Text-01 — “The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1842 — (There are no
known draft manuscripts or scratch notes reflecting the original effort of composition. The tale was written as a
new story for TGAPP, and is listed in Poe's handwritten table of contents. In need of money, Poe sold
the story to the editors of The Gift and crossed the title off the list of contents.)
Text-02a — “The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1842 — (Speculated
faircopy manuscript Poe prepared for publication. This manuscript appears not to have survived, but this
version is presumably recorded in Text-02b.)
Text-03a — “The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1842-1845 —
(speculated copy of The Gift for 1843 with manuscript changes by Poe. This version has not survived,
but is presumably represented by text-03b. Changes are too significant to suggest that they were made merely
in proof, including the addition of a long motto. These changes are not so significant, however, that a new
manuscript is indicated. The retention of some English spellings, such as “endeavour” and one
instance of “colour” when all other instances were changed to “color,” strongly
suggest that Poe modified the printed text of The Gift, in accordance with his usual practice.)
Text-04a — “The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1845-1849 —
(speculated copy of the Broadway Journal with manuscript changes by Poe. This version has not survived,
but is presumably represented by text-04b. Changes are too significant to suggest merely editorial meddling,
and Poe himself was not alive to make changes in proof. These changes are not so extensive, however, that a
new manuscript is indicated.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — October 22, 1842 — New York
Spectator (reprint from Text-02b)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 15, 1842 — Pennsylvania
Inquirer and National Gazette (reprint from Text-02b) (noted by Kevin Hayes, 2004)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 23, 1842 — People's
Advocate (New London, CT) (reprint from Text-02b) (noted by Kevin Hayes, 2004)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — July 4, 1845 — Toledo Blade
(Toldeo, OH) (noted by Kevin Hayes, 2009, p. 178, n. 10)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1852 — Tales and Sketches: to which is
added The Raven: A Poem, London, George Routledge & Co., pp. 144-157
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1852 — Tales of Mystery and
Imagination and Humour; and Poems, London: Henry Vizetelly (An undated edition appears about the same time,
published by Charles H. Clark and Samuel Orchart Beeton, and their name appears as publisher for the second
series), second series pp. 140-156. (with a woodcut illustration)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — February 1853 — Anglo-American
Magazine (Toronto, published by Thomas Maclear, later Maclear and Co), vol. II, no. 2, pp. 137-143
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — December 9, 1863 — Weekly
Pantagraph (Bloomington, IL) vol. XVIII, no. 1, whole no. 885, p. 2, cols. 5-7 (with the following
introductory note: “The following extracs from E. A. Poe's wonderful story with the above title, give
an absolutely true representation of tortures formerly precticed in the Spanish Inquisition.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — May 6-13, 1865 — Star and
Enterprise (Newville PA), vol. VII, nos. 17-18 (under the generally heading of “A Thrilling
Tale” Acknowledged as by “by Edgar A. Poe.”) (This entry provided to the Poe Society by Ton
Fafianie in an e-mail dated December 14, 2018)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — May 6, 1865 — Star and Enterprise (Newville PA)
(Part I) front page
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — May 13, 1865 — Star and Enterprise (Newville
PA) (Part II) front page
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — June 17, 1865 — Newcastle Weekly
Chronicle (Newcastle upon Tyne, England), whole no. 5,269, p. 6, cols. 2-4 (acknowledged as by “Edgar
Allan Poe.”)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — July 26, 1866 — Stirling Observer and
Midland Counties Advertiser (Stirling, Scotland), vol. XXIX, whole no. 1538, p. 6, cols. 4-6, p. 7, col. 1
(acknowledged as by “Edgar Allan Poe.”)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1867 — Prose Tales of Edgar Allan
Poe, first series (New York: W. J. Widdleton), pp. 310-324 (This collection is extracted from the 1850-1856
edition of Poe's Works. It was reprinted several times.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum”
— 1874 — Works of Edgar A. Poe, edited by J. H. Ingram, vol. 1, pp. 200-215 (This collection
was subsequently reprinted in various forms)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1884 — Readings from American Authors,
Humorous and Pathetic, edited by John A. Jennings, Dublin: Carson Brothers, pp. 57-64 (The text is
acknowledged as being condensed. The miscellany includes three items by Poe, two stories and one poen. The prices
is noted as one shilling.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 11-12, 1887 — Evening
Chronicle (Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England) (printed under the general heading “Tales of
the Mysterious” and acknowledged as by “Edgar Allan Poe”)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 11, 1887 — no. 633, p. 2,
cols. 5-6
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 12, 1887 — no. 634, p. 2,
cols. 5-6
”The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1888 — Weird Tales: American,
London: William Patterson. (This book is from a five-volume series, all called Weird Tales and each
focusing on a single cultural tradition — American, Irish, English, Scottish and German. Among the
selections in this volume are Washington Irving's “The Headless Horseman” and William Gilmore
Simms’ “Murder Will Out” and Poe's “The Fall of the House of Usher.” The same
series appeared as Weird Tit-Bits, published in New York and London: White & Allen. It was reprinted
several times, with a seventh edition appearing in 1889, as advertised in Publisher's Weekly for
September 21, 1889 and the Dial for October 1889.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — May 13, 1899 — Saturday Bee
(Sacramento, CA), vol. LXXXV, whole no. 14,233, p. 13
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — April 25, 1928 — El Paso Herald
(El Paso, TX), p. 13, cols. 4-6 (acknowledged as “by Edgar Allen [[Allan]] Poe”)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1981 — Dracula Book of Great Horror
Stories edited by Leslie Shepherd (New York: Citadel Press) (later incorporated with another volume and
reprinted as Dracula Book of Great Vampire Stories, although there is no aspect of vampires in the Poe
tale.)
Scholarly and Noteworthy Reprints:
“The Pit and the Pendulum”
— 1894-1895 — The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 1: Tales, eds. E. C. Stedman and G. E.
Woodberry, Chicago: Stone and Kimball (1:309-329)
“The Pit and the Pendulum”
— 1902 — The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 5: Tales IV, ed. J. A. Harrison, New York:
T. Y. Crowell (5:67-87, and 5:317-319)
“The Pit and the Pendulum”
— 1978 — The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe, vol. 2: Tales & Sketches I, ed. T. O.
Mabbott, Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (2:681-700)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1984 — Edgar Allan Poe: Poetry and
Tales, ed. Patrick F. Quinn (New York: Library of America), pp. 491-505
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 2015 — The Annotated Poe, ed.
Kevin J. Hayes (Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press), pp. 241-258
“Der Brunnen und der Pendel” — April 24 and May 1, 1853 — Bremer
Sonntagsblatt, 17:132-133 and 18:139-140 (German translation by H. du Roi, acknowledged as “Nach
dem Englischen des Edgar Poe.”)
“[The Pit and the Pendulum]” — 1855 — Fortaellinger
[Tales] (Copenhagen) (Danish translation, noted by Anderson, p. 14)
“Le puits et le pendule” — (French translation by Charles Baudelaire)
“Le puits et le pendule” — October 1852 — Revue de Paris
(printed anonymously)
“Le puits et le pendule” — August 3-4, 1854 — Le Pays
“Le puits et le pendule” — Part I — August 3, 1854
“Le puits et le pendule” — Part II — August 4, 1854
“Le puits et le pendule” — 1857 — Nouvelles histoires par Edgar
Poe, Paris: Michel Lévy frères
“[The Pit and the Pendulum]” — 1881 — Underliga historier,
Stockholm (Swedish translation, noted by Anderson, p. 54)
“Le puits et le pendule” — 1885 — Oeuvres Choisies d‘Edgar
Pöe, Paris: A. Hennuyer (French translation by William L. Hughes)
“[The Pit and the Pendulum]” — 1886 — Hochi Shimbun
(Japanese translation by Morita Shiken)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1913 — a three-reel silent film, directed
by Alice Guy-Blaché, and starring Darwin Karr and Fraunie Fraunholz. (Real rats were used, and the film was
considered rather gruesome for the time, even in black and white.) (Only one reel survives, in the Library of
Congress.)
“[The Pit and the Pendulum]” — 1929 — Moscow, Ogonyok (a Russian
translation by E. Kalmeer, issued as a small pamphlet.)
“De Put en de Slinger” — about 1930 — Fantastische Vertellingen van
Edgar Allan Poe, Haarlem: H. D. Tjeenk Willink & Zoon (Dutch translation by Machiel Elias Barentz, with
elaborate illustrations by Albert Hahn, somewhat reminiscent of those by Harry Clarke)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — January 12, 1943 — a radio show broadcast
on the Suspense show, adapted by John Dickinson Carr and starring Henry Hull. (Hull is perhaps best
remembered today as the unfortunate title character of the 1935 film The Werewolf of London. As was often
the case with dramatic presentations of Poe's works, the story has been modified.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — August 1947 — Classics Illustrated
(number 40) (a comic-book)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 28, 1947 — a radio show
broadcast on the Suspense show, adapted by John Dickinson Carr and starring Jose Ferrer. (As was often the
case with dramatic presentations of Poe's works, the story has been modified.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — June 1952 — Beware (number
10) (a comic-book)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — Fall 1952 — Nightmare (number
2) (a comic-book)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — October 1954 — Amazing Ghost
Stories (number 14) (a comic-book)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1956 — a reading by Nelson Olmsted on
Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Terror, issued on the Vanguard label (VRS-9007)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — November 10, 1957 — a radio show
broadcast on the Suspense show, adapted by John Dickinson Carr and starring Vincent Price. (This episode is
available on CD as part of a 6-CD set of “Smithsonian Legendary Performers,” issued in 2004. As was
often the case with dramatic presentations of Poe's works, the story has been modified.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — June 7, 1959 — a radio show broadcast on
the Suspense show, with Raymond Burr. (As was often the case with dramatic presentations of Poe's
works, the story has been modified.)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1962 — a reading by Richard Taylor on
Nightmare: Edgar Allan Poe, issued on the Random Records label (M-36, side A) (running time, around
14:56) (This is a very cheaply produced 33 1/3 LP, with a single narrator speaking over a very reverberant and
somewhat off-key electric guitar played for atmosphere. The jacket features simple black and white graphics. The
narrator, who has a surprisingly high voice and a detectable Brooklyn accent, is noted as being 21 at the time of
the recording. This album was initially advertised for $1.98, and 25¢ for shipping and handling, while each
of the remaining albums in the 4-album set was advertised for $2.98. The $1.98 price was apparently a
typographical error and it appears to have been corrected in later printings. Side B is “The Tell-Tale
Heart”)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1972 — a reading by Martin Donegan as
volume VIII of Short Stories of Edgar Allan Poe, issued on the CMS Records label (CMS-652)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 1986 — Audio book, read by Fritz Weaver.
(issued on cassette by Random House, with four other tales)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — March 1977 — Marvel Classics Comic
Series (number 28) (a comic-book)
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — July 4, 2000 — a radio show broadcast on
the NPR Playhouse show, noted as Generations Readio Theater. (As was often the case with dramatic
presentations of Poe's works, the story has been modified.) The show was produced by Winnie Waldron and
Winifred Phillips. It debuted on XM Satellite Radio on July 19, 2003.
“The Pit and the Pendulum” — 2007 — Audio book (unabridged), read by
Chris Aruffo
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Bibliography:
Alternon, Margaret, “An Additional Source for Poe's ‘The Pit and the
Pendulum’,” Modern Language Notes, June 1933, 48:349-356
Anderson, Carl L., Poe in Northlight: The Scandanavian Response to His Life and Work,
Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1973.
Clark, David L., “The Source of Poe's ‘The Pit and the
Pendulum’,” Modern Language Notes, June 1929, 44:349-356
DeProspo, R. C., “Salvation and Its Counterfeit: Contemptus Mundi in the New
World from Rowlandson's ‘Captivity Narrative’ to Poe's ‘The Pit and the
Pendulum’,” in Mittelalter-Rezeptio, ed. Ulrich Muller and Kathleen Verduin, Goppingen,
Germany: Kummerle, 5:95-103
G., W. M., “Poe's ‘Pit and the Pendulum,” Critic, July 6, 1890,
14:7
Hayes, Kevin J., Edgar Allan Poe, London: Reaktion Books, 2009
Hayes, Kevin J., “Poe's Motto to ‘The Pit and the Pendulum’,”
Notes & Queries (London), March 2011, vol. 58, no. 1, p. 88
Heartman, Charles F. and James R. Canny, A Bibliography of First Printings of the Writings
of Edgar Allan Poe, Hattiesburg, MS: The Book Farm, 1943.
Hirsch, David, “Another Source for ‘The Pit and the Pendulum’,”
Mississippi Quarterly, Winter 1969-1970, 23:35-43
Hirsch, David, “The Pit and the Apocalypse,” Sewanee Review,
October-December 1968, 76:632-652
Lundquist, James, “The Moral of Averted Descent: The Failure of Sanity in ‘The Pit
and the Pendulum’,” Poe Newsletter, April 1969, 2:25-26
Mabbott, Thomas Ollive, ed., The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe (Vols 2-3 Tales
and Sketches), Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1978.
Martuza, Athar, “An Arabian Source for Poe's ‘The Pit and the
Pendulum’,” Poe Newsletter, December 1972, 5:52
Solomont, Susan and Ritchie Darling, Four Stories by Poe, Norwich, VT: Green Knight
Press, 1965
Watts, Theodore, “Edgar Poe,” Athenaeum, September 2, 1876, no. 2549, p.
306
Weber, Jean-Paul, “Edgar Poe on the Theme of the Clock,” La Nouvelle Revue
Francais (August-September 1958), 68:301-311 and 69:498-508.
Wyllie, John Cooke, “A List of the Texts of Poe's Tales,” Humanistic
Studies in Honor of John Calvin Metcalf, Charlottesville: University of Virginia, 1941, pp. 322-338.
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[S:0 - JAS] - Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore - Works - Tales - The Pit and the Pendulum