# Is "Meditations (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe)" by Marcus Aurelius (trans. Meric Casaubon) a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Meditations (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe) by Marcus Aurelius (trans. Meric Casaubon) (Printed by M., 1634) is identified by: First English translation, by Meric Casaubon: 'Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe,' London, printed by M. The Meditations were written in Greek in antiquity; the printed editio princeps (Greek with a Latin version) is Wilhelm Xylander's, printed by Andreas Gesner at Zürich, 1559 — the true first appearance of the text in print.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First English translation, by Meric Casaubon: 'Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe,' London, printed by M. Flesher for Richard Mynne, 1634 (STC 962)
- Small quarto
- Recognised points: signature F3 is mis-signed 'E3' as issued (a first-issue point, not a defect); the text carries side-notes and woodcut ornamental initials and type-ornaments; a folding engraved plate depicting three Roman pots (from Henry Dering's collection) belongs in the 'Notes' — complete copies have it, and some copies lack it
- An initial blank leaf (A1) is often absent
- Verify the 1634 Flesher/Mynne imprint and STC 962 before treating a copy as the first English edition
- Publisher imprint reads Printed by M.
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Marcus Aurelius (trans. Meric Casaubon) |
| Publisher | Printed by M. |
| Year | 1634 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First English translation, by Meric Casaubon: 'Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe,' London… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First English translation, by Meric Casaubon: 'Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe,' London, printed by M. Flesher for Richard Mynne, 1634 (STC 962). Small quarto. Recognised points: signature F3 is mis-signed 'E3' as issued (a first-issue point, not a defect); the text carries side-notes and woodcut ornamental initials and type-ornaments; a folding engraved plate depicting three Roman pots (from Henry Dering's collection) belongs in the 'Notes' — complete copies have it, and some copies lack it. An initial blank leaf (A1) is often absent. Verify the 1634 Flesher/Mynne imprint and STC 962 before treating a copy as the first English edition.

## Is this the true first?
The Meditations were written in Greek in antiquity; the printed editio princeps (Greek with a Latin version) is Wilhelm Xylander's, printed by Andreas Gesner at Zürich, 1559 — the true first appearance of the text in print. For the ENGLISH tradition, Casaubon's 1634 (STC 962) is the first edition and the collector's entry point. 'First thus' traps: later 17th-century Casaubon printings, Jeremy Collier's 1701 translation, the W. H. D. Rouse edition, and all modern translations are separate editions, not the 1634 first.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue (17th-century book). Confusion arises from later Casaubon printings and from wholly different later translations (Collier 1701; George Long; Rouse; and modern versions) each marketed as a 'first' of its own text — only the 1634 Flesher/Mynne printing is the first English edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Meditations (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus the Roman Emperor, His Meditations concerning Himselfe)* by Marcus Aurelius (trans. Meric Casaubon) a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/meditations-marcus-aurelius-antoninus-the-roman-emperor-his
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.