Title: Seven Pillars of Wisdom: a triumph.
Author: T. E. Lawrence (Thomas Edward Lawrence).
Format: Vintage hardcover in red and green cloth binding with an embossed front cover device and contrasting green spine and corners.
Publisher: Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York.
Publication details: Copyright page states copyright 1926 and 1935 by Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., with a note reading Privately printed, 1926; First published for general circulation, 1935, and printed at the Country Life Press, Garden City, N.Y., U.S.A.
Language: English.
Subject/Genre: World War I military memoir; Middle Eastern campaign; British Army operations; autobiography; military and war history.
Contents: Lawrence recounts his experiences during the Arab Revolt and the British campaign in the Arabian desert in World War I, blending strategic reflections, portraits of Arab leaders and British officers, and detailed narratives of marches, battles, and negotiations.
Interior: Main text is set in a single-column serif type with chapter headings such as Myself, Tactical Deductions, and Awaiting a Summons, accompanied by in-text illustrations including caricature drawings and full-page portrait plates like the image of Wingate shown.
Special attributes: Early Garden City Doubleday, Doran hardcover edition of Seven Pillars of Wisdom, a landmark first-person account by Lawrence of Arabia, of interest to collectors of World War I literature, Middle Eastern military history, and classic twentieth-century memoirs.
Condition: Red and green cloth boards display heavy overall rubbing and handling wear with scattered spots, a circular stain on the lower front, surface scratching, and frayed, exposed corners, while the front cover embossing remains visible. Spine cloth is rubbed with fraying and small splits at the head and foot, and hand-lettered white titling and a letter at the base. Page edges are uniformly age-toned with some dust soiling and a faint ink stamp visible along the top edge. Front pastedown shows large areas of paper loss and residue from removed material, and the front inner hinge has been reinforced with cloth tape, with creasing, chips, and edge tears affecting the half-title and title leaves. Interior pages in the sections shown are toned but remain legible, with some small margin tears, creases, and occasional spots, as well as intact illustration plates. Binding is somewhat shaken but remains generally secure in the openings photographed, with the text block attached to the covers.