Moby-Dick c.1930 | Herman Melville | Mead Schaeffer Illustrated Hodder Edition
 
Circa 1930 Hodder & Stoughton Moby-Dick illustrated by Mead Schaeffer. Complete with colour plates, decorative binding, and illustrated endpapers.
 
Key Features
 
Circa 1930 illustrated edition of Moby-Dick; or, The White Whale
Illustrated throughout by Mead Schaeffer
Colour illustrated pastedowns and front free endpaper
Illustrated title page
12 colour plates including colour frontispiece, all present
Publisher’s decorative green cloth binding with gilt and black design
A highly regarded 20th-century illustrated classic of American literature
 
Bibliographic Details
 
Author: Herman Melville (1819-1891)
Illustrator: Mead Schaeffer
Title: Moby-Dick; or, The White Whale
Publisher: Hodder and Stoughton Limited
Place of Publication: London
Date: Circa 1930 (undated; securely dated by bibliographic consensus)
Format: Illustrated cloth-bound volume
Pagination: 540 pages
Illustrations: Illustrated title page; colour illustrated endpapers; colour frontispiece; colour plates facing pp. 16, 76, 108, 144, 200, 222, 296, 354, 382, 438, 470
Dimensions: Approx. 24 × 18 × 4.5 cm
Weight: Approx. 1,236 g
 
Exterior Condition
 
Bound in the original green cloth over boards and spine. The front board features a gilt illustration of a ship at sea, matching the illustrated title page, with black title lettering. The spine carries gilt lettering for title, author, illustrator, and publisher.
 
The binding is intact, firm, and visually attractive. Condition shows gentle age-related wear, including very soft bumping and rubbing at the corners, light rubbing along edges, and a few light surface marks. Overall, a well-preserved example of this substantial illustrated edition.
 
Interior Condition
 
Pages are lightly tanned, as expected, with light foxing to the endpapers and some preliminary pages. There are no pen or pencil inscriptions. A small mark appears near the front but does not appear to be ink.
 
The text block is predominantly clean and uncreased, with only occasional light marks or foxing not affecting text or illustrations. A very small edge tear is present at the top edge of page 327 and the facing page, without text loss. There are a few light gutter cracks between some pages, but all pages remain secure.
 
All illustrations and plates are present and accounted for.
 
About the Book
 
Moby-Dick stands as one of the towering achievements of world literature, a profound exploration of obsession, fate, and humanity’s struggle against the natural world. This Hodder & Stoughton illustrated edition elevates Melville’s epic through the dramatic visual imagination of Mead Schaeffer, whose maritime illustrations capture both the grandeur and menace of the sea.
 
Produced during the golden age of illustrated classics, this edition was intended as a deluxe yet accessible presentation, combining scholarly respect for the text with striking artistic interpretation.
 
About the Author
 
Herman Melville was an American novelist and poet, best known for Moby-Dick, now regarded as a masterpiece of world literature.
 
Rarity & Market Context
 
This Hodder & Stoughton edition illustrated by Mead Schaeffer is a scarce and highly collected early 20th-century illustrated issue of Moby-Dick. While not a first edition, it represents one of the most visually accomplished English illustrated editions of the novel.
 
Copies complete with all colour plates, illustrated endpapers, and sound bindings are increasingly difficult to source.
 
Collector Notes
 
Complete, illustrated copies of this edition are increasingly sought after
Mead Schaeffer’s work is especially valued by collectors of maritime and American literary illustration
A substantial and display-worthy volume
Particularly appealing to collectors of illustrated classics and Melville editions