[New York]: The Limited Editions Club, 1943.. Two volumes. Small quarto (26 x 19 cm). Publisher's black sheepskin, spines lettered in gilt. Plates, some in color. Tiny nick at crown of spine of first volume, very slight rubbing to the spines, otherwise an uncommonly nice set. The slipcase is present, but neatly split at most of the joints. First printing in this format, with illustrations by Boardman Robinson and an Introduction by Clifton Fadiman. Copy #417 of 1000 numbered copies, signed by the artist. The impractical binding material has seldom withstood the passage of time and has often gone the way of the sheep that died as a prelude to its manufacture.

Synopsis

Melville's classic was first published in England as three volumes titled The Whale in October 1851. Slow sales of Melville's previously books convinced Publisher L. Richard Bentley to reduce the printing to only 500 copies, and of that, only 300 sold in the first 4 months. The remaining unbound sheets were bound in a cheaper casing in 1852, and in 1853 there were still enough remaining sheets to again bind into an even cheaper edition. Melville changed the title to Moby Dick a month later, November 1851, when the American Version was published in one volume by Harper & Brothers in NY. Of the 2,951 copies printed, 125 were review copies. About 1,500 sold in 11 days, but then sales slowed to less than 300 the next year. After two years copies of the first edition were still available, and almost 300 were destroyed in the 1853 fire of Harper's warehouse. Most of the first editions have orange end-papers, although there are 2 known volumes with rare white-endpapers. Because of Nineteenth-century printing practices, and the time-lapse between when the first-editions were published and Melville became collectible, oxidized paper, bumped and chipped spines, and brittle wrappers are all common for even the most expensive and collectible of these books, which can sell from $35,000 to $100,000. Also, expect heavy wear and maybe even minor repair. Another collectible edition is the 1930 first edition illustrated by Rockwell Kent, a three-volume set published by the Lakeside Press with acetate dust jackets in an aluminum slipcase. These range in value from $9,000 to $11,000. A total of 3,215 copies of Moby-Dick were sold during Melville's life (he died in 1891). Today, Moby-Dick is considered one of the greatest American novels. -

Reviews

On Mar 9 2016, a reader said:

Why would this be 600 since the original was in 1851?

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Details

Bookseller: William Reese Company - Literature ABAA-ILAB (US)
Bookseller's Inventory #: WRCLIT85029
Title: MOBY DICK; OR, THE WHALE
Author: Melville, Herman
Book Condition: Used
Quantity Available: 1
Publisher: The Limited Editions Club
Place of Publication: [New York]
Date Published: 1943.
Note: May be a multi-volume set and require additional postage.

Terms of Sale

William Reese Company - Literature ABAA-ILAB

All material is shipped subject to approval, but notification of return must be made within ten days and returns made in a prompt and conscientious fashion. As our inventory is housed in two locations, queries about availability should be made by e-mail rather than telephone. We do not drop-ship to third parties.

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William Reese Company - Literature ABAA-ILAB

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About William Reese Company - Literature ABAA-ILAB

Since 1975, William Reese Company has served a large international clientele of collectors and private and public institutions in the acquisition of rare books and manuscripts and in collection development.

With a catalogued inventory of over thirty thousand items, and a general inventory of over sixty-five thousand items, we are among the leading specialists in the fields of Americana and world travel, and maintain a large and eclectic inventory of literary first editions and antiquarian books of the 18th through 20th centuries.

We issue frequent, and substantial, catalogues in our fields of specialization.

Glossary

Glossary

Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:

Spine: The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
Gilt: The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
Rubbing: Abrasion or wear to the surface. Usually used in reference to a book's boards or dust-jacket.
Quarto: The term quarto is used to describe a page or book size. A printed sheet is made with four pages of text on each side, and the...