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The ancient story of Persephone's abduction
by
Hades, Lord of the Dead, is the Greek myth
of the origin of the seasons.
The Homeric Hymn
to Demeter, assigned by
scholars
to the
7th Century before our era,
is the oldest literary document that narrates the tale.
This new book from The ELM Press, compiled by Enid Mark and printed in the millennial year of 2000, presents nine poems by contemporary poets who plumb the emotional depths of the myth. Now it is recast as the story of a young girl caught between two adults—a mother and a lover—who compete for her affection and loyalty.
The poems, (two of which are previously uncollected), are accompanied by a sequence of lithographs—a foldout frontispiece, a centerfold spread, and a foldout endpiece. When the book lies open at the centerfold, and the first and last pages are extended, the panels, printed in multilayered cream, grays and blacks, reveal a continuous landscape.
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A second visual theme, the pomegranate, the magical fruit symbolic of the underworld, acts as counterpoint to the drama of the landscape. Devolving from the whole ripe fruit to only six jewel-like seeds, these images are printed on translucent vellum and tipped in between the pages of letterpress-printed poetry.
In celebration of the new millennium, this edition also features a digital print scanned from the same series of layered images used for the lithographed landscape panorama, allowing direct comparison between traditional technique and current technology. The digital print, folded accordion-style and enclosed in a chemise of gray Bugra paper, is included in the traycase with the book. It was produced on an Iris ink jet printer at the Silicon Gallery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The pages—Arches, Denril Vellum and Rives—measure 13 3/4 by 9 1/4 inches. The types, 16 point Monotype Centaur and Arrighi, were cast at the Press and Letterfoundry of Michael and Winifred Bixler, Skaneateles, New York, and printed by Daniel Keleher, Wild Carrot Letterpress, Hadley, Massachusetts. The lithographs were hand-pulled by Timothy P. Sheesley, Corridor Press, Otego, New York.
Jerry Kelly, New York City, drew the title-page calligraphy. Glass pomegranate seeds, recessed into the cover of the book, were formed by John Paul Koutsouros, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The book and traycase are covered in cream Japanese cloth. Barbara B. Blumenthal, Northampton, Massachusetts, did the hand binding.
Limited to forty-five numbered copies and ten artist's proofs. Signed by the artist. 2000. Out of print.
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RITA DOVE 