Is My Blindness a First Edition?

The points of issue

• English true first is the 1997 hardcover translated by Giovanni Pontiero and published by The Harvill Press, London (ISBN 1860462979)
• Confirm the 'First published 1997' statement on the copyright page
• Harvill of this period typically used no number line, so rely on the dated statement and imprint
• The first American edition is Harcourt Brace & Company, New York, 1998 (ISBN 0151002517), a year later, identified by the complete letter line 'ACEFDB'
• The Harvill UK 1997 unambiguously precedes Harcourt and is the true first; the two were not simultaneous

How The Harvill Press marked a first edition

• Descending number line; the lowest digit present indicates the impression, with a first printing ending in '1'.

Full The Harvill Press first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
3. Verify this is the American true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
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?

The English true first is The Harvill Press, London, 1997, in the Pontiero translation; the first American edition (Harcourt Brace, New York) is 1998. The Portuguese 'Ensaio sobre a cegueira' (Caminho, Lisbon, 1995) is the true first in any language.P-016962

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No major club edition. Among English printings, Harvill UK 1997 precedes the 1998 Harcourt American first; check the dated Harvill copyright statement and the Harcourt 'ACEFDB' letter line. The absolute true first is the 1995 Caminho Portuguese edition.P-016963

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Blindness a first edition?

A first edition of Blindness by José Saramago (The Harvill Press) is identified by: English true first is the 1997 hardcover translated by Giovanni Pontiero and published by The Harvill Press, London (ISBN 1860462979).

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

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). The English true first is The Harvill Press, London, 1997, in the Pontiero translation; the first American edition (Harcourt Brace, New York) is 1998.

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

No major club edition. Among English printings, Harvill UK 1997 precedes the 1998 Harcourt American first; check the dated Harvill copyright statement and the Harcourt 'ACEFDB' letter line. The absolute true first is the 1995 Caminho Portuguese edition.

I have a first edition of Blindness — 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.