The Gods of the North, An Epic Poem Translated from the Original Danish into English Verse by William Edward Frye

London: William Pickering. Very Good-. 1845. Hardcover. 273 pages; Secure in contemporary binding of half green morocco and marbled boards, spine elaborately gilt in 6 compartments with five raised bands, decorative devices in five compartments, black leather label with titles in gilt; green endpapers; tide marks to lower portion of pages. Nineteenth century newsclipping applied to last two blank pages -- "Pre-Historic America - The Story of the North Men" Former owner's name on title page "?? Balch / Feb 24 / [18]74 at Newport R. I." Arranged in thirty cantos, this epic poem is a lyrical tale of the ancient Nordic gods. Adam Gottlob Oehlenschläger (14 November 1779 - 20 January 1850) was a Danish poet and playwright. He introduced romanticism into Danish literature. No Danish writer before 1870 has exercised so wide an influence as Oehlenschläger. His great work was to awaken in the breasts of his countrymen an enthusiasm for the poetry and religion of their ancestors, and this he performed to so complete an extent that his name remains synonymous with Scandinavian romance. In 1829 he was publicly crowned with laurel as the "King of Nordic poetry" and the "Scandinavian King of Song" (by Bishop Esaias Tegnér, who would be his Swedish parallel) in the cathedral of Lund, Sweden, based on a vast production of poetry, theatre plays and prose. He was inspired by many including Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Gottlieb Fichte, and Friedrich von Schelling. Includes contents of the cantos, a glossary of Norse gods, a preface by W. E. Frye, the letter of gratitude by Frye to the King of Denmark, and a twenty-one page Notes and Elucidations section. .