# Is "Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile" by John Hanning Speke a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile by John Hanning Speke (William Blackwood and Sons, 1863) is identified by: The true first edition collates xxxi, [1], 658, [34, ads] pages octavo, bound in the publisher's reddish-brown (orange) cloth stamped in gilt, with blue-green coated endpapers. This 1863 volume recounts Speke's second expedition (1860-63, with James Augustus Grant) and should not be confused with his separate, posthumous What Led to the Discovery of the Source of the Nile (Blackwood, 1864), which reprints his earlier 'Journal of Adventures in Somali Land' and 'Journal of a Cruise on the Tanganyika Lake,' originally serialized in Blackwood's Magazine and recounting his first expedition with Richard Burton.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- The true first edition collates xxxi, [1], 658, [34, ads] pages octavo, bound in the publisher's reddish-brown (orange) cloth stamped in gilt, with blue-green coated endpapers
- It is illustrated with a frontispiece portrait, roughly two dozen further full-page plates, and a large folding map of Eastern Equatorial Africa that should be found tucked into a pocket beneath the rear pastedown, as issued, with thirty-four pages of publisher's advertisements at the rear
- The title page and dedication leaf are both dated 1863 with no additional printing or impression statement, as expected of an unaltered first printing
- Publisher imprint reads William Blackwood and Sons
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | John Hanning Speke |
| Publisher | William Blackwood and Sons |
| Year | 1863 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | The true first edition collates xxxi, [1], 658, [34, ads] pages octavo, bound in the publisher's reddish-brown (orange) cloth stamped in… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
The true first edition collates xxxi, [1], 658, [34, ads] pages octavo, bound in the publisher's reddish-brown (orange) cloth stamped in gilt, with blue-green coated endpapers. It is illustrated with a frontispiece portrait, roughly two dozen further full-page plates, and a large folding map of Eastern Equatorial Africa that should be found tucked into a pocket beneath the rear pastedown, as issued, with thirty-four pages of publisher's advertisements at the rear. The title page and dedication leaf are both dated 1863 with no additional printing or impression statement, as expected of an unaltered first printing.

## Is this the true first?
This 1863 volume recounts Speke's second expedition (1860-63, with James Augustus Grant) and should not be confused with his separate, posthumous What Led to the Discovery of the Source of the Nile (Blackwood, 1864), which reprints his earlier 'Journal of Adventures in Somali Land' and 'Journal of a Cruise on the Tanganyika Lake,' originally serialized in Blackwood's Magazine and recounting his first expedition with Richard Burton.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile* by John Hanning Speke a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/journal-of-the-discovery-of-the-source-of-the-nile
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.