MARX, Karl. *Capital*. - Lot 245

MARX, Karl. *Capital*. First French edition, first printing—the only edition revised by the author and the last published during his lifetime. Paris, Maurice Lachâtre, n.d. [1875]. Large quarto, green half-basane, smooth spine decorated with four gold fillets. 351 pp., two engraved title pages, a portrait of the author, and a facsimile of his letter to the publisher. Text in two columns. Spine discolored and worn; paper missing from the front cover. A few foxing spots. French first edition translated by Joseph Roy. A copy from the first printing, as evidenced by the mention of the publisher’s name on the title pages—which later became “Librairie du Progrès”—and the publisher’s reply on the verso of the facsimile of the letter, which was omitted in subsequent editions. This first French version was published in 44 installments from August 1872 to May 1875 but was not successful, with the publisher lamenting the meager sales in a letter to Marx dated June 1879, partly due to bookstores sabotaging sales and government intimidation. However, the time required for the translation and the spacing out of the installments allowed Marx to extensively revise the text, making this edition an original work in its own right: “It possesses a scientific value independent of the original and should be consulted even by readers familiar with the German language.” (Note to the Reader, p. 348). A fine copy in modest binding of this landmark edition.