# Is "Baudolino" by Umberto Eco a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Baudolino by Umberto Eco (Harcourt, 2002) is identified by: US Harcourt 2002, 'A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book,' identified as a first printing by the Harcourt descending letter line with 'A' present on the copyright page; translated by William Weaver. First English-language edition of Baudolino (Bompiani, 2000).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- US Harcourt 2002, 'A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book,' identified as a first printing by the Harcourt descending letter line with 'A' present on the copyright page; translated by William Weaver
- The UK first was Secker & Warburg, London, 2002
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Umberto Eco |
| Publisher | Harcourt |
| Year | 2002 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | US Harcourt 2002, 'A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book,' identified as a first printing by the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
US Harcourt 2002, 'A Helen and Kurt Wolff Book,' identified as a first printing by the Harcourt descending letter line with 'A' present on the copyright page; translated by William Weaver. The UK first was Secker & Warburg, London, 2002.

## Is this the true first?
First English-language edition of Baudolino (Bompiani, 2000). US Harcourt and UK Secker & Warburg both appeared in 2002 and are collected as parallel firsts.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No notable book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Baudolino* by Umberto Eco a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/baudolino
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.