DICKENS, CHARLES.  The Christmas Books.  Complete set of 5 volumes in the original cloth bindings.  (Unlike many sets of all five titles, especially in original cloth, all five titles are such that the bindings are in similar condition in terms of color (fading/darkening, soiling, spotting, etc. - NONE), wear (much less than usual at the heads/tails of spines), etc.  - VERY scarce, particularly in this condition.

Comprising:

A Christmas Carol, London:  Bradbury & Evans, 1849.  Twelfth edition.

with

The Chimes, London:  Chapman & Hall, 1845.  First edition.

with

The Cricket on the Hearth, London:  Bradbury & Evans, 1846.  First edition.

with

The Battle of Life (A Love Story), London:  Bradbury & Evans, 1846.  First edition.

with

The Haunted Man (and the Ghost’s Bargain), London:  Bradbury & Evans, 1848.  First edition.

A very bright and clean complete set of the five Christmas books, all in the original cloth bindings.  A Christmas Carol is the twelfth edition published in 1845 and is identical in format to the first edition of 1843 except that the title page has some differences (“Twelfth Edition” appears below the holly sprig, the publishers name is altered to "Bradbury & Evans" rather than "Chapman & Hall", and the date is 1849, not 1843), the text has been corrected, and the cloth is the brighter red used for the other four titles (the first edition was in a duller cinnamon-colored cloth).  The other four titles are all first editions.

Condition:

A Christmas Carol:  The original cloth binding is in very nice condition with less wear to the head and tail of the spine than usually encountered; small 1/2" tear to the bottom of the lower front joint, a tiny portion of the front head of the spine (about 1/4" or so) is missing (see image); usual bumping/rubbing to corners (mostly minor); some spotting/soiling to boards, though overall much brighter/cleaner than usual; gilt on the spine and front board remains exceptionally bright.  Internally, a bright and clean copy with none of the usual foxing to either the text or the plates; none of the usual off-setting of the hand-colored plates onto facing pages - indeed all plates are tissue-separated from the facing text pages.  No bookplates, inscriptions, signatures, etc., although there is a library stamp to the upper right of the rear pastedown (see last image); front free endpaper is lacking.  Overall, an exceptional copy - particularly internally, where it is extremely fresh, bright, and clean.

The Chimes:  The original cloth binding is in generally nice condition with only very minor wear to the head and tail of the spine and to the extremities; there is some sort of water-marking to the front board (see image) and some general soiling to the cloth; gilt on the spine and front board remains bright.  Internally, a bright and clean copy with none of the usual foxing to either the text or the plates; there is some damp-staining to the versos of the frontis and engraved title but the plates themselves are relatively unaffected (see image).  No bookplates, inscriptions, signatures, etc.  Overall, a very attractive copy.  (Usual 2nd issue with the publisher's information below the cloud on the engraved title page.) 

The Cricket on the Hearth:  The original cloth binding is in excellent condition with essentially none of the wear to the head and tail of the spine usually encountered; usual bumping/rubbing to corners (minor); gilt on the spine and front board remains bright.  Internally, a bright and clean copy with none of the usual foxing to either the text or the plates.  Small bookseller’s label affixed to bottom of front pastedown, inscription dated “Xmas, 1845” to front free endpaper, and small bookplate affixed to verso of half-title.  Overall, an exceptional copy.  (2nd state of the Oliver Twist advertisement leaf at the rear.) 

The Battle of Life:  The original cloth binding is in excellent condition with only a few small (less than 1/2") splits near the top/bottom of the joints; very minor bumping/rubbing to corners; gilt on the spine and front board remains bright.  Internally, a bright and clean copy with only the faintest of foxing/spotting to the preliminaries (i.e. only up to the title page).  Inscription dated “December [18]52” to front free endpaper.  Overall, an exceptional copy.  (Usual 4th state of the engraved title page.)

The Haunted Man:  The original cloth binding is in very nice condition; it has been rebacked with (all but the bottom 1/4" of) the original spine laid-down (see image); new darker endpapers; usual bumping/rubbing to corners (minor); gilt on the spine and front board remains bright.  Internally, generally a bright and clean copy with only the occasional spot of foxing to some pages toward the rear.  No bookplates, inscriptions, signatures, etc.  Overall, a very nice copy.  (1st issue/state; there are no others for this title.)

In summary, a highly desirable set of Dickens’ beloved Christmas books, in the original cloth and in generally exceptional condition.  The twelfth edition Carol is particularly desirable given the condition of the cloth and the internal cleanliness.  Overall an excellent set.

Early edition copies of A Christmas Carol (there were fourteen editions published in the original format) in the original cloth typically command prices in the range of $2000-$4000.  Here I am offering an opportunity to acquire not only an early Carol - and a very nice one at that! - but also the other four Christmas books - in  first edition and in the original cloth bindings - with an opening price toward the lower end of that price range.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or require any additional information concerning collation, condition, etc.  and/or for additional images.

I have a relatively large number of Dickens first editions available for sale, including a considerable number of Christmas books, both in sets of all five and as individual titles.  If there area any Dickens titles in particular that you are looking for, please feel free to contact me.

Please take a moment to “View seller’s other items” to check out some of my other Dickens first editions I’m currently selling!

Payment:  I prefer payment via money order, cashier’s check, or personal check (item won’t ship until check has cleared); it is also possible to arrange for bank transfer into my account.  For this auction I will also accept Paypal.

Please note:  If the item is to be shipped to a California address, I must charge California state sales tax.

Shipping:  Domestic shipping will be via USPS priority mail at $18.00.  (Unless it is absolutely demanded by the buyer I would prefer not to send this via media mail.)  Liberal use is made of bubblewrap and other packing materials during packing, and your book will be shipped in a box; unlike all-too-many ebay sellers, I do not believe antiquarian books should ever be shipped in “padded” envelopes.  As this is a valuable set of books, insurance is HIGHLY recommended and will be charged at cost.  If the buyer elects not to purchase insurance, I am, of course, unable to accept any liability for lost or damaged books.  Potential bidders from overseas are invited to contact me for shipping costs - probably about $30-40, depending on class of airmail.  (It may be indicated below that insurance is "Not offered" for domestic shipping, but that is because - in all eBay's wisdom - they insist on inclusion of a fixed price; however, insurance will be charged at cost so, depending what the final value is, the cost will differ.)