Is My Alice's Adventures in Wonderland a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The 1865 first printing of 2,000 copies, with the text printed at the Oxford University Press (Clarendon Press), was suppressed at Tenniel's insistence because he was dissatisfied with the impression of his illustrations (the pictures showed through the leaf)
• Only about 50 copies had been bound before withdrawal, and roughly 23 are recorded today — the true first
• Point: title page dated 1865, over the Oxford-printed text block; bound (like the 1866) in red cloth, all edges gilt
• The first published edition is dated 1866 (ready November 1865 for the Christmas trade), entirely reset and printed by Richard Clay
• Carroll sold the ~1,952 suppressed 1865 sheets to D. Appleton of New York, who issued them with a cancel title leaf dated 1866 and the Appleton imprint at the foot of the spine (the 'Appleton Alice')

How Macmillan and Co. marked a first edition

• FIRM SPLIT FIRST — this is the master rule. 'Macmillan' is not one publisher. The London parent was founded in 1843 by Daniel and Alexander Macmillan; George Edward Brett opened the New York office in 1869; in 1896 the f…
• US Macmillan, pre-late-1800s: no printing statement was used. Treat the book as a first only when the date on the TITLE page matches the last (latest) date on the copyright page. A title-page year EARLIER than the latest…

Full Macmillan and Co. 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?

True first = the suppressed 1865 Macmillan with the Oxford-printed text, an extreme rarity (about 23 known). First obtainable = the reset 1866 Macmillan printed by Richard Clay. The 'Appleton Alice' (New York, 1866) is made from the original suppressed 1865 Oxford sheets fitted with a cancel title leaf, so it is a variant issue of the true first printing rather than a later reprint. Author-inscribed copies are the association apex.P-036979

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The reset 1866 Macmillan and all later Macmillan printings are not the suppressed 1865 first; a copy dated 1866 with the Richard Clay text is the first published edition, not the true first. Facsimiles of the 1865 exist.P-036980

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland a first edition?

A first edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Charles L. Dodgson) (Macmillan and Co.) is identified by: The 1865 first printing of 2,000 copies, with the text printed at the Oxford University Press (Clarendon Press), was suppressed at Tenniel's insistence because he was dissatisfied with the impression of his illustrations (the pictures showed through the leaf).

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. True first = the suppressed 1865 Macmillan with the Oxford-printed text, an extreme rarity (about 23 known).

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

The reset 1866 Macmillan and all later Macmillan printings are not the suppressed 1865 first; a copy dated 1866 with the Richard Clay text is the first published edition, not the true first. Facsimiles of the 1865 exist.

I have a first edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap — an unclipped, priced jacket matters. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and use the free First Edition Checker to decode the printing. To sell, the author’s collecting guide covers the market. And if you are clearing books in the Albuquerque area, the New Mexico Literacy Project offers free pickup, any condition, and makes sure collectible copies are identified rather than discarded.

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.