548. Lewis (C.S.) The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, first edition, signed presentation copy from the author as 'Jack Lewis' to Nicholas Hardie, inscribed on endpaper, illustrated by Pauline Baynes, original cloth, cocked, sunned, spine ends and corners a little frayed, 8vo, 1950.
Provenance: Given to Nicholas Hardie, son of Colin Graham Hardie (1906-98), classical scholar. In 1936 he was appointed fellow and tutor in classics at Magdelen College, Oxford, partly coinciding with C.S.Lewis's own teaching career at Oxford. They becamse close friends and read aloud from Dante together in weekly evening sessions. Hardie was a member of the Inklings, and regularly attended meetings, sometimes at the Eagle and Child pub on St. Giles. Lewis presented Nicholas Hardie, then a boy, with an inscribed copy of each of the first four books in the Narnia series, the fourth, 'The Silver Chair', was dedicated to Nicholas.
est. £8000 – £12000
Exceptionally scarce. C.S.Lewis rarely inscribed his own works, and hardly ever signed as 'Jack Lewis', a name he usually reserved for close friends and family.