The Name of the Rose — Eco, Folio Society 2001

The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco (1980, The Folio Society 2001) — a medieval murder mystery woven through semiotics, theology, and literary theory, widely regarded as one of the great novels of the twentieth century.

QUICK FACTS

• Author: Umberto Eco (1932–2016), Italian novelist and professor of semiotics at the University of Bologna
• Translator: William Weaver
• Illustrator: Neil Packer
• Publisher: The Folio Society, London
• Year: 2001 (first Folio Society edition; original Italian publication RCS Libri SpA, 1980)
• Format: Hardcover in slipcase, full cloth binding
• Condition: Near Fine (NF) — full report below

THE STORY

In 1327, Franciscan friar William of Baskerville and his young assistant Adso of Melk arrive at a Benedictine abbey in northern Italy to attend a theological disputation. When a series of mysterious deaths grips the monastery, William — a former inquisitor with a keen logical mind — is asked to investigate. His inquiries lead him into the abbey’s labyrinthine library, a vast collection organized like a medieval map of the world, where a forbidden text may hold the key to the killings. The investigation draws on Aristotle, Franciscan poverty disputes, and the tension between faith and reason, all set against the historical backdrop of the Avignon Papacy.

Eco, a professor of semiotics, layered the novel with references to Borges, medieval heresies, and postmodern literary theory. The central detective plot hinges on the lost second half of Aristotle’s Poetics — the section on comedy — which Eco speculates about with both scholarly rigor and dark humor. The novel won the 1981 Strega Prize, Italy’s most prestigious literary award, and the 1982 Prix Médicis étranger in France. It has sold over 50 million copies worldwide and was adapted into a 1986 film starring Sean Connery and a 2019 television series.

THIS EDITION

This is the first Folio Society edition, published in London in 2001. The text is set in Centaur typeface and printed on St Paul’s Wove Paper at St Annesbury Press, Bury St Edmunds. The volume was bound by R. & Foulis, Edinburgh, in full cloth with a binding design by the illustrator Neil Packer. The English translation copyright is held by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, Inc. and Martin Secker & Warburg Ltd (1983), with illustrations copyright Neil Packer 2001.

COVER ART & ILLUSTRATIONS

The binding is a striking bright red cloth with an intricate gold foil design of intertwining thorny vines that sprawl across both covers and spine. At the top edge of the front cover, a row of alchemical and astrological symbols — Mercury, Moon, Pisces, Venus, Mars, Sun, Taurus, and Aries — are stamped in the same metallic gold, evoking the esoteric knowledge central to the novel’s themes. A circular emblem on the front cover features a stylized thorny rose design. The title and author’s name appear in white rectangular blocks with clean sans-serif lettering.

Neil Packer’s interior illustrations blend medieval manuscript illumination with a modern sensibility. The frontispiece presents a richly detailed scene with a circular Latin inscription, a cityscape, and the word “ENZIAGITE” — a Sumerian term meaning “King of Heaven,” significant to the novel’s plot. Nine full-page plates are distributed throughout the text at key narrative moments, including scenes captioned with direct quotes: “I saw the abbey” (p. 23), “‘This garden is richer than any herbal’” (p. 69), “They were human legs” (p. 106), and “‘The Antichrist is truly at hand’” (p. 489). Additional in-text illustrations appear at pages 104, 121, 312, 329, 424, 441, and 488. The color palette ranges from deep reds and golds to vivid blues and purples, with bold outlines and flat areas of color reminiscent of medieval art traditions.

The book is housed in a matte black slipcase that shows minor surface scuffs consistent with its Very Good (VG) grade. The slipcase remains structurally sound with no tears or bad seams.

WHY IT MATTERS

• Winner of the 1981 Strega Prize (Italy’s highest literary honor) and the 1982 Prix Médicis étranger; over 50 million copies sold worldwide
• Described as an exemplary postmodernist text, combining a medieval whodunit with semiotics, biblical analysis, and literary theory — Eco’s debut novel and his most celebrated work
• The Folio Society edition features Neil Packer’s distinctive illustrations, a Centaur-typeset text on quality wove paper, and a decorative cloth binding designed by the artist
• Adapted into a 1986 Jean-Jacques Annaud film with Sean Connery, a 2019 TV series with John Turturro, and inspired video games including Pentiment (2022)

FREQUENTLY ASKED

What edition is this? First Folio Society edition, published London 2001. Translated from Italian by William Weaver. Illustrated by Neil Packer. Set in Centaur at The Folio Society, printed on St Paul’s Wove Paper, bound in full cloth by R. & Foulis, Edinburgh.

What condition is it in? Book: Near Fine (NF); Slipcase: Very Good (VG). Full condition report below.

Is this the first printing? Yes. This is the first Folio Society printing of The Name of the Rose, published in 2001.

FOR COLLECTORS

This is the first Folio Society edition of Eco’s masterpiece, featuring Neil Packer’s distinctive illustrations in this binding. The red cloth with gold thorny vine design and alchemical symbols is one of the more visually striking Folio Society productions of the early 2000s. The combination of the novel’s enduring literary significance and the quality of this particular edition makes it a strong shelf piece for collectors of modern literary fiction or illustrated editions.

Condition Report

Overall Grade: Book: Near Fine (NF)/Slipcase: Very Good (VG)

Cover & Spine: Bright red cloth boards with distinct gold and white stamped designs on both covers and spine. Small, linear scuff on bottom of the block. The slipcase has a few surface scuffs/marks in matte black surface, otherwise tight and crisp, no bad seams or tears in the paper wrapping.

Text Block & Pages: Pages are clean and off-white with uniform edges and bright full-page color plates.

Binding: Square and tight, apparently unread condition with solid hinges.

See accompanying images for full condition details.

Will ship promptly, carefully packaged.

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