Celebrating the Bible in Black History
Uncle Tom’s Cabin; A Tale of Life among the Lowly
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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