# Is "The Discarded Image: An Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance Literature" by C.S. Lewis a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Discarded Image: An Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance Literature by C.S. Lewis (Cambridge University Press, 1964) is identified by: First edition 1964 (posthumous), octavo, in publisher's dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering and no statement of later impression. The Cambridge University Press edition is the true first; the imprint was issued for both Cambridge and New York in 1964, so an early US-market copy carries the same first-edition sheets under a New York imprint line rather than a distinct later printing.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition 1964 (posthumous), octavo, in publisher's dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering and no statement of later impression
- The first-issue dust jacket is a typographic wrapper printed in red and black
- Cambridge, at the University Press
- Publisher imprint reads Cambridge University Press
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | C.S. Lewis |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| Year | 1964 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition 1964 (posthumous), octavo, in publisher's dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering and no statement of later impression |
| Book-club edition exists? | — |

## Points of issue
First edition 1964 (posthumous), octavo, in publisher's dark blue cloth with gilt spine lettering and no statement of later impression. The first-issue dust jacket is a typographic wrapper printed in red and black. Cambridge, at the University Press.

## Is this the true first?
The Cambridge University Press edition is the true first; the imprint was issued for both Cambridge and New York in 1964, so an early US-market copy carries the same first-edition sheets under a New York imprint line rather than a distinct later printing.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
Later Cambridge impressions and the paperback (ISBN 0-521-05551-2 and successors) follow the true first; verify the absence of any reprint/impression statement.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Discarded Image: An Introduction to Medieval and Renaissance Literature* by C.S. Lewis a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-discarded-image-an-introduction-to-medieval-and-renaissa
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.