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Why, of course, it is Italian!

Italy, Italian, and Italians play roles in the Canon. They also share a role in my collecting mania. One of the first translations I added to my shelves was an Italian edition of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes or Le Avventure di Sherlock Holmes (Fabri - 1988). One of my co-workers was going to Italy on vacation. I convinced them to look for something Sherlockian to bring me and that was what the found.

The late John Bennett Shaw phoned me one evening and asked if I was available to meet an Italian Sherlockian who was attending a conference in Dallas. He knew no one in town but had asked John if there were any local Sherlockians he could meet. This phone call led to a wonderful afternoon with Dr. Bruno Lumbroso who is an Opthamologist in Rome. Universal traits shared by Sherlockians are the giving and sharing genes. Dr. Lumbroso and I fully exploited these genes. We swapped stories and exchanged of English Sherlockiana for Italian Sherlockiana. This was a memorable meeting for me. The good doctor and I still correspond. His kindness paved the way for me to meet other Italian Sherlockians.

Another Italian friendship that developed was with Enrico Solito. We met irregularly via e-mail for a few years. Then we finally met face-to-face in New York City a couple of years back. Enrico is a past president of Uno Studio in Holmes, and was responsible for me receiving a copy of their latest publication -- La Maledizone dei Baskervilles. This is the catalogue of an exhibition of Houndian rarities from the extensive collection of Dr. Gabriele Mazzoni. The book is accompanied with a poster, which reproduces the covers of more than 60 editions of HOUND. This poster was the idea behind The Hound of the Baskervilles "Cover of the Week" feature on Sherlock Peoria.

The book can be ordered for $15 plus $5 shipping from Gianluca Salvatori; PO Box 140 - 55042 Forte dei Marmi; (Lucca) Italy. When the book arrives, take out the poster and have it framed. Hang it near your computer, then every week, check of the Cover of the Week to see if it's there.

The same Dr. Gabriele Mazzoni, mentioned above, is also a friend and rival collector. Being of a good-natured rivalry, he e-mailed recently to tell me about the Italian magazine Domenica del Corriere (Sunday Courier). This is where most of the Sherlock Holmes stories were first published in Italian. The told me about 9 of the 12 issue from 1915 that featured La Valle della Paura (The Valley of Fear). He also told me that because the seller did not mention Sherlock Holmes, the prices of each were extremely low. Without my Italian connections, I would never have known of these items since none are listed in any of the De Waal bibliographies. It's like Holmes tells Watson in REDH, "Why, of course, it is Italian!"

Happy collecting!!!