Is My The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe a First Edition?

The points of issue

• UK Geoffrey Bles (London), published 16 October 1950
• The copyright/verso page reads 'First published 1950' with no later-impression statement
• Bound in original green cloth lettered in silver on the spine
• Illustrated throughout by Pauline Baynes (43 illustrations in the British edition)
• First-state dust jacket is the grey pictorial Baynes jacket, with the printed price retained on the front flap
• A genuinely signed first therefore combines the 1950 Bles first impression with a Lewis signature

How Geoffrey Bles marked a first edition

• The decisive later-printing tell is an ADDED line under the original statement: 'Reprinted [year]', 'Second impression [year]', 'New impression', etc. If any such line is present it is not a first impression, even though…

Full Geoffrey Bles first-edition guide →

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 UK 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 UK Geoffrey Bles edition of 16 October 1950 is the true first edition worldwide. The Macmillan (New York) first American edition also appeared in 1950 but was reset from new type (with textual changes in chapters 1, 6 and 13 and fewer illustrations), so it does not precede the Bles first.P-036499

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions and later Bles/Macmillan printings reprint the text but are not the 1950 Geoffrey Bles first impression; confirm the 'First published 1950' verso statement, the green cloth with silver spine lettering, and the grey pictorial Baynes jacket with printed price present.P-036500

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe a first edition?

A first edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (Geoffrey Bles) is identified by: UK Geoffrey Bles (London), published 16 October 1950.

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 UK Geoffrey Bles edition of 16 October 1950 is the true first edition worldwide.

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

Book-club editions and later Bles/Macmillan printings reprint the text but are not the 1950 Geoffrey Bles first impression; confirm the 'First published 1950' verso statement, the green cloth with silver spine lettering, and the grey pictorial Baynes jacket with printed price present.

I have a first edition of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe — 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.