Is My Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, two volumes, published by Lea and Blanchard, Philadelphia, issued in November 1839 though the title pages are dated 1840, Poe's first collected book of short fiction, in a printing generally accepted at 750 copies
• Bound in purple muslin, each volume's spine carrying a paper label reading 'TALES / OF THE / GROTESQUE / AND / ARABESQUE / BY / E. A. POE.' A key first-issue point: during printing, the type for pages 213 and 219 of volume two worked loose, so the earlier state has page 213 correctly numbered while later copies show it misnumbered as '231,' with a corresponding shift on page 219 in the position of the 'i' in 'ing' and the hyphen at the end of line 26 -- collectors check both pages against BAL's recorded states to establish priority

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. 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?

Most of the twenty-five tales collected here had already appeared individually in periodicals, chiefly the Southern Literary Messenger during Poe's 1835-1837 tenure there, so this two-volume set is the true first appearance of this particular collection, not the true first publication of the individual stories.P-034418

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Poe's later 1845 Wiley and Putnam collection titled simply Tales draws on some of the same stories but is a distinct, differently selected volume from a different publisher; it should not be confused with this earlier 1839/1840 Lea and Blanchard collection.P-034419

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque a first edition?

A first edition of Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque by Edgar Allan Poe (Lea and Blanchard) is identified by: First edition, two volumes, published by Lea and Blanchard, Philadelphia, issued in November 1839 though the title pages are dated 1840, Poe's first collected book of short fiction, in a printing generally accepted at 750 copies.

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. Most of the twenty-five tales collected here had already appeared individually in periodicals, chiefly the Southern Literary Messenger during Poe's 1835-1837 tenure there, so this two-volume set is the true first appearance of this particular collection, not the true first publication of the individual stories.

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

Poe's later 1845 Wiley and Putnam collection titled simply Tales draws on some of the same stories but is a distinct, differently selected volume from a different publisher; it should not be confused with this earlier 1839/1840 Lea and Blanchard collection.

I have a first edition of Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque — 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.