The Master of Ballantrae Robert Louis Stevenson c1900 Mershon Company Hardcover

📖 Robert Louis Stevenson’s last completed novel — a dark tale of fraternal revenge spanning three continents.

The Master of Ballantrae: A Winter’s Tale, published circa 1900 by The Mershon Company, New York.

**HISTORICAL CONTEXT**

Published in 1889, The Master of Ballantrae was Stevenson’s final completed novel and one of his most ambitious works. Set against the Jacobite rising of 1745, the story follows two Scottish brothers whose feud endures across decades and oceans — from the Scottish Highlands to the Caribbean, India, and the American wilderness. Narrated by the family steward Ephraim Mackellar, the novel is considered Stevenson’s darkest and most complex work, blending Gothic atmosphere with political intrigue and maritime adventure. The Mershon Company was an American publishing house established in 1877, active until approximately 1905 when it was absorbed by Stitt Publishing.

**THE BOOK**

8vo green cloth hardcover with white chalked lettering on the front board, cloth head and tail bands, unadorned end pages, and eggshell paper throughout 310 pages. The title page reads “THE MASTER OF BALLANTRAE / A WINTER’S TALE / ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON / AUTHOR OF ‘TREASURE ISLAND,’ ‘KIDNAPPED,’ ETC.” and identifies the publisher as The Mershon Company, New York. Interior chapter headings include “The Night of February 27th” and “Mr. Mackellar’s Journey.” Contains a one-page preface addressed to Sir Percy Florence and Lady Shelley from Waikiki, dated May 17, 1889 — written just months before Stevenson’s death in December 1889.

**BINDING AND CONDITION**

Dark green cloth binding with silver foil-stamped title on the front board. The chalk lettering is complete but shows rubbing typical of this delicate decoration method. Spine lettering is nearly worn away. Spine head and heel show bumping and edge wear, corner tips show cloth wear without wearing through. A faint stray mark on the cover appears to be chalk. Pages are aged to a warm cream tone, free of tears or significant foxing.

**FOR COLLECTORS**

This c1900 Mershon Company edition represents an affordable American printing of Stevenson’s most psychologically complex novel. The preface, written from Hawaii in Stevenson’s final months, adds provenance interest. A solid copy of a work that many scholars regard as Stevenson’s greatest achievement.

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**CONDITION:**
This is a “very good” antique book with a tight binding and crisp board hinges. There are no loose, torn or folded pages.
There is numerical pencil inscription inside the rear paste-down, likely a bookstore inventory code, otherwise no writing.
The text block edges are relatively uniform in color all around, with the top edge being somewhat dusted. The front lower board corner is fairly well bumped, with the other three being less so. All corner tips show some wear to the cloth at the tips but not worn through. The spine head and heel are bumped and have some edge wear, but again not worn through. The chalk lettering on the front board is complete, but does reflect some rubbing as is typical of this delicate method of decoration. There is a stray mark on the cover that appears to be chalk. The lettering on the spine is just about completely rubbed away.

A pleasing vintage tome.

**SHIPPING:**
Will ship promptly, carefully packaged.

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