When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
RARE VINTAGE GEO. W. SHINN D. D. ANTIQUARIAN VOLUME — TWO VERSIONS IN ONE VOLUME — PRINTING ERROR
Title: Pastime Papers: Stories of the Happy Days of Christmas Time
Author: Geo. W. Shinn
Publisher: Thomas Whitaker, New York
Copyright: 1879 (First part); 1885 (Second part)
Binding: Presumed original cloth hardcover
Pages: Mixed pagination due to double content
This is a truly unique and unusual antiquarian volume, ideal for collectors of rare 19th-century Christmas books, printing oddities, or American publishing ephemera. The book containsTWO distinct versions of Pastime Papers bound together — the 1879 edition and the 1885 edition — seamlessly combined in one volume.
The first section opens with Uncle John’s Christmas Party (page 1–24), part of the 1879 collection of heartwarming holiday stories. On page 24, a visible diagonal streak — likely a mechanical printing press error — runs through the text, giving this copy additional character and historical printing interest.
After page 24, the next page is numbered 13 and begins a completely different section titled Notes on Names, consistent with the 1885 edition of Pastime Papers. This suggests that during the printing or binding process, the two editions were mistakenly or intentionally bound together, creating a publisher’s anomaly or binding oddity not commonly seen.
Features:
Printer’s error: Ink streak on page 24, likely caused by press misalignment.
Unusual pagination: Book transitions mid-way from 1879 content to a second version (1885).
Possibly unique binding: No other known copies currently listed with this dual-content structure.
Collectible Christmas content: Early American Christmas literature is a popular niche for collectors.
Condition: Pages are toned but clean, with typical age wear. Binding appears intact and original. No loose pages. The streak on page 24 does not obscure the text significantly.
Provenance & Rarity: A careful search reveals no comparable copies of this dual-edition format on record (WorldCat, AbeBooks, or other rare book sources). This may be a one-of-a-kind binding or a very rare misprint — a fascinating conversation piece and collector’s item.
