Mistress Branican

Second printing of the first illustrated edition. 83 drawings by Benett, 12 colored plates hors-texte, 2 colored maps. Catalogue FX in fine.
Publisher's binding known as "Au portrait imprimé", this being its first appearance. At the bottom of the upper plate "Collection hetzel" appears on a black background; copies with a red background constitute the very first illustrated edition, while this represents the definitive version of the binding, published however in the same year. Second plate of Lenègre type e, with the medallion on black background.
Handsome first plate, with beautiful red gilt. Spine sunned, with faded colors. Headcaps rubbed and depressed. Second plate good with an area of scratches and a small black stain. One corner slightly bent, the others sharp and straight. Some scattered foxing in an otherwise fresh copy.
Adventure novel set mainly in Australia whose heroine is a woman searching for her missing husband. The original title of the novel was to be Lady Franklin, as Jules Verne wished to write a tribute to all women in general and to Sir John Franklin's wife in particular, who devoted her life to finding her husband who disappeared on the path to conquering the North Pole and also devoted her entire fortune to this cause, unfortunately in vain.