and ten to Kiev. Thank you in advance for your trouble. Oh yes! Ryabushinsky is in Paris, in hiding, but I have picked up his trail...” ] Both poems are from the collection “Pearls (1918)” and were first published: “The Possessed” – “Libra” (1908, No. 6); “Androgyne” – “Almanac 17” (St. Petersburg, 1909). Mstislav Vladimirovich Farmakovsky (1873-1946) was an art historian, archaeologist, artist, Doctor of Historical Sciences, professor, chief curator and scientific consultant of the State Russian Museum, employee of the Institute of Archaeological Technology and Chemical Laboratory of the Leningrad Branch of the Institute of Material Culture History of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Bibliography: Turchinsky. p. 156; See-Sok. No. 2829; Lesman. No. 741.