Crown Jewels, Or, Gems of Literature, Art and Music : Being Choice Selections from the Writings and Musical Productions of the Most Celebrated Authors from the Earliest Times.. . .

Philadelphia, PA: National Publishing Company, 1888. 1st thus. a Salesman's sample with green embossed pictorial c w/gilt titles and cupids on front, some wear at folds and extremities; orfering info and forms in rear; The back cover is an optional binding and the spine panel also optional in laid in... [Also called dummy books, or "blads." these specimen books were used by the itinerant agents of subscription publishers to entice customers to agree to purchase a copy of a work in advance of delivery. This form of marketing was common in America during the years just before and after the Civil War. It was unlike the phenomenon of the same name in the eighteenth century, when subscription publishing was used to finance or at least to assure the success of an edition prior to printing.]. 1st. Hardcover. Very Good/No Jacket as Issued. Illus. by Sttel Engravings. 4 vo.