A RARE first edition of Robert Burns’ poetry could fetch as much as £60,000 when it goes up auction.
The copy of Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, which was produced by a Kilmarnock printer in 1786, is considered one of the most important works in Scottish literature.
At the time a copy would have set readers back three shillings, with the entire print run of 612 copies running out in just a month.
It is set to go up for auction at Lyon & Turnbull, Scotland’s oldest auction house, on September 19.
The so-called Kilmarnock Edition of the book features some of the Burns’ best known poems including To a Mouse, Address to the Deil and The Twa Dogs.
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There are thought to be 88 surviving copies of the Kilmarnock Edition, with 15 - including the copy up for auction - in private hands.
The copy set to go up for auction was rebound in the 19th century in green morocco gilt, which replaced the fragile paper cover.
"It is extremely exciting to come across one of the first edition copies of the single most famous volume in Scottish cultural heritage,’ said Cathy Marsden (below), from Lyon & Turnbull.
"From humble Ayrshire origins, Burns was to become an international literary star. Although very confident in his own abilities, even he could not have predicted such success.’
Burns was 27 when the book was first published with a significant number of the works being written at Mossgiel Farm in Mauchline, Ayrshire, where he worked with his brother Gilbert.
While the farm was losing money during Burns’ time there, he did meet his wife Jean Armour who partly inspired the poem The Belles of Mauchline.
It is understood that Burns’ desire to marry Armour contributed to his decision to get the book published in order to make some money.
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