Is My The Masks of Time a First Edition?

The points of issue

• Ballantine Books paperback original, 1968, catalog number U6121, with cover art by Robert Foster; a Nebula-nominated novel
• As a paperback original there is no hardcover precedent for the first market appearance
• The first printing should show the Ballantine U6121 number and the printed cover price, with no statement of a later printing

How Ballantine marked a first edition

• Number line on copyright page; first printing has the '1' present. Modern PRH-era Ballantine uses the full descending line '9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1' with no edition statement, OR with 'First Edition' stated.

Full Ballantine 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 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?

US Ballantine paperback original (U6121, 1968) is the true first; there is no earlier hardcover.P-027895

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

No book-club edition. A later Ballantine printing (1973) exists and is distinguished by revised cover pricing and printing notation rather than the clean first-printing U6121 state.P-027896

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Masks of Time a first edition?

A first edition of The Masks of Time by Robert Silverberg (Ballantine) is identified by: Ballantine Books paperback original, 1968, catalog number U6121, with cover art by Robert Foster; a Nebula-nominated novel.

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. US Ballantine paperback original (U6121, 1968) is the true first; there is no earlier hardcover.

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

No book-club edition. A later Ballantine printing (1973) exists and is distinguished by revised cover pricing and printing notation rather than the clean first-printing U6121 state.

I have a first edition of The Masks of Time — 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.