From the Earth to the Moon by Jules Verne first UK edition 1873

VERNE, Jules. From the Earth to the Moon Direct in 97 Hours 20 Minutes: and a Trip Round It. London, Sampson Low, Marston, Low, and Searle, 1873.
 
8vo. viii, 323 pages. With 80 wood engraved illustrations in the text and on plates, all present as issued. Original blue pictorial cloth stamped in black and gilt depicting the Columbiad projectile launching toward the moon, spine lettered in gilt with crescent device and vignette. Binding solid. Some toning to spine with small loss at head of spine. Corners rubbed. Light, sporadic foxing to preliminary leaves. Ownership inscription to front endpaper (C. P. Marshall). A clean, unrestored, very good copy.
 
First UK edition of Verne's early space travel novel, translated from the French by Louis Mercier and Eleanor E. King. The story follows members of the Baltimore Gun Club who construct an enormous cannon in Florida to fire a projectile carrying three men to the moon. Written shortly after the American Civil War, the novel blended contemporary artillery technology with astronomical speculation and was one of the earliest works to describe a manned journey beyond Earth. Verne calculated the trajectory, launch location, and weight of the projectile with unusual technical detail for a work of fiction, anticipating later developments in rocketry and spaceflight.
 
The numerous engravings illustrate the projectile launch, the lunar approach, and scenes of weightlessness within the capsule. The striking blue cloth binding with its night sky and rocket design is one of the more striking Victorian science fiction bindings.