# Is "The Rock" by T.S. Eliot a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Rock by T.S. Eliot (Faber & Faber, 1934) is identified by: A pageant play (choruses by Eliot; the book of words for the 1934 pageant). UK Faber (May 1934) is the true first; the US Harcourt, Brace edition also appeared in 1934 but the London edition has priority.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- A pageant play (choruses by Eliot; the book of words for the 1934 pageant)
- First Faber edition, first impression May 1934
- Issued simultaneously in two forms: roughly 1,000 copies in cloth boards and roughly 1,000 in printed wrappers
- Gallup A26
- Publisher imprint reads Faber & Faber
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | T.S. Eliot |
| Publisher | Faber & Faber |
| Year | 1934 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | A pageant play (choruses by Eliot; the book of words for the 1934 pageant) |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
A pageant play (choruses by Eliot; the book of words for the 1934 pageant). First Faber edition, first impression May 1934. Issued simultaneously in two forms: roughly 1,000 copies in cloth boards and roughly 1,000 in printed wrappers. Gallup A26.

## Is this the true first?
UK Faber (May 1934) is the true first; the US Harcourt, Brace edition also appeared in 1934 but the London edition has priority.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Rock* by T.S. Eliot a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-rock
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.