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White-Jacket; or The World in a Man-of-War
by Melville, Herman
- Used
- near fine
- first
- Condition
- Near fine
- Seller
-
Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
New York: Harper and Brothers, 1850. First American Edition, First Printing. Leather bound. Near fine. First American edition of White-Jacket, or The World in a Man-of-War by Herman Melville.. Octavo, vii, [2], 10-465pp. Finely bound in three-quarter navy blue morocco, blue cloth boards. Five raised bands with gilt embellishments, title in gilt on spine. Thin gilt trim to boards, top edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Solid text block, light wear to hinges, faint foxing to edges, near fine. Previous ownership inscription in pencil on pages 9 and 241. A first issue, with the quote from "Good Sea Captain" preceding the author's note, the author's note dated "New York March, 1850," signature "Q*" on page 36, and signature "T" not marked on page 433pp. (BAL 13662). Herman Melville (1819-1891) wrote White-Jacket based on his experience as a seaman aboard the frigate USS United States from 1843 to 1844. It is considered Melville's most political work, primarily due to his description of and commentary on flogging as punishment in the navy. The book joined an ongoing legal discussion of the practice, and Melville's detailed narrative in Chapter 33 added to public outrage. The book was released in the United States in March of 1850, and by September 28th an Act was approved by Congress stating: "Provided, That flogging in the navy, and on board vessels of commerce, be, and the same is hereby, abolished from and after the passage of this act." White-Jacket was published one year before Moby Dick, Melville's novel that was initially a commercial failure, but is now considered a vital piece of American literature.
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Details
- Bookseller
- The First Edition Rare Books, LLC
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 14028
- Title
- White-Jacket; or The World in a Man-of-War
- Author
- Melville, Herman
- Illustrator
- First American edition of White-Jacket, or The World in a Man-of-War by Herman Melville.
- Format/Binding
- Leather bound
- Book Condition
- Used - Near fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- First American Edition, First Printing
- Publisher
- Harper and Brothers
- Place of Publication
- New York
- Date Published
- 1850
- Keywords
- first edition Herman Melville, first edition Moby Dick, Rockwell Kent first edition, Rockwell Kent Illustrated Moby Dick, Rockwell Kent Moby Dick
Terms of Sale
The First Edition Rare Books, LLC
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- Please notify us before returning merchandise by email or phone.
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- Deferred billing available upon request.
About the Seller
The First Edition Rare Books, LLC
Biblio member since 2017
Cincinnati, Ohio
About The First Edition Rare Books, LLC
The First Edition offers collectors the finest assortment of rare and notable books from around the world.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- Top Edge Gilt
- Top edge gilt refers to the practice of applying gold or a gold-like finish to the top of the text block (the edges the pages...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Cloth
- "Cloth-bound" generally refers to a hardcover book with cloth covering the outside of the book covers. The cloth is stretched...
- Edges
- The collective of the top, fore and bottom edges of the text block of the book, being that part of the edges of the pages of a...
- Octavo
- Another of the terms referring to page or book size, octavo refers to a standard printer's sheet folded four times, producing...
- 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...
- Raised Band(s)
- Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
- 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....
- Text Block
- Most simply the inside pages of a book. More precisely, the block of paper formed by the cut and stacked pages of a book....
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