# Is "The Plumed Serpent" by D.H. Lawrence a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Plumed Serpent by D.H. Lawrence (Martin Secker, 1926) is identified by: First edition published by Martin Secker, London, January 1926, in an edition of about 3,000 copies; octavo, 476 pp, the title page reading 'The Plumed Serpent (Quetzalcoatl).' Bound in brown/chocolate cloth, blind-ruled, with the spine lettered in gilt, and issued in a tan dust jacket lettered in red — the priced jacket present at the flap, and the jacket is uncommon. British true first: Martin Secker (London), January 1926, precedes the first American edition, Alfred A.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First edition published by Martin Secker, London, January 1926, in an edition of about 3,000 copies; octavo, 476 pp, the title page reading 'The Plumed Serpent (Quetzalcoatl).' Bound in brown/chocolate cloth, blind-ruled, with the spine lettered in gilt, and issued in a tan dust jacket lettered in red — the priced jacket present at the flap, and the jacket is uncommon
- There is no number line; the first printing is identified by the 1926 title-page imprint and the absence of any later-impression notice (a March 1926 Secker reprint followed)
- Publisher imprint reads Martin Secker
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | D.H. Lawrence |
| Publisher | Martin Secker |
| Year | 1926 |
| True first | British edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First edition published by Martin Secker, London, January 1926, in an edition of about 3,000 copies; octavo, 476 pp, the title page reading… |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
First edition published by Martin Secker, London, January 1926, in an edition of about 3,000 copies; octavo, 476 pp, the title page reading 'The Plumed Serpent (Quetzalcoatl).' Bound in brown/chocolate cloth, blind-ruled, with the spine lettered in gilt, and issued in a tan dust jacket lettered in red — the priced jacket present at the flap, and the jacket is uncommon. There is no number line; the first printing is identified by the 1926 title-page imprint and the absence of any later-impression notice (a March 1926 Secker reprint followed).

## Is this the true first?
British true first: Martin Secker (London), January 1926, precedes the first American edition, Alfred A. Knopf (New York), February 1926, which was set from new plates. Both are collected, but the Secker holds precedence; the Knopf is the first American, not a precedence rival.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
A second Secker impression followed in March 1926, so confirm the January 1926 first by the imprint and the lack of a later-printing notice. No book-club edition is documented among the early printings.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Plumed Serpent* by D.H. Lawrence a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-plumed-serpent
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.