A rare set of Alexander Pushkin’s famous novel “Eugene Onegin” sold for £118,750 ($153,000) at an auction in London, Christie’s auction house said on its website Wednesday.
Russia's most revered scribe wrote his classic novel in verse in eight parts, published between 1825 and 1833, about a young, world-weary member of upper-class Russian society.
The set sold at the Christie’s auction was made up of first editions of the classic work — printed 187 years ago — together with a rare second edition of its second part.
As noted by Christie's, all of the parts were printed during Pushkin’s lifetime, some of which he spent in exile.
“He had few hopes that his verse novel, which he saw as a satire of contemporary Russian society, would ever be approved by the censors,” it said.
“It was, with an imprint of 2,400 copies, and it became the talk of literary circles in St. Petersburg.”
