A Christmas Carol | 1843, first edition, first issue, in the original cloth.

A rare first edition, first issue of A Christmas Carol in the original brown cloth, the holly-and-ivy boards gleaming exactly as Dickens intended when he set out to rescue both his career and Christmas in a single book. This is the true first appearance of the text, since unlike Dickens’s other novels, it never appeared in serial form.

All the first issue points are here. Stave I as the opening chapter. The date in Roman numerals. The unbroken D in Dickens on the upper cover. The correct 15mm spacing between the gilt wreath and the blind-stamped border. And the scarce pale green endpapers that collectors always look for but rarely find. The book is complete with the four hand-coloured plates by John Leech, whose Scrooge and Marley have shaped the visual imagination of Christmas for more than a century.

Condition is strong: Only defects to mention are light rubbing, a repaired spine head, a few small marks to the boards, and the usual gentle toning to the plates. The text is crisp, the cloth still lively, the gilt bright. An excellent example of this iconic work.

A Christmas Carol is one of the most influential stories ever written. Dickens wrote it in a six week blaze of inspiration in late 1843 and effectively invented the modern idea of Christmas in the process. Copies like this, in original cloth and in first issue state, are increasingly difficult to find in collectible condition. Eckel was right when he called it the greatest Christmas book ever written in any language.

Please note that this copy will be exhibited during my talks at Soho House later this month. If purchased, it would be shipped on the 19th of December.