Title Page: "The Ship of Ishtar" by A. Merritt. L.A.: Borden Publishing, (1949). Memorial Edition. Illustrated by Virgil Finlay
A. Merritt (1884-1943) was born in Beverly, N.J. and, while still in his teens, he went treasure hunting in Yucatan. He was one of the first white men in 100 years to enter the ancient Mayan city of Tuluum. At 18 he became a reporter on the Philadelphia Inquirer and, by 24, he was Night Editor. Later, he became editor of The American Weekly, a Sunday newspaper supplement published by the Hearst Corporation. He still found time for writing, producing such masterpieces as “The Moon Pool,” “The Dwellers in the Mirage,” “Creep, Shadow,” “The Ship of Ishtar,” and “Burn Witch Burn.” The latter was filmed as “The Devil Doll” in 1936, and it starred Lionel Barrymore and Maureen O’Sullivan and was directed by Tod Browning.
Of his stories, he once said, “I weave much of what I have seen, heard and read of strange rites, of superstitions, of science, of religion. They are fantastic, but they are accurate and they are very unusual.” Next to Edgar Rice Burroughs, A. Merritt was probably the most reprinted fantasy author in America.
Virgil Finlay (1914-1971), the artist for the memorial edition of “The Ship of Ishtar,” was one of the most popular fantasy artists of the twentieth century. He specialized in detailed pen-and-ink drawings accomplished with abundant stippling, cross-hatching, and scratchboard techniques. Despite the very labor-intensive and time-consuming nature of his specialty, Finlay created more than 2600 works of graphic art in his 35-year career.
Title Page: "The Ship of Ishtar" by A. Merritt. L.A.: Borden Publishing, (1949). Memorial Edition. Illustrated by Virgil Finlay
A. Merritt (1884-1943) was born in Beverly, N.J. and, while still in his teens, he went treasure hunting in Yucatan. He was one of the first white men in 100 years to enter the ancient Mayan city of Tuluum. At 18 he became a reporter on the Philadelphia Inquirer and, by 24, he was Night Editor. Later, he became editor of The American Weekly, a Sunday newspaper supplement published by the Hearst Corporation. He still found time for writing, producing such masterpieces as “The Moon Pool,” “The Dwellers in the Mirage,” “Creep, Shadow,” “The Ship of Ishtar,” and “Burn Witch Burn.” The latter was filmed as “The Devil Doll” in 1936, and it starred Lionel Barrymore and Maureen O’Sullivan and was directed by Tod Browning.
Of his stories, he once said, “I weave much of what I have seen, heard and read of strange rites, of superstitions, of science, of religion. They are fantastic, but they are accurate and they are very unusual.” Next to Edgar Rice Burroughs, A. Merritt was probably the most reprinted fantasy author in America.
Virgil Finlay (1914-1971), the artist for the memorial edition of “The Ship of Ishtar,” was one of the most popular fantasy artists of the twentieth century. He specialized in detailed pen-and-ink drawings accomplished with abundant stippling, cross-hatching, and scratchboard techniques. Despite the very labor-intensive and time-consuming nature of his specialty, Finlay created more than 2600 works of graphic art in his 35-year career.