Is My Copy of The Scarlet Letter: A Romance a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, first printing of 2,500 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1850, in brown cloth with blind-stamped covers
• The most cited first-printing reading is 'reduplicate' for 'repudiate' at page 21, line 20; scholars note this arose from two settings of the gathering containing page 21, so it is best described as a first-printing textual reading rather than an absolute point of issue
• The first printing does NOT contain the additional 'Custom-House' preface note
• Confirm the 1850 imprint and the early textual readings on any given copy

How to confirm the first-printing statement

Publishers stated first printings differently by era. The decisive tells are a printed “First Edition/First Printing” statement, a number line whose lowest number is 1 (Random House ends at 2), or a dated first printing with no later printings listed. Paste your copyright page into the number-line decoder.

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 true first edition, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, 1850. The first printing of 2,500 copies sold quickly and a second printing of 2,500 followed within weeks. The second printing ADDED Hawthorne's preface (dated March 30, 1850) responding to the controversy over 'The Custom-House' sketch, in which he reprinted the introduction without change; the presence of that preface indicates the second printing, not the first.P-022203

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Numerous later reprints exist. A first printing must bear the 1850 Ticknor, Reed & Fields imprint and the brown blind-stamped cloth, and must LACK the added preface note that distinguishes the second printing. Treat any single textual reading cautiously, as scholars dispute its reliability as an issue point.P-022204

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The Scarlet Letter: A Romance a first edition?

A first edition of The Scarlet Letter: A Romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne (Ticknor, Reed & Fields) is identified by: First edition, first printing of 2,500 copies, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, Boston, 1850, in brown cloth with blind-stamped covers.

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 true first edition, Ticknor, Reed & Fields, 1850.

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

Numerous later reprints exist. A first printing must bear the 1850 Ticknor, Reed & Fields imprint and the brown blind-stamped cloth, and must LACK the added preface note that distinguishes the second printing. Treat any single textual reading cautiously, as scholars dispute its reliability as an issue point.

I have a first edition of The Scarlet Letter: A Romance — what should I do?

First, document the copy: photograph the copyright page (the number line and any edition statement) and the dust-jacket flap. Confirm the points of issue above against your copy, and decode the printing with the free First Edition Checker. Clearing out books? I take them as a free donation and make sure collectible copies are identified, not discarded: free pickup in the Albuquerque metro (scheduled by route), the 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE, or donor-paid mail-in from anywhere in the US. Questions? Call or text 505-250-3804.

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.