Jules Verne’s “Mysterious Island” Trilogy Early Illustrated Edition, 1878.

VERNE, Jules. L’Île mystérieuse, Paris: J. Hetzel et Cie, Bibliothèque d’Éducation et de Récréation, 18 rue Jacob, n.d. [c. 1878–1880.] Early illustrated Hetzel edition. Large octavo. 617 pp. Complete one-volume edition of Verne’s celebrated Mysterious Island trilogy: Dropped from the Clouds, Abandoned, and The Secret of the Island. 

Original red polychrome pictorial cloth for the Voyages Extraordinaires series, elaborately stamped in black and gilt with the characteristic central blue title banner associated with the pre-1885 decorative cartonnage states; spine gilt, rear board with decorative panel. All edges gilt; green endpapers. Illustrated with numerous engravings after Férat, with additional plates by Barbant.

A classic early Hetzel cartonnage issue, representing one of the most recognizable decorative bindings of the Voyages Extraordinaires series. The blue banner state, produced during the height of Hetzel’s illustrated program, remains among the most sought-after for its visual appeal and collectability.

Cloth remains bright with moderate rubbing at extremities; binding sound though slightly leaning. Gilt decoration remains clear and well defined. Moderate foxing throughout, consistent with period paper stock; text block complete and internally sound. Large, heavy volume; joints and hinges somewhat stressed.

Often referred to as the "Father of Science Fiction," French novelist Jules Verne had a wide influence on the literary avant-garde and surrealism. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the Voyages Extraordinaires, a widely popular series of well-researched adventure novels including Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873). Verne's The Mysterious Island is a crossover sequel to his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and In Search of the Castaways. An early draft of this novel, initially rejected by Verne's publisher and wholly reconceived before publication, was titled Shipwrecked Family: Marooned with Uncle Robinson, indicating the influence of Defoe's Robinson Crusoe and Johann David Wyss' Swiss Family Robinson.