[DICKENS, CHARLES]. A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas. With Illustrations by John Leech. London: Chapman and Hall, Limited. MDCCCXLIV. [1844].
Sixth edition. Hardcover. Full cloth. Small octavo (170 x 110 mm.), pp. [10], 166, (2). Bound in publisher's original red-orange cloth with blind stamped covers and front cover and spine stamped in gilt with wreath decoration and titles, all page edges gilt. Chalk-glazed yellow endpapers, title-page printed in red and blue, half-title printed in blue, illustrated with 4 hand colored engraved plates by John Leech and 4 black and white illustrations by W. .J. Linton, "Stave One" as the first chapter heading, 2pp. publisher's advertisements at rear. Condition: Binding tight and secure. Boards darkened and lightly soiled, corners rubbed and rounded, slightly frayed at spine base and minor loss at spine head. Previous owner's name on front and rear endpapers, which are patchily stained. Small portion of top outer corner missing from title-page. Some browning, foxing and spot marks throughout. A very scarce, early edition of Dickens' most famous work. See Smith II, 4.
