‎"CARROLL, LEWIS - (CHARLES LUTWIDGE DODGSON).‎
‎Maries Hændelser i Vidunderlandet. [Alice's Adventures in Wonderland]. Efter det Engelske ved D.G. Med 41 Illustrationer (af John Tenniel). - [FIRST DANISH EDITION OF ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND]‎

‎Copenhagen, Fr. Wøldikes Forlag / Th. Rielsen,1875. 8vo. Publisher's lithographed pictorial boards. Upper capital a little worn, with a small tear, and tiny loss of paper. Slight bumping to corners, light wear to spine, and light soling to boards. But all in all very well preserved. Pencil annotation to inside of front board, as well as a small stamp from Bibliotheca Quarnfornsiana (the renowned private library of renowned Sedish book collector Thore Virgin). Ownership signature of Thore Virgin, dated 23.3.1956 to front free end-paper. Smaller stains to outer margins of pp. 3-4, 129, and 134, and very minor stains to inner margin of pp. 62 and 93, otherwise totally clean and fresh. Illustrated throughout. (4), 144 pp. ‎

Reference : 63593

‎Very scarce first Danish edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by an anonymous translator, signed ""D.G."". Lewis Carroll's (1832-1898) Alice in Wonderland was first published in 1865. The illustrations were made by John Tenniel (1820-1914), an English illustrator and satirical artist (see Britannica). Carroll had originally made his own drawings, and his drafts for the peculiar characters were used as basis for Tenniel's (Simonsen 1966: 181" see also Ciancitto 2023). The Danish translation includes 41 of the 42 original illustrations" only the illustration of the lobster in chapter 10 was excluded. The Danish translation is the fourth translation, only preceded by the German, French, and Italian. It was reprinted in 1912, with Lewis Carroll's name on the title-page. In 1930, a revised edition, still based on the Danish translation, was published with a new title, Alice i Vidunderlandet (Simonsen 1966: 287). Later Danish translations also include the titles Alice i Eventyrland and Alice i Undreland. Carroll was an English logician, mathematician, as well as photographer, novelist and poet. In 1851, he began his undergraduate studies at Christ Church, Oxford, excelling in mathematical and classical studies, and later became a mathematics lecutrer (tutor). It was during his time there that he wrote the Alice stories, which were based on stories he told the three daughters of the dean of Christ Church, Henry George Liddell. One of them, Alice – the inspiration behind the main character – ""asked Carroll to write out the stories for her, and in response he produced a hand-lettered collection entitled Alice’s Adventures Under Ground. A visitor to the Liddell home saw the storybook and thought it should be published, so Carroll revised and expanded it."" (Lowne) The sequel Through the Looking-Glass was published in 1871. By the end of the 19th century, the two books together had become the most popular children’s book in England: ""Appearing at a time when children’s literature generally was intended to teach moral lessons, the book at first baffled critics, who failed to appreciate the nonsense that so captivated its young readers. But Carroll understood how children’s minds worked, and the way he turned logic on its head appealed to their sense of the ridiculous."" (Lowne). According to Simonsen (1966), Alice in Wonderland ""is the big event in the 20th-century English children's litterature. With it, a new chronology starts: 'before Alice' and 'after Alice' [...]"" (1966: 181" own translation). Thore Virgin (1886-1957) was one of the most prominent book collectors in Sweden. His cllection is widely considered one of the finest private collections of rare books and manuscripts in Scandinavia during the 20th century. Simonsen, I. (1966). Den danske Børnebog i det 19. Aarhundrede.‎