Is My Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First serialized in Putnam's Monthly Magazine from July 1854 to March 1855, then published in book form by G. P. Putnam & Co., New York, in March 1855
• Original binding is tan cloth boards stamped in blind with a decorative motif, titles ruled in gilt on the spine
• Identification rests on the Putnam 1855 book-form imprint together with BAL's recorded first-printing points, distinguishing it from the later, distinct 1923-dated limited edition sometimes confused with it in dealer listings

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. Check for a number line or dated printing — the lowest number present is the printing; a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the tell.
3. 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.
4. 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 Putnam's Monthly serialization (July 1854-March 1855) precedes the March 1855 first book publication; the magazine appearance is the true first publication of the text, though the book form is what collectors generally seek as the 'first edition.'P-034454

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

A 1923 limited edition (BAL 13680) reprints the text in a small press run for collectors; it postdates the 1855 first edition by nearly seventy years and should not be mistaken for it despite occasionally appearing in the same dealer categories.P-034455

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile a first edition?

A first edition of Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile by Herman Melville (G. P. Putnam & Co.) is identified by: First serialized in Putnam's Monthly Magazine from July 1854 to March 1855, then published in book form by G.

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

Check the copyright page. A stated first edition, a number line ending in 1, or a dated first printing with no later printings listed is the key. The Putnam's Monthly serialization (July 1854-March 1855) precedes the March 1855 first book publication; the magazine appearance is the true first publication of the text, though the book form is what collectors generally seek as the 'first edition.'

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

A 1923 limited edition (BAL 13680) reprints the text in a small press run for collectors; it postdates the 1855 first edition by nearly seventy years and should not be mistaken for it despite occasionally appearing in the same dealer categories.

I have a first edition of Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile — 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.