TWICE-TOLD TALES

Hawthorne, Nathaniel. TWICE-TOLD TALES. Boston: American Stationers, 1837. First edition, with 4pp. of ads at front and 12pp. at rear (copies are also found with 16pp. of ads at rear; no priority). Original faded old rose cloth, embossed with quatrefoil ornaments, gilt. Expertly rebacked preserving the original spine, else a very good tight copy with the usual foxing, and an 1839 ownership inscription. Neither BAL nor Clark record this combination of cloth color and embossed pattern. Hawthorne's first collection of short stories (including many of his best), and his first acknowledged book, printed in an edition of only 1,000 copies at the expense of his friend, Horatio Bridge, who kept his patronage a secret. The American Stationers consortium was dissolved the year after this book was published. Nearly every story included had been previously published as a contribution to THE TOKEN, a gift annual, or elsewhere; hence, the title of the volume. This particular color is apparently never found in unfaded condition, prompting BAL in this unique instance to describe a binding cloth as "faded" in the formal binding description! Recent copies have fetched good sums: Martin copy, grey-green, "some fading and soiling" ($7,150, 1990); Manney copy, black cloth, "carefully recased" ($2,475, 1991; resold privately for $4,500); Epstein copy, brown cloth, "light rubbing, hinges reinforced with paper" ($3,520, 1991). Other copies sold in recent years have been rebound or defective. BAL 7581. Clark A2.1. Grolier American Hundred 44.