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an old book with a black and white title on itan old book sitting on top of a white table next to a white wall
Maître Paul PASTAUD

383 - Slavery – BEECHER STOWE (Henriette). *Father Tom, or The Lif…
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Estimate €40 - €60
Sale commission
Description
Slavery – BEECHER STOWE (Henriette). *Father Tom, or The Life of the Negroes in America*. Translated by La Bédollière. Paris: Gustave Barba, publisher, 1853. In-12, (4)-324 pp. Contemporary midnight blue half-basane, plain spine with decorative lettering. The book was first published in instalments in 1851 in the *National Era*, an anti-slavery newspaper in Washington; the work was published in book form the following year. In 1853, the book was published in France, and no fewer than ten different translations appeared almost simultaneously. The two most significant are those by Léon de Wailly and Edmond Texier, published by Perrotin, and that by La Bédollière, published by Barba. It is worth noting that the latter translator was the only one to distinguish himself by translating the original title (Uncle Tom’s Cabin) as *Le Père Tom*, which he justified by explaining that: ‘Certain elderly people of honourable character are referred to as uncles or aunts in America, just as they would be called fathers or mothers in France. We say ‘Uncle Tom’ or ‘Aunt Dorcas’, just as we say ‘Father Antoine’ or ‘Mother Jeanne’ [...] If we have omitted the word ‘cabin’ from the title, it is because it is mentioned only incidentally in the course of this work. ’ That same year, Barba published an illustrated octavo edition – featuring the American illustration – which bore the title: *La Case du Père Tom* (probably under pressure from other French editions, which retained the word *Case* in their titles).
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About the sale MONTIGNAC – 31st BOOK SALE – Day 1 of 4 – Nos. 1 to 549
Auction location
Auction time 08/19/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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