Birthday Greeting to Leah Witter. Fourteenth May. Written by Louis Politzer 1951

Lower Ferntree Gully, Vic. :  John T. Kirtley, 1951 . Folio, unbound sheets as issued, pp. [4] plus four blanks, printed letterpress. One of only ten hand-printed copies, numbered and signed by the author.

John Kirtley (1897-1967) is an important figure in Australian printing having produced the first Australian hand-printed books. Introduced by Philip Lindsay to his brother Jack, Kirtley was a pivotal figure in the establishment of the Fanfrolico Press in England. After he returned to Australia he produced Heemskerck Shoals, then the finest work of hand-printing undertaken in Australia.

Rare, with no copies traced at auction or within the trade.

Three copies recorded in Australian collections (State Library of Victoria, State Library of New South Wales, State Library of Queensland)

References:

not in Arnold & Hay, Bibliography of Australian Literature.

not in Farmer, Private Presses in Australia

Unrecorded by Miller/Macartney.

Provenance :

John Kirtley

gifted to Keith Wingrove

private collection, Melbourne