Available Copies from Independent Booksellers
Price: US$50.00 + shipping
Description: Folio, complete issue, removed from binding, else very good. Nearly a column and a half of text from Chapter 92, "The Last of the Jacket." The novel was published in New York by Harpers on March 21, 1850.
Seller: Rulon-Miller Books (ABAA / ILAB), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman.. White-Jacket; Or, the World in a Man-Of-War.. New York: Harper & Brothers., 1850.
Price: US$500.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: 8vo., 465 pp., Good, Original Brown Cloth, rebound with new brown cloth spine, printed paper label affixed to spine, & cloth tape along gutters of original end papers; significant loss on bottom of back board, sun-fading, stains, rubbing, and edge wear on boards; splitting along gutters in several parts of the text; pencil scribbles on end papers; staining & foxing throughout text, on end papers and edges of text block; shelf wear. Provenance: John Ruyle (bookplate); previous owners' signatures on front end paper & second FFEP. Bibliographic analysis suggests this is a Mixed Copy, with elements of the First Edition First Printing and another 1850 printing.
Seller: Wittenborn Art Books, San Francisco, CA, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman. White Jacket. Harper and Brothers, 1850.
Price: US$550.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: Rebound in plain gray cloth covered boards. Quarter bound in shiney black leather spine and bright gold design and lettering on spine. The corners of this leather are a bit worn. 1850 on title page and at base of spine in gold. "Q" at bottom of page 361. "T" at bottom of page 433. Four pages of ads for Melville books in the back followed by ten pages of ads for other books. Pages show some foxing. No odor or brittleness.
Seller: Indian Hills Books, Blountville, TN, U.S.A.
Herman Melville. White Jacket or The World in a Man-Of-War. Harper & Brothers, 1850.
Price: US$700.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: Hardback book titled WHITE JACKET, or, The World in a Man-of-War by Herman Melville. Published by Harper and Brothers in 1850 - first American edition. With light yellow endpapers. Seven line Note opposite Contents page - bottom margin of page 361 the letter Q with asterisk - on page 433 no letter T on margin - after page 465 six pages of ads with the first four featuring Melville titles. Harper and Brothers, New York blind-stamped front and back board. Boards show wear with two inch split front and back edge of spine with small cut middle of spine - small amount of chipping at both ends of spine - tips worn - moderate soiling on endpapers - moderate to heavy foxing throughout. Bookseller since 1995 (LL-desk-top) rareviewbooks Language: eng
Seller: rareviewbooks, Kensington, MD, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman. WHITE-JACKET; OR THE WORLD IN A MAN-OF-WAR. Harper & Brothers, New York, 1850.
Price: US$1000.00 + shipping
Description: Octavo, [i-viii], [9]-465, 6 pages advertisements. In Good minus condition. Bound in brown cloth with faded gilt lettering on spine. Boards show part of spine missing from head edge, tail edge of spine chipped off, tearing to front joint, exposed boards at corners and along edges, moderate edge wear and shelf wear. Binding somewhat loose. Text block has moderate foxing to pages, rubbing to endpapers and pastedowns, and writing in pen on second page. First Printing indicated by pagination and signature collation, including missigned Q*. BAL 13662. Shelved in Room A. 1372604. Special Collections.
Seller: Second Story Books, ABAA, Rockville, MD, U.S.A.
Price: US$1200.00 + shipping
Condition: Good
Description: 19.5 x 13 cm. Crown octavo. viii 463pp [6]. First American edition, first printing with 6 pages of terminal advertisements, mis-signatured "Q*" on page 361, and other points mentioned in BAL. Bound in publisher's brown blind-stamped cloth with gilt spine lettering, 2 white wove fly leaves (BAL calls this the second cloth binding). Scattered foxing throughout. Name on front free endpaper. Chipping and a closed tear to head of spine. BAL 13662.
Seller: Midway Book Store (ABAA), St. Paul, MN, U.S.A.
MELVILLE, HERMAN.. White-Jacket. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1850, 1850.
Price: US$2000.00 + shipping
Description: First American Edition; first printing; first cloth binding. Some foxing; bottom of spine a little chipped; cloth mended at the outer joint of the back cover; minor mend at the top of the spine; overall a very good copy. All books described as first editions are first printings unless otherwise noted.
Seller: Peter L. Stern & Co., Inc, Newton, MA, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman. White Jacket; or the World in a Man-Of-War. Harper & Brothers, New York, 1850.
Price: US$2200.00 + shipping
Condition: Very Good
Description: First edition, first printing. Bound in publisher's brown cloth decorated in blind with spine lettered in gilt. Very Good or better, with fraying to spine ends and wear at corners. Former owner bookplate to front paste down, and light pencil ownership name to a preliminary blank. Sporadic foxing throughout, heaviest at the preliminary and terminal pages. A lovely copy.
Seller: Burnside Rare Books, ABAA, Portland, OR, U.S.A.
Price: US$2800.00 + shipping
Description: First edition, first printing with 6pp. of publisherâs advertisements, brown cloth with Harper and Brothers New York stamped at center. In very good condition, previous ownership inscription, bookplates.
Seller: Raptis Rare Books, Palm Beach, FL, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman. White-Jacket; or The World in a Man-of-War. Harper and Brothers, New York, 1850.
Price: US$2800.00 + shipping
Condition: Near Fine
Description: Octavo, vii, [2], 10-465pp. Finely bound in three-quarter navy blue morocco, blue cloth boards. Five raised bands with gilt embellishments, title in gilt on spine. Thin gilt trim to boards, top edge gilt. Marbled endpapers. Solid text block, light wear to hinges, faint foxing to edges, near fine. Previous ownership inscription in pencil on pages 9 and 241. A first issue, with the quote from "Good Sea Captain" preceding the author's note, the author's note dated "New York March, 1850," signature "Q*" on page 36, and signature "T" not marked on page 433pp. (BAL 13662). Herman Melville (1819-1891) wrote White-Jacket based on his experience as a seaman aboard the frigate USS United States from 1843 to 1844. It is considered Melville's most political work, primarily due to his description of and commentary on flogging as punishment in the navy. The book joined an ongoing legal discussion of the practice, and Melville's detailed narrative in Chapter 33 added to public outrage. The book was released in the United States in March of 1850, and by September 28th an Act was approved by Congress stating: "Provided, That flogging in the navy, and on board vessels of commerce, be, and the same is hereby, abolished from and after the passage of this act." White-Jacket was published one year before Moby Dick, Melville's novel that was initially a commercial failure, but is now considered a vital piece of American literature.
Seller: The First Edition Rare Books, LLC, Cincinnati, OH, U.S.A.
Melville, Herman. White-Jacket. Harper & Brothers, New York, 1850.
Price: US$4750.00 + shipping
Condition: Fine
Description: First American Edition, First Printing, with the publisher's ads present at the end of the book. A beautiful copy. The book is bound in the ORIGINAL publisher's brown cloth with some repair. The binding is tight with NO cocking or leaning and the boards are crisp with minor wear. The pages have some discoloration and light wear that is expected for a 150 year old book. There is NO writing, marks or bookplates in the book. A superb copy housed in a custom clamshell slipcase for preservation. We buy Melville First Editions.
Seller: Magnum Opus Rare Books, Missoula, MT, U.S.A.