The Hobbit — 1938 US first impression, first state

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, first US edition, first impression, first state, with the bowing Hobbit on the title page.

This is the rarest state of the first US edition. This book shows the first-state features: the Wilderland map at the front and the Lonely Mountain map at the back, reversing the order given in the list of illustrations, and Chapter VII incorrectly headed ‘Chapter VI’. The margins are ample and the typesetting is well crafted for readability.

The tan cloth is lettered in blue, with the bowing Hobbit emblem on the front and the dwarf’s hood emblem on the spine printed in red. Illustrated with four colour plates and black-and-white illustrations by Tolkien, all present and in extremely clean and bright condition. This is also the first edition to feature the ‘Bilbo Wakes Up’ plate. Hammond & Anderson [A3b]. The text block and maps are very clean and bright, with only the lightest foxing on a few pages.

Condition

There is a previous owner’s gift inscription and some staining to the front and back boards. The inscription is dated 25 December 1938. The edges and corners of the boards are not bumped. The original cloth shows some shelf wear along the bottom edge; overall the boards are very clean, with no loss or frayed edges.

I have provided a one-piece facsimile of the very rare first dust jacket to protect and show off this lovely classic of modern fiction. The jacket is a facsimile, not the original 1938 jacket.

A first-state US Hobbit with the bowing Hobbit on the title page, Tolkien’s four colour plates and a protective facsimile dust jacket.

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