Today is the anniversary of the publication of Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect by Robert Burns. At the Burns Monument Centre we’re marking the anniversary with a very special event. On Friday night we have a special guest in the form of Ian Rankin, introduced and in conversation with Zoe Strachan (sold out!). On Saturday we have an intensive creative writing workshop with Rab Wilson (more info below and here).
We love to explore the many editions, reprints and fascimilies of the Kilmarnock edition, and sometimes we find some nice suprises! Kilmarnock publisher James McKie printed some lovely editions of Burns’ work, including a limited print of 600 copies of Poems in 1867. In the same year, he printed a ‘large-paper reprint and facsimile’ in a very limited print of 50 copies.
The inscription states that this large paper edition was printed for the London publishers Willis and Sotheran. It measures 11″ x 7″. This copy is part of the fantastic McKie Collection held in Kilmarnock’s Dick Institute.
These sound a fantastic couple of events and I wish you well. I also wish I lived closer to Kilmarnock and have fewer items in my diary so I could attend! Have a good one, Mike