Is My Siddhartha a First Edition?

The points of issue

• German true first: Siddhartha
• Eine indische Dichtung, S. Fischer Verlag, Berlin, 1922
• Point of issue: the copyright page states 'Erste bis sechste Auflage' (first to sixth printing); higher Auflage bands identify later printings
• Collation approximately 147 pp plus unnumbered leaves
• Issued in publisher's boards (tan-to-orange, lettered in brown, with a brown topstain), in cloth-backed boards, and in paper wrappers — all are first-edition issues, with no established priority among them
• First edition in English: New Directions, New York, 1951, translated by Hilda Rosner, issued in the New Classics Series, 153 pp

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. Confirm the first-edition statement — look for “First Edition,” “First Printing,” or the publisher’s equivalent wording.
3. 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.
4. Verify this is the US true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
5. 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.
6. 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?

The census claim is correct in full. The German S. Fischer 1922 is the true first. In English, the US precedes the UK: New Directions, New York, 1951 (Hilda Rosner) is the first English edition, and Peter Owen, London, 1954 is the first British — Peter Owen bought UK rights to the Rosner translation from James Laughlin at New Directions in 1954, and it became that firm's first major book. Because both use the same Rosner text, the Owen is a first UK edition, not a new translation. Later retranslations and the New Directions paperback are 'first thus'.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club issue is documented for the German 1922 or the American 1951. German reprint tell: the Auflage statement on the copyright page — anything past 'Erste bis sechste Auflage' is a later printing. American reprint tell: New Directions stated its printings, so copies described as later printings of the 1951 sheets (e.g. a fifth or seventh printing) are common and are not firsts; the ubiquitous New Directions Paperbook is a later reprint entirely.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Siddhartha a first edition?

A first edition of Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse (S. Fischer Verlag, Berlin) is identified by: German true first: Siddhartha.

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. The census claim is correct in full.

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

No book-club issue is documented for the German 1922 or the American 1951. German reprint tell: the Auflage statement on the copyright page — anything past 'Erste bis sechste Auflage' is a later printing. American reprint tell: New Directions stated its printings, so copies described as later printings of the 1951 sheets (e.g. a fifth or seventh printing) are common and are not firsts; the ubiquitous New Directions Paperbook is a later reprint entirely.

I have a first edition of Siddhartha — 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.