The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, And other Sketches (Presentation copy)
by Twain, Mark [Samuel L. Clemens]
$95,000 · Offered by Biblio
First edition · Signed
New York: C. H. Webb, 1867. First edition. Good. Presentation copy, inscribed on the blank recto of the advertisement leaf: "With compliments of Mark Twain New York, May 9, 1867." The original recipient's name has been torn away (and the advertisement leaf has been repaired with a section from another first edition copy). The novel was published in April 25, 1867, making this one of the earliest presentation copies known. The copy Twain presented to his mother was dated May 1st, and two other copies were dated May 10th (the day Twain gave a lecture at the Brooklyn Athenaeum). This copy last sold in 1991 at Christies in the Chester L. Davis sale. Another early presentation copy for John Stanton (Cory O'Lanus) sold in 2004 for $114,000. First edition, first issue of Mark Twains first book. This copy features the gilt stamp of the leaping frog in the lower left corner, rather than centered on the board; it has all of the points of a first issue as delineated by BAL, including the leaf of ads by the title page and unbroken type on pages 21, 66 and 198. The book has been carefully restored with a new spine (with the original spine laid down) and new endpapers. There is faint dampstaining throughout and the dampstaining to the inscribed leaf matches up with the rest of the book. Pencil notations to verso of final blank, including what looks like a name: C. Wood. And while it is not the only known presentation copy of Jumping Frog, this is undoubtedly one of a handful of copies of
- Publisher: C. H. Webb
- Year: 1867
- Edition: First Edition
- Binding: unknown
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