# Is "Beowulf: A New Verse Translation" by Seamus Heaney a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Beowulf: A New Verse Translation by Seamus Heaney (Faber & Faber, 1999) is identified by: The true first is Faber & Faber (London), 1999, in black boards with the dust-jacket painting by Barrie Cooke and identified by the 'First published in 1999' statement on the copyright page (Heaney's Modern-English verse translation). UK precedence: Faber & Faber (London) 1999 is the true first, ahead of Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York) 2000 as first American (an FSG facing-page Old English / Modern English 'bilingual' issue also appears under the 2000 imprint).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first is Faber & Faber (London), 1999, in black boards with the dust-jacket painting by Barrie Cooke and identified by the 'First published in 1999' statement on the copyright page (Heaney's Modern-English verse translation)
- Faber also issued a deluxe signed limited state of 300 numbered copies, quarter red cloth over cream boards in a card slipcase, bound by Smith Settle
- It won the 1999 Whitbread Book of the Year; the first American edition, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York), 2000, has a priced dust jacket and is dated 2000
- Publisher imprint reads Faber & Faber
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Seamus Heaney |
| Publisher | Faber & Faber |
| Year | 1999 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first is Faber & Faber (London), 1999, in black boards with the dust-jacket painting by Barrie Cooke and identified by the 'First… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
The true first is Faber & Faber (London), 1999, in black boards with the dust-jacket painting by Barrie Cooke and identified by the 'First published in 1999' statement on the copyright page (Heaney's Modern-English verse translation). Faber also issued a deluxe signed limited state of 300 numbered copies, quarter red cloth over cream boards in a card slipcase, bound by Smith Settle. It won the 1999 Whitbread Book of the Year; the first American edition, Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York), 2000, has a priced dust jacket and is dated 2000.

## Is this the true first?
UK precedence: Faber & Faber (London) 1999 is the true first, ahead of Farrar, Straus & Giroux (New York) 2000 as first American (an FSG facing-page Old English / Modern English 'bilingual' issue also appears under the 2000 imprint). Note a source conflict: Wikipedia loosely dates both the London and New York editions to 1999, but the physical FSG US hardcover is dated 2000 and dealer records consistently give Faber 1999 the precedence — the London 1999 first is the collected point.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition documented as the first. The FSG New York 2000 hardcover, the FSG bilingual issue, and the 2000-and-later paperbacks are not the 1999 Faber first printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Beowulf: A New Verse Translation* by Seamus Heaney a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/beowulf-a-new-verse-translation
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.