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Title Page for Master Humphrey's Clock

Charles Dickens · 1840

The 1840 Dutch title page for Dickens's serial work Master Humphrey's Clock, with an illustration of a man and a tall clock.

The title page of a Dutch edition of Dickens's own serial work, showing his international reach.

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Title page on blue paper reading 'De Klok van Meester Humphrey, door C. Dickens, Met platen, No. 5', with a central illustration of a man in a long coat holding an open cabinet door beside a tall clock, surrounded by small whimsical figures. Imprint: Te Amsterdam, bij Hendrik Frijlink, 1840, Prijs 45 Cents.
Title page for Charles Dickens, 'De klok van meester Humphrey,' 1840. Rijksmuseum, Netherlands.

About this source

What it is

This is the title page of a 1840 Dutch edition of Charles Dickens's serial 'Master Humphrey's Clock' (titled 'De Klok van Meester Humphrey'), printed in Amsterdam by Hendrik Frijlink. It shows a man holding open a cabinet door beside a tall clock, surrounded by small whimsical figures. It is held by the Rijksmuseum.

Why it matters

This page shows how quickly Dickens's work spread beyond England, being translated and sold in the Netherlands within the same year it was written. It reveals the international popularity of his serialized fiction and how publishers used illustration to attract readers.

Look closer

  • What does the illustration suggest about the story's tone before you even read a word?
  • Why might a foreign publisher have rushed to translate and print this work so quickly?
  • What does the price printed on the page tell us about who could afford to buy it?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Charles Dickens on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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