Is My The Pillars of the Earth a First Edition?

The points of issue

• The true first is the UK Macmillan edition (London, 1989), in black cloth with gilt spine lettering and a pictorial jacket showing lightning striking a distant cathedral; it reads 'First published 1989' on the copyright page, per Macmillan's house style
• The US William Morrow edition is the first American edition: stated 'First Edition' with a number line ending in 1, in tan boards with a jacket featuring a gargoyle

How Macmillan marked a first edition

• FIRM SPLIT FIRST — this is the master rule. 'Macmillan' is not one publisher. The London parent was founded in 1843 by Daniel and Alexander Macmillan; George Edward Brett opened the New York office in 1869; in 1896 the f…
• US Macmillan, post-1979 (number-line era): after a gradual 1970s rollout, from 1979 onward apply the standard number-line test — the digit '1' MUST be present in the sequence (e.g., 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1) for a first prin…

Full Macmillan 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. Read the number line — the lowest number is the printing. A line including 1 is a first printing (Random House deliberately ends at 2). Paste it into the decoder.
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?

Precedence is not genuinely debated: the UK Macmillan edition precedes and is the true first; the US Morrow edition is the first American edition. This is Follett's signature work, so condition and a genuine signature drive desirability.P-017987

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Book-club editions show a blind-stamp or gutter code, lack a printed jacket price, use lighter boards, and on the US side omit the full number line. For the US first, a stated First Edition with a complete number line to 1 and a first-state jacket separates it from club copies; for the true first, confirm the Macmillan imprint and 'First published 1989'.P-017988

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Pillars of the Earth a first edition?

A first edition of The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett (Macmillan) is identified by: The true first is the UK Macmillan edition (London, 1989), in black cloth with gilt spine lettering and a pictorial jacket showing lightning striking a distant cathedral; it reads 'First published 1989' on the copyright page, per Macmillan's house style.

How do I tell the first printing from a later one?

Check the copyright page. A number line whose lowest number is 1 marks a first printing (Random House ends at 2). Precedence is not genuinely debated: the UK Macmillan edition precedes and is the true first; the US Morrow edition is the first American edition.

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

Book-club editions show a blind-stamp or gutter code, lack a printed jacket price, use lighter boards, and on the US side omit the full number line. For the US first, a stated First Edition with a complete number line to 1 and a first-state jacket separates it from club copies; for the true first, confirm the Macmillan imprint and 'First published 1989'.

I have a first edition of The Pillars of the Earth — 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.