Paul the Dauntless Basil Mathews 1934 Illustrated Dust Jacket Prater
 
Title & Bibliographic Details
Title: Paul the Dauntless: The Course of a Great Adventure
Author: Basil Mathews
Illustrator: Ernest Prater
Date: 1934
Edition: Cheaper Edition
Publisher: S. W. Partridge & Co., Ltd.
Printed: Great Britain
 
Originally first published in 1916, this 1934 Cheaper Edition represents the final major interwar printing of Mathews’ popular narrative biography of St Paul. The volume retains its original illustrated dust jacket by Ernest Prater, a feature increasingly scarce in surviving copies.
 
The book includes:
colour frontispiece by Ernest Prater 
multiple maps of St Paul’s journeys 
chronological appendix of Paul’s life (p.437) 
complete 447-page text 
 
Historical & Bibliographic Context
Paul the Dauntless is one of the most successful early twentieth-century narrative biographies of the Apostle Paul written for general and younger readers. Basil Mathews combined historical research with vivid storytelling, presenting Paul’s missionary journeys as a dramatic adventure narrative grounded in geography and archaeology.
Mathews travelled extensively across the eastern Mediterranean, including Cilicia, Syria, Palestine, Cyprus, Asia Minor, Greece, and Italy, to recreate the landscapes of Paul’s journeys with unusual accuracy for a popular religious biography of the period.
 
The book became widely used in:
church education settings 
missionary reading programmes 
interwar school prize libraries 
 
Copies retaining their original illustrated dust jackets are now notably less common.
 
About the Author
Basil Mathews (1879–1951) was a British author, journalist, and missionary historian associated with the London Missionary Society.
 
About the Illustrator
The colour dust jacket and frontispiece are illustrated by Ernest Prater (1864–1950), a respected British illustrator known for historical subjects, imperial and missionary themes, and illustrated religious adventure narratives 
His work significantly enhances the visual appeal and collectability of this edition.
 
Binding & Exterior Description
Original publisher’s black-lettered cloth binding, retained beneath the striking illustrated dust jacket.
 
The dust jacket features:
dramatic colour illustration by Ernest Prater 
publisher’s descriptive flap text 
clipped corner of inner flap
 
Condition:
small tear at foot of spine 
light edge wear 
several light marks 
minor handling wear overall 
 
The cloth boards beneath remain well preserved, protected by the jacket, with:
light edge fading 
slight staining to spine 
gentle softening at head of spine 
 
Overall, an attractive surviving jacketed example.
 
Interior Condition
The interior remains in very good clean condition:
pages thick and crisp 
occasional light foxing 
small scattered marks only 
no significant creasing 
 
Gift inscription to front endpaper:
“With good wishes from Mr. & Mrs. Stewart
Christmas 1938”
 
Light pencil marking to rear endpaper only.
 
Physical Details
Pagination: 447 pages
Dimensions: 20 cm × 13.7 cm × 4.8 cm
Weight: approx. 630g
 
Rarity & Collector Notes
Copies without jackets are common, but complete jacketed examples appear significantly less frequently, particularly in clean condition.
 
Provenance
Gift inscription:
“With good wishes from Mr. & Mrs. Stewart
Christmas 1938”
Such contemporary gift inscriptions reflect the book’s use as a presentation volume during the late interwar period and add appealing historical context to its early readership.