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The Stuart and Mimi Rose Collection /

Jules Verne

Item 9A

Manuscript of Journey to the Center of the Earth

1864
Author’s Manuscript

You are seeing now the moment when creativity makes the impossible believable: Jules Verne’s draft of his novel Journey to the Center of the Earth, written by Verne himself before it was sent off to the printer. Formatted and written in his highly unusual ledger style—he was a clerical worker—this manuscript is evidently the one from which the 1864 version was set and printed in Paris. Verne created an imaginative tale of a professor and his two companions who follow an explorer’s trail down an extinct volcano to the incredible hollow heart of the earth. The author’s fantastic imagination, narrative skill, and ability to both incorporate and expand upon the scientific knowledge of his day, place him among the inventors of science fiction.

Three aged, handwritten manuscript pages are shown. The top page is titled
Close-up image of an aged manuscript page featuring handwritten text in a cuneiform script The text is in dark ink on yellowed, antique-looking paper, with two distinct blocks of writing, one above the other. The letters and symbols appear complex and are densely packed in neat lines.
A close-up image of a handwritten page. The text is in French and is slightly blurred in the background. At the bottom, there is a single horizontal line followed by the word

What will you discover next?

Andreas Vesalius Fabrica
Detail from an anatomical illustration from an old medical book shows a human figure stripped of skin, exposing muscles and tendons. The figure is in a dynamic pose with one arm raised and the other bent.

A book establishing new scientific knowledge?

Go To Item 2C

Egyptian Book of the Dead
A detailed depiction of Anubis, the Egyptian god associated with mummification and the afterlife. The image shows a figure with a black jackal's head and a human body, painted on aged papyrus.

A much, much older conception of the underworld?

Go To Item 1A

Return to Rose Collection
A vibrant, symmetrical collage features historical black-and-white photographs of three individuals encircled with colorful floral patterns. The background is filled with intricate designs of butterflies and geometric shapes in shades of teal, coral, and beige.

Return to the Rose Collection

Visit the Folger to see this object on exhibit

Imprints in Time

Imprints in Time

This special exhibition at the Folger features rare books from the collection of Stuart and Mimi Rose that present literary, cultural, and historical high points.
Through Sun, Jan 5, 2025
Plan your visit
Rose Exhibition Hall