1871 Rare Book - Hans Christian Andersen Tales Illustrated by Stone and Pedersen

Author: Hans Christian Andersen. Illustrated by M. L. Stone and V. Pedersen.
Title: Stories and Tales.
Publisher: New York, Hurd and Houghton; Cambridge, Riverside Press, 1871. Author’s Edition.
Language: Text in English.
Size: 7.5 x 5 inches.
Pages: xix, 532 pages.
Binding: Good to very good original publisher’s copper-coloured cloth binding, richly blind-stamped with geometric decorations to the boards and gilt lettering and ornamentation to the front cover and spine. The upper and lower parts of the spine are worn and scuffed, with light wear to corners and edges, as shown. Binding remains attractive and sound. Protected in a removable mylar cover. 
Content: Very good condition. Clean and well-preserved internally, with light toning and only minor signs of age. Small ink stamp of a previous owner, “Justin Winsor, Cambridge, Mass.,” on the title page, as shown.
Illustrations: Complete with the illustrated frontispiece and the listed black-and-white illustrations by M. L. Stone and V. Pedersen, including scenes from Little Tuk, The Princess on the Pea, The Most Extraordinary Thing, The Little Match Girl, and other Andersen tales.

Estimate: (USD 200 – 250) 

The book: Stories and Tales is a substantial 1871 American “Author’s Edition” of Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved fairy tales and literary stories, published by Hurd and Houghton and printed at the Riverside Press in Cambridge. The volume gathers many of Andersen’s best-known and most enduring works, including Little Tuk, The Ice Maiden, The Elder Tree Mother, The Princess on the Pea, The Old Street Lamp, The Most Extraordinary Thing, The Shepherdess and the Chimney-Sweep, The Rose-Elf, and The Little Match Girl.

This edition is especially attractive for its handsome Victorian red cloth binding, decorated in blind and gilt, and for its suite of illustrations by M. L. Stone and V. Pedersen. The small previous-owner stamp on the title page adds a pleasing period detail without detracting from the presentation of the book.

The author: Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was a Danish author, poet, and master of the literary fairy tale. His stories—often blending tenderness, melancholy, humour, and moral imagination—became central to the tradition of children’s literature while also appealing deeply to adult readers. Among his most famous tales are The Little Mermaid, The Emperor’s New Clothes, The Snow Queen, The Ugly Duckling, The Princess on the Pea, and The Little Match Girl.

The illustrators: M. L. Stone and Vilhelm Pedersen contributed illustrations that helped shape the visual reception of Andersen’s tales in the nineteenth century. Pedersen, in particular, was one of the earliest and most important illustrators of Andersen’s stories, bringing a delicate narrative quality to the fairy-tale world. Their images in this edition add charm, atmosphere, and a strong Victorian pictorial presence to the text.