Schriften[Writings]
Novalis[Georg Friedrich Philipp von Hardenberg]
Berlin, 1802
 
First edition, first printing of one of the most important books of German Romanticism - Novalis’ first book, published one year after his demise at a mere 28 years old. 
 
Two volumes - title leaf, 338 pages; title leaf, 552 pages. Original paperboard covers with minor staining and small splits on upper joints of volume 1. Text partly printed on bluish paper. The volume 1 textblock is nearly spotless, and volume 2 has occasional light foxing. Fine, beautiful untrimmed copies with wide margins - a truly stunning survival of a seminal work.
 
This first edition contains the fragmentary novel Heinrich von Ofterdingen, in which Novalis’ Romantic ideals are best communicated. Particularly key is the blue flower motif - symbolic of deep-rooted sacred yearning and the poet’s unending striving. The famed Hymns to the Night and other key pieces also appear in these volumes.