Is My Copy of A Doll's House a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Title page reads "A Doll's House
• Play in Three Acts
• Translated by William Archer," T. Fisher Unwin, London, 1889 — the first edition of this specific, historically important English translation
• This is the text tied to the June 7, 1889 Novelty Theatre production in London (Charles Charrington and Janet Achurch), the performance generally credited with establishing Ibsen with English-speaking audiences
• T. Fisher Unwin issued a limited edition of 115 copies of this translation together with photographs from the Achurch/Charrington production
• Archer's translation was later folded into his own multi-volume collected Ibsen's Prose Dramas, so a first-edition copy must carry the 1889 T. Fisher Unwin single-play imprint rather than a later collected-works volume

How T. Fisher Unwin marked a first edition

• Late-Victorian house that stated editions more explicitly than the earlier three-decker firms: many firsts carry a printed title-page date, and a first shows the original date with no later-impression notice and no…
• Series volumes (Pseudonym Library, Autonym Library, Mermaid Series) carry series numbering; the series setting is the first appearance for many original titles but a reprint for classics — verify which for each book.

Full T. Fisher Unwin first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
4. Rule out a book-club edition — a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price marks a book-club copy.
5. Photograph four things — the front cover, spine, title page, and copyright page — the standard record for identification.

The dust jacket

For a collectible first edition the dust jacket matters as much as the book. Confirm the jacket is present and unclipped — the printed price should still be at the corner of the flap (a clipped corner or a price-less flap can indicate a book-club issue). First-state jackets can differ from later ones in the cover art, blurbs, or review quotations; where a specific first-state jacket point is known for this title it is noted above.

Binding & format

Where multiple bindings exist, the hardcover trade issue is usually (but not always) the precedence copy — confirm against the points above. Later printings often show cheaper cloth, thinner boards, or simplified spine stamping. A simultaneous signed or limited issue, when one exists, is a distinct state from the trade first.

Is this the true first?

An earlier English translation, "Nora: A Play," by Henrietta Frances Lord, was published by Griffith, Farran & Co., London, in 1882 and used for an amateur production at a hall in Argyle Street, London, in 1885, giving it technical priority as the first English-language edition of the play; the Archer/Unwin 1889 edition is nonetheless the edition collected and cited as Ibsen's English-language breakthrough text.P-036248

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of A Doll's House a first edition?

A first edition of A Doll's House by Henrik Ibsen (translated by William Archer) (T. Fisher Unwin) is identified by: Title page reads "A Doll's House.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. An earlier English translation, "Nora: A Play," by Henrietta Frances Lord, was published by Griffith, Farran & Co., London, in 1882 and used for an amateur production at a hall in Argyle Street, London, in 1885, giving it technical priority as the first English-language edition of the play; the Archer/Unwin 1889 edition is nonetheless the edition collected and cited as Ibsen's English-language breakthrough text.

Is the book-club edition the same as the first?

No. Book-club editions reprint the text but are not the true first; look for a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price.

I have a first edition of A Doll's House — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

Glossary

First edition

Every copy printed from the first setting of type. Collectors usually want the first edition, first printing (the true first).

First printing / impression

A single press run from that setting. The first printing is the earliest and most desirable; later printings are still the first edition but not the true first.

Number line (printer's key)

A row of numbers on the copyright page (e.g. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1). The lowest number present is the printing — a line including 1 marks a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2).

Points of issue

Specific physical details — a stated edition, a number line, a typo, a jacket state — that identify the true first printing.

Book-club edition (BCE)

A reprint made for a book club. Tells include a blind-stamped dot or square on the rear board and a dust jacket with no printed price. Not the true first.

First thus

The first appearance of a particular version (first paperback, first illustrated, first U.S. printing) — a first of that kind, not the first edition of the work.