Published in 1923 by The Broom Publishing Company in New York, this first English-language edition of Guillaume Apollinaire's The Poet Assassinated stands as a landmark artifact of transatlantic modernist literature. Translated from the original French novella Le Poète assassiné with an insightful biographical introduction and notes by avant-garde editor Matthew Josephson, the volume preserves Apollinaire's seminal roman-à-clef centered on the tragicomic life and martyrdom of the fictional poet Croniamantal. Printed on fine Alexandra Japan vellum paper in a hand-numbered limited run of 1,250 copies, this particular exemplar is numbered 260 and features four striking woodcut plates by the French Fauvist master André Derain, including the iconic frontispiece portrait of Apollinaire.

The volume is bound in its original publisher quarter vellum-style cream paper spine with gilt lettering over rich slate-blue paper-covered boards, bearing the distinctive circular device of Broom on the front panel. Sourced from the personal library of a distinguished Washington D.C. area anthropologist and bibliophile, the binding remains sound with crisp inner pages, untrimmed deckled edges, gentle ambient age toning, and honest shelf wear concentrated along the spine ends and corners consistent with over a century of preservation. This volume measures approximately 8.5 inches in height, 6.75 inches in width, 0.75 inches in thickness, and weighs 1.0 pound.