Books

New York: John B. Alden, 1892. Very good.. Gilded Age edition in an elaborately constructed vernacular dust jacket, with an original watercolor painted onto the front panel, and incorporating silk ribbons. Though somewhat out of favor with critics after the Civil War, Hawthorne's star rose again in the last quarter of the 19th century in part due to the championing of major American voices like Henry James, who was instrumental in getting Hawthorne published as one of the first American writers in Morely's canon-making English Men of Letters series. This copy of a cheap, popular edition of Hawthorne's best-known work shows evidence an anonymous owner's interaction with the object, embellishing it with a custom protective jacket that has been beautifully hand painted – clearly a special project by the owner. A striking example of a 19th-century owner's personal book customization. 7.75'' x 4.75''. Original cloth enclosed in custom homemade dust jacket with original watercolor on…

The Scarlet Letter, published in 1850, is considered one of Nathaniel Hawthorne's most famous works. It is a historical romance set in the puritanical Massachusetts Bay Colony during the mid-17th century.