# Is "Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions" by Edwin A. Abbott a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott (Seeley & Co., 1884) is identified by: Published by Seeley & Co., London, in November 1884 in an edition of 1,000 copies, with the title page reading 'Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions. A revised 'new and revised edition,' also dated 1884, followed the first printing within weeks (December 1884), adding a preface and textual changes, so identification of the true first setting must rest on the wrappers-and-vellum-jacket format, collation, and absence of the preface, not the 1884 date alone.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Published by Seeley & Co., London, in November 1884 in an edition of 1,000 copies, with the title page reading 'Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
- With Illustrations by the Author, A Square' - Abbott's name appears nowhere in the book
- The true first edition was issued in the publisher's original paper wrappers with an illustrated parchment/vellum jacket (collation [A]8 B-H8, edges untrimmed), not in cloth boards as sometimes described for later or American printings
- A second, textually revised edition with a new author's preface and emendations to the text and illustrations was issued by Seeley in December 1884, also dated 1884, so the 1884 date alone does not distinguish the true first setting of the text
- Publisher imprint reads Seeley & Co.
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Edwin A. Abbott |
| Publisher | Seeley & Co. |
| Year | 1884 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Published by Seeley & Co., London, in November 1884 in an edition of 1,000 copies, with the title page reading 'Flatland: A Romance of Many… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
Published by Seeley & Co., London, in November 1884 in an edition of 1,000 copies, with the title page reading 'Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions. With Illustrations by the Author, A Square' - Abbott's name appears nowhere in the book. The true first edition was issued in the publisher's original paper wrappers with an illustrated parchment/vellum jacket (collation [A]8 B-H8, edges untrimmed), not in cloth boards as sometimes described for later or American printings. A second, textually revised edition with a new author's preface and emendations to the text and illustrations was issued by Seeley in December 1884, also dated 1884, so the 1884 date alone does not distinguish the true first setting of the text.

## Is this the true first?
A revised 'new and revised edition,' also dated 1884, followed the first printing within weeks (December 1884), adding a preface and textual changes, so identification of the true first setting must rest on the wrappers-and-vellum-jacket format, collation, and absence of the preface, not the 1884 date alone.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Because the original wrappers-and-vellum-jacket format is fragile, first and second 1884 printings survive mostly in poor condition; Basil Blackwell's 1926 third edition and all subsequent 20th-century reprints and paperback reissues are cloth- or paper-bound in different formats entirely, so binding and collation, not the pseudonymous 'A Square' byline (which reprints retained), distinguish a genuine 1884 Seeley first printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions* by Edwin A. Abbott a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/flatland-a-romance-of-many-dimensions
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.