Is My The White Goddess a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first is Faber and Faber Ltd., 24 Russell Square, London, published 21 May 1948 (Higginson bibliography, via the Robert Graves Society, entry A61a)
• Bound in medium blue cloth with the spine lettered in gilt within triple rules; issued in a canary-yellow dust jacket printed in black and red, with a priced jacket; the London sheets have all edges trimmed and the top edges stained brown
• Stated first printing of 2,340 copies; there is no printing statement or number line, and later Faber impressions carry a reprint notice on the verso

How Faber and Faber marked a first edition

• First printings state "First published in [Year]" (often "First published in mcmxxxx") on the copyright/verso page, with no list of later impressions
• Prior to 1968 the year was set in ROMAN NUMERALS (e.g. 'First published in mcmliv'); from 1968 onward Arabic numerals were used — a key dating tell

Full Faber and Faber 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 American 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?

The Faber (London) issue of 21 May 1948 precedes the first American edition, Creative Age Press, New York, 26 August 1948 (bibliography A61b), so London is the true first. The American edition is a distinct setting bound in brown cloth stamped with a device of three cranes and a star, in a white jacket printed in brown, black and yellow; the London top edges are stained brown while the New York copies are only trimmed.

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Earliest Creative Age (New York) copies lack the 'PRINTED IN U.S.A.' line on the back jacket flap. Faber's later amended and enlarged edition is a revised text ('first thus') and must not be confused with the 1948 first; reprint impressions state the later printing on the verso.

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of The White Goddess a first edition?

A first edition of The White Goddess by Robert Graves (Faber and Faber) is identified by: True first is Faber and Faber Ltd., 24 Russell Square, London, published 21 May 1948 (Higginson bibliography, via the Robert Graves Society, entry A61a).

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). The Faber (London) issue of 21 May 1948 precedes the first American edition, Creative Age Press, New York, 26 August 1948 (bibliography A61b), so London is the true first.

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

Earliest Creative Age (New York) copies lack the 'PRINTED IN U.S.A.' line on the back jacket flap. Faber's later amended and enlarged edition is a revised text ('first thus') and must not be confused with the 1948 first; reprint impressions state the later printing on the verso.

I have a first edition of The White Goddess — 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.