A look at at several different style illustrations for bound versions of Christmas’ most famous poem, A Visit From Saint Nicholas. Colloquially known as The Night before Christmas (with or without the “Twas”), the famous Clement Clarke Moore story, which is 200 years old now, has been decorated with covers ranging from classic and traditional engravings to midcentury modern illustrations and computer generated imagery. We rounded up cover art that shows you how visual depictions of the famous Clement Clarke Moore poem have evolved over time. Enjoy!
The Night Before Christmas Book Covers
First published anonymously in a Troy, New York newspaper in 1823, “A Visit From St. Nicholas” became an instant hit. In the 1830s, it was revealed to have been written by Clement Clarke Moore and since then the poem has been published in every conceivable size, shape and medium.
The poem “he is said to have composed in 1822, at his father’s imposing tree-shaded country house in old Chelsea Village, at the corner of what is now 23rd Street and Ninth Avenue,” explained a New York Times piece from 1926. He wrote it, “simply as a Christmas present for his two daughters, making St. Nicholas the hero at the suggestion of a ‘portly, rubicund Dutchman living in the neighborhood.”- source
Here’s a compilation of some of our favorite book covers for the poem which have included almost every style imaginable. Even those by the likes of such well-known children’s illustrators as Jesse Wilcox Smith (who made multiple covers for the bound poem) and Holly Hobbie.
And a Very Merry Christmas To All!