In their upcoming Rare Book auction, Heritage Auction Galleries will offer a scarce first edition, first issue copy of Charles Dickens’ immortal novel, A Christmas Carol, in exceptional condition, estimated to bring $40,000 to $50,000.

“One of the most widely beloved Christmas stories ever written, it would be hard to overstate the importance of this well-known classic,” said James Gannon, Director of Rare Book auctions for Dallas-based Heritage. “Originally released on December 19, 1843, A Christmas Carol was an instant sensation, selling more than 6,000 copies in one week. Since then, the story of Ebenezer Scrooge and his miraculous redemption has been adapted into nearly every media imaginable, making it an inseparable part of our modern Christmas traditions.”

“Although we tend to see the novel as a fairy tale today,” Gannon said, “it was definitely intended as a strongly political work, written by Dickens to forcefully illustrate the ever-widening gap between the rich, as characterized by the miserly and cheerless Scrooge, and the poor, as embodied in the character of the hard-working and loyal Bob Cratchit , in the dark days of the Industrial Revolution. These themes of social injustice and poverty were never far from Dickens’ mind, as seen in a number of his books, including Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Bleak House, and Hard Times , just to name a few. He is credited with bringing an awareness of these issues to the general public, and using his novels to effect real social and political change.”

“In our upcoming auction, we’re pleased to offer a remarkable copy of the first edition, first issue of this classic book, complete with the hand-colored steel-engraved illustrations by John Leech,” Gannon said. “Part of the incredible H. Barry Morris Collection of Charles Dickens’ First Editions, it is housed in an attractive red morocco conservation case, that has proved effective in preserving this copy, which is in exceptional condition. This is a beautiful, rare, and very desirable copy, one that any book collector will be proud to own.”

This first edition, first issue copy of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, will be offered in Heritage’s upcoming Grand Format Books & Manuscripts Auction, to be held June 3 & 4, 2008 in Dallas, Texas.