FIRST EDITION OF THOREAU’S EXCURSIONS

THOREAU, Henry David. Excursions. Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1863. Small octavo, original recased green blind-stamped cloth, gilt lettering on spine, edges gilt, original brown endpapers retained. $2000.

First edition, in original cloth with steel-engraved frontispiece portrait.

Excursions was collected from various sources by Thoreau's sister, Sophia E. Thoreau. It was published the year after Thoreau's death and includes a eulogy delivered at his funeral by Emerson, here included as a preface. After leaving Walden Pond, Thoreau became more of a naturalist, taking trips to Cape Cod and Canada and using his experiences as material for an article entitled "Excursion to Canada" in Putnam's Monthly in 1853. "He toured Cape Cod on foot late in 1849, spent a week in Canada in 1850, went in 1853 on his second journey into Maine. Four of his posthumous books derive…from these expeditions: Excursions (1863), The Maine Woods (1864), Cape Cod (1865), and A Yankee in Canada (1866)." Only 1588 copies were printed in the first edition, of which 1500 were bound. BAL 20111. Borst A3.1.a.

Scattered foxing and soiling to text, original cloth with light wear, minor restoration to spine ends. A very good copy.