The Way of Initiation by Rudolf Steiner with forward by Annie Besant and some biographical notes of the author by Edouard Shure
1912 Theosophical Publishing Society (Third Revised Edition to 1500 /copies )
The Way of Initiation was originally published in 1908 and limited to only 1500 copies. Subsequent demand for this work by Steiner resulted in this edition being reprinted twice; once just six months later in 1909 and again with important revisions in 1912. The three printing had only minor aesthetic differences with the second and third printings resulting as the more sophisticated printings. The edition you see here is the 1912 printing which includes the important revisions from the original publication, hence making this the more desirable of the three editions. This edition also contains the dual colored title page in red and black along with the 'Cross in Pentagram' symbol also stamped on the back board to help identify from the unauthorized translations, a detail that was not included in the 1908 edition. The front board contains a small book plate which indicates that this edition once belonged to famous book seller John M. Watkins
The Way of Initiations serves as the first half prequel of Steiner later work Initiation and its Results (1909) consists of articles that were originally published in The Theophist. This volume explored those articles in greater detail and served as a means to introduce Steiners concepts to the English reader. The release of Initiation and its Results one year later accounted as the second half of this release.
Condition: Original brown boards, elaborately decorated front board with dual-colored cross bearing cosmic roses, inscription on flyleaf and some spotting to the title pages, all pages are otherwise clean with no markings, corners are slightly bumped bumped but in place, binding is tight, Overall Very Good+ condition