Is My Mayordomo signed first a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The first edition is the University of New Mexico Press hardcover of 1988 (Mayordomo: Chronicle of an Acequia in Northern New Mexico, ISBN 0826314457 / 9780826314451), winner of the 1988 Western States Book Award for Creative Nonfiction
• As with UNM Press titles of the period, there is no publisher's number line; the first printing is identified on the copyright page, which should carry the original 1988 copyright with no later-printing or new-edition statement
• The hardcover in its original priced dust jacket is the collector's first, and a signed copy is the desirable form here

How UNM Press marked a first edition

• ISBN prefix 978-0-8263
• Negative-evidence (no later-printing language) on pre-1970 titles

Full UNM Press first-edition guide →

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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
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?

True first is the 1988 UNM Press hardcover, ISBN 0826314457, in dust jacket, identified by the stated 1988 copyright with no later-printing notation.P-029295

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions and later printings reprint the text but are not the first edition and are far less collectible. When a hardcover and a simultaneous paperback exist (standard from the mid-1970s), the hardcover in dust jacket is the collector's first. Use the points above to be certain — see book-club edition vs. first edition.P-029296

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Mayordomo signed first a first edition?

A first edition of Mayordomo signed first by Stanley Crawford (UNM Press) is identified by: The first edition is the University of New Mexico Press hardcover of 1988 (Mayordomo: Chronicle of an Acequia in Northern New Mexico, ISBN 0826314457 / 9780826314451), winner of the 1988 Western States Book Award for Creative Nonfiction.

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

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). True first is the 1988 UNM Press hardcover, ISBN 0826314457, in dust jacket, identified by the stated 1988 copyright with no later-printing notation.

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

Book-club editions and later printings reprint the text but are not the first edition and are far less collectible. When a hardcover and a simultaneous paperback exist (standard from the mid-1970s), the hardcover in dust jacket is the collector's first. Use the points above to be certain — see book-club edition vs. first edition.

I have a first edition of Mayordomo signed first — 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.