Les Miserables by Victor Hugo (in One Volume) 1869.

Size: 11 1/2 x 8 3/8 x 1 1/2 in. 

This is an early printing of Les Miserables, the epic French historical novel by Victor Hugo that is considered to be one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. Hugo began working on the novel in 1846 and it was first published on March 31, 1862. Beginning in 1815 and culminating in the June Rebellion of 1832 in Paris, the novel follows the lives and interactions of several characters, particularly the struggles of ex-convict Jean Valjean and his experience of redemption, and this copy was published in the original French in Paris in 1869 by J Hetzel and A. Lacroix.  

It is 3/4 bound, with five raised bands, gilt lettering and gilt decorations on the spine, marbled boards and endpapers, and the book has probably been rebound with the original wrapps intact inside. The wrapps in front says it was illustrated with 200 designs by Brion and it is the complete work, conforming entirely to the first editions (“Illustres 200 Dessins par Brion, Ouvrage Complet Entierement conforme aux premieres editions”), followed by the half-title, a frontis drawing of L’Herbe Cache et La Plume Efface, then the title page, a one-page Preface, and 799 pages of text as called for in the Hetzel edition, the Table of Contents on page 799 ("Tables Des Matieres”), the next page shows the works of Victor Hugo illustrated by different people (“Ouvrages Illustres De Victor Hugo”), followed by the wrapps cover in back, two blank endpapers and the marbled endpapers at the rear, and each page of text has two columns with black-ruled borders.  

The most famous illustrations of Les Miserables were done by French painter and illustrator Gustave Brion (1824 - 1877), and the engravings in the book here were done by Yon and Perrichon.  

Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885) was one of the most important French authors of the 19th century, he was also a poet, playwright and politician, and his most famous works are the novels The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Les Miserables. 

The book here is complete and measures 11 1/2 x 8 3/8 inches wide and is in good condition, except for the two wrapps covers in front and back. The binding of the marbled boards is tight and the pages and text are rather clean, with occasional brown spots, there is rubbing on the raised bands, the edges of the spine, and at the tips, with some scuff marks near the bottom, and the wrapps covers in front and back are both loose and fragile and the wrapps cover in back is dark on both sides.  

The Hetzel editions are rare, especially in wrapps, We found only seven copies listed online, and the first hardback editions from 1862 range in price from $3200 up to $91,000.

#6153