# Is "The Stone Raft" by José Saramago a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Stone Raft by José Saramago (Harcourt Brace, 1994) is identified by: UK Harvill first edition, London, 1994, ISBN 0002713217 (9780002713214), translated by Giovanni Pontiero, is the true first English edition. First English translation of A Jangada de Pedra (1986).

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- UK Harvill first edition, London, 1994, ISBN 0002713217
- , translated by Giovanni Pontiero, is the true first English edition
- Bound in gray boards with a gray cloth spine stamped in black, in a pictorial first-issue dust jacket that carries the printed price on the flap (present and unclipped on a true first-issue jacket)
- The US Harcourt Brace edition followed in 1995
- Publisher imprint reads Harcourt Brace
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | José Saramago |
| Publisher | Harcourt Brace |
| Year | 1994 |
| True first | UK edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | UK Harvill first edition, London, 1994, ISBN 0002713217 |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
UK Harvill first edition, London, 1994, ISBN 0002713217 (9780002713214), translated by Giovanni Pontiero, is the true first English edition. Bound in gray boards with a gray cloth spine stamped in black, in a pictorial first-issue dust jacket that carries the printed price on the flap (present and unclipped on a true first-issue jacket). The US Harcourt Brace edition followed in 1995.

## Is this the true first?
First English translation of A Jangada de Pedra (1986). The UK Harvill 1994 edition (ISBN 0002713217) precedes the US Harcourt Brace 1995 edition.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No notable book-club edition recorded. Distinguish the Harvill 1994 first from the 1995 US Harcourt Brace edition by imprint, date, and the pictorial priced first-issue jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Stone Raft* by José Saramago a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-stone-raft
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.