Celebrating the Bible in Black History

Uncle Tom’s Cabin; A Tale of Life among the Lowly

By: Harriet Beecher Stowe

Collection ID
PBK.006731
Type
Printed Book
Date
1852
Geography
London, (England)
Language
English
Medium
Printed on Paper
Dimensions
7.25 × 4.9 × 1.3 in. (18.4 × 12.5 × 3.4 cm)
Exhibit Location
Not on View

This influential book, first printed in 1852, was written by Harriet Beecher Stowe and featured the main character of Uncle Tom, a black slave. It was so popular that the book became the best-selling novel of the nineteenth century and the second best-selling nineteenth-century book of any genre other than the Bible. For its day, it was a radical look at slavery, helping to bolster the abolitionist movement. Recent years have seen it criticized for possibly creating or reinforcing racial stereotypes of the period. This single-volume copy is one of the first London editions and is bound in decorated gray cloth.

Published in 1852 by George Routledge & Co., London, England.[1] Acquired by Stassin & Xavier, bookseller, Paris, France.[2] Acquired by M. Mahuel.[3] Acquired by 2019 by Ted Steinbock, private collector, Louisville, Kentucky; Privately purchased in 2020 by Museum of the Bible, Washington, DC.

Notes: [1] A bookplate found on the rear pastedown reads, “Leighton, Son & Hodge. Shoe Lane, London.” Leighton, Son & Hodge was a bookbinding firm in London during the mid-to-late 1800s. [2] The bookseller ticket for Stassin & Xavier appears on the front pastedown. [3] M. Mahuel’s name is handwritten on the front endpaper.

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