# Is "Mardi: and a Voyage Thither" by Herman Melville a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Mardi: and a Voyage Thither by Herman Melville (Richard Bentley, 1849) is identified by: First published in three volumes by Richard Bentley, London, March 16, 1849 (Bentley paid Melville the printed price for British rights), followed by the first American edition in two volumes from Harper & Brothers, New York, April 14, 1849. The London Bentley edition (March 16, 1849) precedes the New York Harper edition (April 14, 1849) by about a month.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First published in three volumes by Richard Bentley, London, March 16, 1849 (Bentley paid Melville the printed price for British rights), followed by the first American edition in two volumes from Harper & Brothers, New York, April 14, 1849
- The differing volume counts between the London three-decker and the New York two-volume format are themselves a basic identification point distinguishing the two national first editions
- Melville's first extended work of fiction after Typee and Omoo, and his first commercial and critical disappointment
- Publisher imprint reads Richard Bentley
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Herman Melville |
| Publisher | Richard Bentley |
| Year | 1849 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First published in three volumes by Richard Bentley, London, March 16, 1849 (Bentley paid Melville the printed price for British rights)… |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First published in three volumes by Richard Bentley, London, March 16, 1849 (Bentley paid Melville the printed price for British rights), followed by the first American edition in two volumes from Harper & Brothers, New York, April 14, 1849. The differing volume counts between the London three-decker and the New York two-volume format are themselves a basic identification point distinguishing the two national first editions. Melville's first extended work of fiction after Typee and Omoo, and his first commercial and critical disappointment.

## Is this the true first?
The London Bentley edition (March 16, 1849) precedes the New York Harper edition (April 14, 1849) by about a month.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Harper reprintings and inclusion in 20th-century collected 'Works of Herman Melville' sets reset the text in uniform series bindings, distinct from the original three-volume Bentley or two-volume Harper first editions.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Mardi: and a Voyage Thither* by Herman Melville a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/mardi-and-a-voyage-thither
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.