- Used
Seller: Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA), McMinnville, OR, U.S.A.Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
AbeBooks seller since March 21, 2000
Condition: Used
£ 5,600.26
Quantity: 1 available
Add to basketItem description from seller
183 x 112 mm. (7 1/4 x 4 1/2"). 4 (ads), iv, 322 pp. Early 20th century polished calf, covers with double gilt fillet border, rosette cornerpieces, smooth spine divided into panels by chain roll, two panels with gilt bird dangling a flower garland from its beak, two panels with repeating dotted lines and cresting rolls, two with red morocco labels, gilt-rolled turn-ins, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. WITH A CUSTOMS DOCUMENT SIGNED BY HAWTHORNE (dated 2 April 1849) bound in before first page of ads. BAL 7600; Clark A.16.1. Half a dozen faint scratches to calf, occasional minor spots or smudges, but A FINE COPY, clean and fresh internally, in a virtually unworn binding. A lot of "firsts" here: our copy of the first edition, first issue of Hawthorne's first important novel--which is generally recognized as the first major American work of fiction--comes with evidence that the first great American novelist was once a struggling writer. Described by Day as "Hawthorne's masterpiece and one of the world's greatest novels," "The Scarlet Letter" (Hawthorne's second publication, after the 1828 anonymously published "Fanshawe") probes the nature of sin, guilt, repentance, and salvation. Set in Salem in the early years of the Massachusetts Colony, the story tells of the scarlet "A" (standing for "adultery") embroidered on the dress of Hester Prynne, and the secret "A" searing the heart of her child's father, the seemingly saintly Reverend Dimmesdale. According to ANB, "Hawthorne's tightly plotted, densely symbolic, and psychologically probing story of concealed and revealed sin in seventeenth-century Boston is his most serious work of moral and cultural history. In his day as in ours, readers struggle to understand its main characters in the context of a repressive society. Arguably, Hawthorne's greatest achievement is his heroine, Hester Prynne." One of the major figures in the history of literature in the United States, Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-64) was among those who first inspired the idea of "American literature," a national literature that could take its place alongside its well-established European forebears. Probably more than any other writer of stature in 19th century America, Hawthorne combined vivid imagination with careful, structured craft. And yet our volume contains a signed custom house document, a relic from the days when Hawthorne was unable to make his living by writing alone. As ANB notes, Hawthorne's political appointment to the position of surveyor of the Salem Custom House in April 1946 "relieved [his] immediate financial worries." Fortunately, just a year after he signed the document here, publication of this novel allowed him the financial freedom to leave Salem behind forever. Hawthorne was helped by his best friend Franklin Pierce (later U.S. president) and other Democratic Party friends to get the job, but when the Whig Party took over Washington in 1848, he lost his position. According to the Salem Maritime website, "He turned the pain, anger, and betrayal he felt into his first great novel . . . . In the introduction to the novel, he describes the Salem Custom House and pretends to find the story among the papers of a previous surveyor." The document here is one very appealing addition, and the book's (unsigned but very fine) binding is another especially desirable feature. FIRST EDITION, First Issue, with advertisements dated March 1, 1850, and with the misprint on p. 21, line 20 "reduplicate" for "repudiate.".…
Seller Inventory # ST20332
Bibliographic details
- Title
- THE SCARLET LETTER
- Author
- HAWTHORNE, NATHANIEL
- Publisher
- Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, Boston
- Publication year
- 1850
- Dimensions
- 183 x 112 mm. (7 1/4 x 4 1/2")
- Seller catalogs
- Americana, Literature
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
McMinnville, OR, U.S.A.
Shipping rates within U.S.A.
| Item | 2 to 7 business days | 2 to 4 business days |
|---|---|---|
| First item | £ 7.47 | £ 11.20 |
Payment methods
- Bank Wire Transfer
- Check
- Money Order
Specialty
Early Printing, Bindings, English Literature, Illuminated Manuscripts, Rare Books, Fine Illustrated Books, American Literature, Press Books, IncunablesAssociation member
Seller's business information
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA)
OR, U.S.A.
Terms of sale
Payment: We accept checks, money orders, Visa, Master Card, American Express and wire transfers. If you are a first time customer, we wait for payment to be received before sending out your order.
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Returns: Your satisfaction is unconditionally guaranteed. If you buy an item from us and discover that you are not satisfied with it, you may return it within 10 days of receipt for a refund, so long as the item has not been damaged.
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books
2205 NW Nut Tree Lane
PO Box 504
McMinnville, OR 97128
Email: info@pirages.com
Ph: 800-962-6666 or 503-472-0476
Fax: 503-472-5029
Tax ID No. 93-1163989
Employees: Cokie Anderson, Michal Alkoff, David Clark, Tammy Opheim
Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books is a sole proprietorship.
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If you are a consumer you can withdraw from the contract in accordance with the following. Consumer means any natural person who is acting for purposes which are outside his trade, business, craft or profession.
Information regarding the right of withdrawal
Statutory right to withdraw
You have the right to withdraw from this contract within 14 days without giving any reason.
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If you withdraw from this contract, we will reimburse to you all payments received from you, including the costs of delivery (except for the supplementary costs arising if you chose a type of delivery other than the least expensive type of standard delivery offered by us).
We may make a deduction from the reimbursement for loss in value of any goods supplied, if the loss is the result of unnecessary handling by you.
We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 14 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to withdraw from this contract.
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We may withhold reimbursement until we have received the goods back, or you have supplied evidence of having sent back the goods, whichever is the earliest.
You shall send back the goods or hand them over to Phillip J. Pirages Rare Books (ABAA), McMinnville, Oregon, U.S.A., without undue delay and in any event not later than 14 days from the day on which you communicate your withdrawal from this contract to us. The deadline is met if you send back the goods before the period of 14 days has expired. You will have to bear the direct cost of returning the goods. You are only liable for any diminished value of the goods resulting from the handling other than what is necessary to establish the nature, characteristics and functioning of the goods.
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Shipping costs are based on books weighing 2.2 LB, or 1 KG. If your book order is heavy or oversized, we may contact you to let you know extra shipping is required.