Overview:

Author: Edith Wharton
Title: Old New York
Publisher: D. Appleton and Company
Publication Date: 1924
Edition: First Edition, Mixed Printings (Three First Printings, One Third Printing)
Format: Four Volumes, Hardcover
Illustrations and Decorations: Edward C. Caswell

Description

A complete four-volume set of Edith Wharton's Old New York, published in 1924 by D. Appleton and Company. This attractive collection retains all four original illustrated dust jackets and the matching publisher's slipcase.

The set comprises three first printings, identified by the publisher's (1) designation, and one third printing, identified by (3).

Each volume is bound in blue cloth and retains its decorative floral dust jacket, with illustrations and decorations by Edward C. Caswell.

Historical Background

Published in 1924, Old New York is a collection of four interconnected novellas by the Pulitzer Prize-winning American author Edith Wharton, best known for The Age of Innocence and The House of Mirth.

Each novella explores a different decade of nineteenth-century New York society, examining the rigid social expectations, family obligations, personal sacrifices and changing attitudes of the city's wealthy inhabitants.

The collection offers a fascinating portrayal of the social world Wharton knew intimately, particularly the tensions between individual desires and the conventions of established New York families.

The four volumes are:

• False Dawn (The Forties): Set in the 1840s, following a young man's conflict with his father's expectations over the acquisition of European art.

• The Old Maid (The Fifties): Set in the 1850s, exploring family secrets, motherhood and the restrictions placed upon women in respectable society.

• The Spark (The Sixties): Set in the 1860s, examining character, personal history and the legacy of the American Civil War.

• New Year's Day (The Seventies): Set in the 1870s, exploring scandal, reputation and the difference between public appearances and private realities.

Illustrations and Original Presentation

The volumes feature decorative designs by Edward C. Caswell, including the distinctive floral dust jackets and illustrated elements.

Particularly appealing is the survival of the original matching publisher's slipcase, which was designed to house the four volumes together.

Complete sets retaining their original dust jackets and slipcase are especially desirable to collectors of early twentieth-century American literature and illustrated book design.

Condition

A good antique four-volume set, showing age-related wear.

The original blue cloth bindings remain present, with all four decorative dust jackets surviving. The jackets display rubbing, minor tears, edge wear and occasional chipping, consistent with their age.

The original matching slipcase is present, showing wear to the edges and corners.

The interiors appear generally clean and well preserved, with some expected age-related signs of handling.

Dimensions (Of the whole set /w slipcase)

Weight - 1.24kg

Height - 19.2cm

Width - 13.3cm

Thickness - 7.8cm