Clemens, Samuel L.

37 volumes, 8vo (8 5/8 x 5 3/4 in.; 218 x 146 mm). Title-pages printed in red and black with engraved vignette of a steamboat, frontispieces and plates with red-captioned tissue-guards. Original three-quarter crushed brown morocco over cinnamon cloth, spines gilt in six compartments, wove-patterned endpapers, top edges gilt, others uncut; very light rubbing to extremities of a few volumes.

BAL 3691

37 volumes, 8vo (8 5/8 x 5 3/4 in.; 218 x 146 mm). Title-pages printed in red and black with engraved vignette of a steamboat, frontispieces and plates with red-captioned tissue-guards. Original three-quarter crushed brown morocco over cinnamon cloth, spines gilt in six compartments, wove-patterned endpapers, top edges gilt, others uncut; very light rubbing to extremities of a few volumes.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

The Definitive Edition, number 57 of 1,024 sets, the first volume with a flyleaf with the double signature of the author ("S. L. Clemens | Mark Twain") and an attestation signed by Albert Bigelow Paine, Clemens's biographer and literary executor, that the fly-leaves were signed in 1906 in anticipation of a definitive edition. The first volume also has inserted an autograph leaf from the manuscript of A Tramp Abroad, one page (7 3/4 x 4 3/4 in.; 199 x 121 mm), numbered 1396 and comprising approximately 71 words from Chapter 37. The final eight volumes comprise Paine's biography of Clemens, his selection of letters by the author, and his heavily expurgated edition of Clemens's Autobiography.