Is My Jack Sheppard: A Romance a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition in book form (Sadleir 14, Wolff 53, Cohn 12), three volumes octavo, published October 1839 following prior serialization in Bentley's Miscellany from January 1839
• Pagination runs [i-v]vi[vii]viii[ix-xii][1]2-352; [i-iii]iv[1-3]4-292; [i-v]vi[1]2-312, with a half title present in volume III only (Sadleir calls specifically for the half title in vol
• III and notes its frequent absence)
• The book includes an inserted frontispiece portrait of Ainsworth plus 27 inserted etched plates by George Cruikshank; original binding is decorated grey-green vertically-ribbed cloth, blind-stamped on front and rear panels, gilt- and blind-stamped spine, yellow coated endpapers, edges untrimmed

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. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. 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.
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?

Serialization in Bentley's Miscellany ran January 1839 to February 1840 and was still in progress when Bentley issued the three-volume book edition in October 1839; the book edition was in turn followed by a further 1840 reissue in fifteen weekly numbers.P-034731

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Jack Sheppard: A Romance a first edition?

A first edition of Jack Sheppard: A Romance by William Harrison Ainsworth (Richard Bentley) is identified by: First edition in book form (Sadleir 14, Wolff 53, Cohn 12), three volumes octavo, published October 1839 following prior serialization in Bentley's Miscellany from January 1839.

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. Serialization in Bentley's Miscellany ran January 1839 to February 1840 and was still in progress when Bentley issued the three-volume book edition in October 1839; the book edition was in turn followed by a further 1840 reissue in fifteen weekly numbers.

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

No. Book-club editions reprint the text but are not the true first; look for a blind-stamp on the rear board or a jacket with no printed price.

I have a first edition of Jack Sheppard: A Romance — 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.