# Is "Erewhon; or, Over the Range" by Samuel Butler a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Erewhon; or, Over the Range by Samuel Butler (Trübner & Co., 1872) is identified by: Published anonymously by Trübner & Co., London, at the end of March 1872, with no author's name appearing anywhere in the book - Butler's identity was not confirmed on a title page until the 1901 revised edition.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Published anonymously by Trübner & Co., London, at the end of March 1872, with no author's name appearing anywhere in the book - Butler's identity was not confirmed on a title page until the 1901 revised edition
- The first edition is bound in red-brick cloth, blocked and stamped in black, with the title in gilt on the spine and brown endpapers
- Contemporary demand was strong enough that the first printing reportedly sold out within about three weeks, prompting Butler and Trübner to set the book up again immediately
- Publisher imprint reads Trübner & Co.
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Samuel Butler |
| Publisher | Trübner & Co. |
| Year | 1872 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Published anonymously by Trübner & Co., London, at the end of March 1872, with no author's name appearing anywhere in the book - Butler's… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Published anonymously by Trübner & Co., London, at the end of March 1872, with no author's name appearing anywhere in the book - Butler's identity was not confirmed on a title page until the 1901 revised edition. The first edition is bound in red-brick cloth, blocked and stamped in black, with the title in gilt on the spine and brown endpapers. Contemporary demand was strong enough that the first printing reportedly sold out within about three weeks, prompting Butler and Trübner to set the book up again immediately.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Butler's own 'new and revised edition' of 1901 names Butler as author on the title page for the first time and adds a five-page preface plus two new chapters on animal and vegetable rights satirizing T. H. Huxley; any copy naming Butler as author, or containing these additional chapters, is not the anonymous 1872 first edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Erewhon; or, Over the Range* by Samuel Butler a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/erewhon-or-over-the-range
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.