Is My Paradise Lost a First Edition?

The points of issue

• London, 1667, quarto, 'A Poem Written in Ten Books' — the ten-book arrangement is itself the primary point, since the 1674 second edition recast the poem into the twelve books familiar today; any copy in twelve books is not the 1667 first
• Samuel Simmons was the publisher, but his name is ABSENT from the earliest title pages, which name only the booksellers Peter Parker, Robert Boulter and Matthias Walker; his name first appears on a later title-page form ('Printed by S. Simmons')
• One setting of sheets was sold off between 1667 and 1669 under a succession of title pages; authorities count six, seven, or (Masson's enumeration) as many as nine distinct forms
• The earliest, dated 1667, name JOHN MILTON in full: first state with the name in italic capitals LARGER than the word LONDON, second state with the name in smaller italic capitals
• Later forms, dated 1668, reduce the author to the initials 'J.M.' and shorten 'Written in' to 'IN'; the 1669-dated forms carry T. Helder's imprint (at the Angel in Little Britain)
• First-issue point: a true first issue has NO preliminary matter at all

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. 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.
3. Verify this is the UK true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
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?

No UK-vs-US question exists: London 1667 is the true first and the only first. There is no original-language issue — the poem is English. The 1674 second edition (twelve books, with the added commendatory verses) and the 1688 subscription folio are separate editions, not states of the first, and the 1688 folio in particular is often offered as an early 'first' — it is not.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club or reprint-society tells apply to the 17th-century printings. The one recurring trap is the frontispiece portrait: the first edition was NEVER issued with an author portrait, so a portrait found in a 1667 copy is a later insertion, usually the William Dolle engraving taken from the 1674 or 1678 editions. Realistically, donor copies are 18th-century or later editions, Victorian illustrated reprints (Doré and successors), or modern press and book-club issues — all first thus at best.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Paradise Lost a first edition?

A first edition of Paradise Lost by John Milton (Samuel Simmons, London) is identified by: London, 1667, quarto, 'A Poem Written in Ten Books' — the ten-book arrangement is itself the primary point, since the 1674 second edition recast the poem into the twelve books familiar today; any copy in twelve books is not the 1667 first.

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. No UK-vs-US question exists: London 1667 is the true first and the only first.

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

No book-club or reprint-society tells apply to the 17th-century printings. The one recurring trap is the frontispiece portrait: the first edition was NEVER issued with an author portrait, so a portrait found in a 1667 copy is a later insertion, usually the William Dolle engraving taken from the 1674 or 1678 editions. Realistically, donor copies are 18th-century or later editions, Victorian illustrated reprints (Doré and successors), or modern press and book-club issues — all first thus at best.

I have a first edition of Paradise Lost — 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.