# Is "Melmoth the Wanderer" by Charles Robert Maturin a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Melmoth the Wanderer by Charles Robert Maturin (Archibald Constable and Company, Edinburgh, 1820) is identified by: First edition in four volumes, imprint reading Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable and Company, and Hurst, Robinson, and Co., Cheapside, London, 1820. The Edinburgh/London 1820 four-volume Constable edition is the only period edition and the uncontested true first; no contemporary rival edition competes for priority.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition in four volumes, imprint reading Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable and Company, and Hurst, Robinson, and Co., Cheapside, London, 1820
- Complete sets call for half-titles in volumes I and II only, plus a single leaf of publisher's advertisements at the end of volume IV. No first-issue text points are recorded within the 1820 printing; standard references are Sadleir 1667 and Wolff 4650
- Publisher imprint reads Archibald Constable and Company, Edinburgh
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Charles Robert Maturin |
| Publisher | Archibald Constable and Company, Edinburgh |
| Year | 1820 |
| True first | — |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition in four volumes, imprint reading Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable and Company, and Hurst, Robinson, and Co.… |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First edition in four volumes, imprint reading Edinburgh: Printed for Archibald Constable and Company, and Hurst, Robinson, and Co., Cheapside, London, 1820. Complete sets call for half-titles in volumes I and II only, plus a single leaf of publisher's advertisements at the end of volume IV. No first-issue text points are recorded within the 1820 printing; standard references are Sadleir 1667 and Wolff 4650.

## Is this the true first?
The Edinburgh/London 1820 four-volume Constable edition is the only period edition and the uncontested true first; no contemporary rival edition competes for priority.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue is documented. Any one-volume or later-imprint copy is a reprint: the four-volume format with the 1820 Constable/Hurst-Robinson imprint is required.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Melmoth the Wanderer* by Charles Robert Maturin a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/melmoth-the-wanderer
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.