Is My The Picture of Dorian Gray a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First book edition (the expanded novel with six added chapters), April 1891
• Trade first-issue point: on page 208, eight lines from the bottom, the word 'and' is misprinted 'nd.' A deluxe large-paper issue limited to 250 copies signed by Wilde was also produced; it corrects the typo

How Ward, Lock and Company marked a first edition

• No formal edition statement on early firsts: use the title-page date, the absence of a later-printing notice, and the partnership style (Ward & Lock 1854– ; Ward, Lock & Tyler 1865–1873; Ward, Lock & Co. from 1873; Ward,…

Full Ward, Lock and Company first-edition guide →

How to verify your copy, step by step

1. Find the copyright page — the verso (back) of the title page.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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 true first appearance of the text is the shorter version in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine (July 1890), not a book. The 1891 Ward, Lock book is the first edition in book form and the first appearance of the full novel. The signed 250-copy large-paper issue is the premium state.P-023380

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Later printings correct the 'nd' typo and reset the text; reprints lack the large-paper limitation leaf. Any later Ward, Lock or other-publisher printing is a reprint.P-023381

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Picture of Dorian Gray a first edition?

A first edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (Ward, Lock and Company) is identified by: First book edition (the expanded novel with six added chapters), April 1891.

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 true first appearance of the text is the shorter version in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine (July 1890), not a book.

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

Later printings correct the 'nd' typo and reset the text; reprints lack the large-paper limitation leaf. Any later Ward, Lock or other-publisher printing is a reprint.

I have a first edition of The Picture of Dorian Gray — 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.