The Singular Adventures of Baron Munchausen – A Definitive Text

The Singular Adventures of Baron Munchausen – A Definitive Text, by Rudolph Raspe and others. 1952 Heritage Press hardcover with slipcase. 175 pages, very nice condition.

This is a book of fantasy and whimsy. Marvelous and unbelievable escapades and adventures are related by the Baron to a table full of politely incredulous guests. Munchausen's narrative ranges all over the world, to the moon, and back. Eighteen stories, illustrated by Fritz Kredel. The lead character Baron Munchausen is loosely based on a real baron, Hieronymus Karl Friedrich, Freiherr von Münchhausen. Originally published anonymously, it is unclear how much of Raspe's material comes directly from the real Baron, but the majority of the stories are derived from older sources. Raspe, probably for fear of a libel suit from the real-life Baron von Münchhausen, never admitted his authorship of the book.

Rudolf Erich Raspe (1736 – 1794) was a German librarian, writer, and scientist, known as a bit of a "rogue." Raspe's later career mixed writing and scientific scholarship with theft and swindling; when the German police issued advertisements for his arrest in 1775, he fled continental Europe and settled in England. His novel was the basis of the 1988 film The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.