Is My Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei (The Communist Manifesto) a First Edition?

The points of issue

• A 23-page pamphlet in dark green printed wrappers, issued anonymously — neither Marx nor Engels is named
• The imprint reads "London
• Gedruckt in der Office der 'Bildungs-Gesellschaft für Arbeiter' von J. E. Burghard
• 46, Liverpool Street, Bishopsgate," and the heading is dated "Veröffentlicht im Februar 1848." The decisive test is extent: the February 1848 first printing sets the text in 23 pages, while the corrected printing of April–May 1848 resets it to 30 pages, repairing misprints and punctuation
• That 30-page setting became the basis for all later authorised German editions, so 23pp versus 30pp is the primary distinction
• The first printing is on poor-quality paper and was proofread only cursorily, leaving numerous misprints and accidentals

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?

The German original, London 1848, is the true first — the census claim is correct. The first English translation is Helen Macfarlane's, serialised in George Julian Harney's The Red Republican (London, 1850); it is a periodical appearance, not a book. The first authorised English book is the Samuel Moore translation, edited and annotated by Engels: London, William Reeves, 185 Fleet Street, 1888 — Engels cites that exact imprint himself in his 1890 preface. The 1848 German pamphlet and the 1888 Reeves are both collected; name which one you mean.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The 1888 Reeves is the great trap. Reeves reused the 1888 stereotype plates for pages 3–31 across all his later English impressions, altering only the title page and terminal advertisement leaf — so "1888" remains printed on the title page of impressions issued for decades afterwards. Recorded examples include a "Fourth edition" bearing 1888 but probably printed in 1907, and a "Sixth Impression" bearing 1888 but dated 1927. Read the impression statement and the printed price statement on the wrapper, not the 1888 date. Modern reprints of the Moore translation are ubiquitous.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei (The Communist Manifesto) a first edition?

A first edition of Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei (The Communist Manifesto) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels (Office der Bildungs-Gesellschaft für Arbeiter, printed by J. E. Burghard, London) is identified by: A 23-page pamphlet in dark green printed wrappers, issued anonymously — neither Marx nor Engels is named.

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 German original, London 1848, is the true first — the census claim is correct.

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

The 1888 Reeves is the great trap. Reeves reused the 1888 stereotype plates for pages 3–31 across all his later English impressions, altering only the title page and terminal advertisement leaf — so "1888" remains printed on the title page of impressions issued for decades afterwards. Recorded examples include a "Fourth edition" bearing 1888 but probably printed in 1907, and a "Sixth Impression" bearing 1888 but dated 1927. Read the impression statement and the printed price statement on the wra

I have a first edition of Manifest der Kommunistischen Partei (The Communist Manifesto) — 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.