Robert Duncan. 
 
New Directions: 1984. Limited issue of 150 signed copies. Hardcover in a slip case. Small quarto. Slip case has a few discolorations. A light smudge on the last couple of pages. Small wrinkles on page 6 & 14. 175 pages. Near fine. Signed. 
 
The first volume of Duncan's opus Ground Work after 15 years of silence. The 1984 masterwork fulfilled the promise of Duncan's life, since its second volume was released the month of his 1988 death. A true poet must be considered in his own terms, so here's Creeley sounding Duncan-esque praise: "the magister, the singular Master of the Dance." 
 
"Child of a century more skeptic than 
           unbelieving, adrift 
between two contrary educations, 
that of the Revolution, which disowns 
           everything, 
and that of the Reaction, 
which pretends to bring back the ensemble 
          of Christian beliefs, 
will I find myself trained to believe
        everything, 
as our fathers, the scientists, have been 
          trained to deny?"