# Is "Essays in Criticism" by Matthew Arnold a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Essays in Criticism by Matthew Arnold (Macmillan and Co., 1865) is identified by: First edition, London: Macmillan and Co., 1865, collating xix+302pp plus thirty pages of publisher's advertisements, bound in the publisher's original cloth (catalogued variously by dealers as brick-red, terracotta, or red-brown) stamped in gilt.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition, London: Macmillan and Co., 1865, collating xix+302pp plus thirty pages of publisher's advertisements, bound in the publisher's original cloth (catalogued variously by dealers as brick-red, terracotta, or red-brown) stamped in gilt
- Contains nine essays, including "The Function of Criticism at the Present Time" and studies of Heinrich Heine, Spinoza, Joubert, and Marcus Aurelius
- A "Second Series" of Essays in Criticism was not published until November 1888, seven months after Arnold's death, so any volume titled simply Essays in Criticism and dated before 1888 is this first series
- Publisher imprint reads Macmillan and Co.
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Matthew Arnold |
| Publisher | Macmillan and Co. |
| Year | 1865 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition, London: Macmillan and Co., 1865, collating xix+302pp plus thirty pages of publisher's advertisements, bound in the… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition, London: Macmillan and Co., 1865, collating xix+302pp plus thirty pages of publisher's advertisements, bound in the publisher's original cloth (catalogued variously by dealers as brick-red, terracotta, or red-brown) stamped in gilt. Contains nine essays, including "The Function of Criticism at the Present Time" and studies of Heinrich Heine, Spinoza, Joubert, and Marcus Aurelius. A "Second Series" of Essays in Criticism was not published until November 1888, seven months after Arnold's death, so any volume titled simply Essays in Criticism and dated before 1888 is this first series.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Essays in Criticism* by Matthew Arnold a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/essays-in-criticism
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.