Is My Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since a First Edition?

The points of issue

• First edition, published anonymously (as with all Waverley novels before 1827) in three volumes, an edition of 1,000 copies, issued 7 July 1814 in Edinburgh with the London issue following later that month
• Collation includes half-titles and fly-titles in each volume; genuine first-edition sheets show the two cancel leaves recorded in Worthington's bibliography -- leaf a4 (pp
• 7-8) in volume one and leaf A2 (pp
• 3-4) in volume two -- with no cancel recorded in volume three
• The title page reads 'Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since
• In Three Volumes,' with no author named anywhere in the set

How Archibald Constable and Co. marked a first edition

• Late 1890s to about 1920 (the modern London Archibald Constable & Co.): firsts typically carry the date on the title page with no later-printing notice; subsequent printings remove the title-page date or add an impressio…
• About 1920 to about 1960: 'First published (year)' on the copyright page; a first impression lists no reprints, while later printings add dated reprint lines.

Full Archibald Constable and Co. 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. 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. 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.
5. 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 Edinburgh (Constable) issue of 7 July 1814 precedes the London (Longman) issue later the same month.P-034763

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

Scott did not publicly acknowledge authorship of the Waverley novels until 1827. Later one-volume reprints and cheap 'Author's Edition' sets from 1829 onward, beginning with Robert Cadell's 48-volume 'Magnum Opus,' carry Scott's name on the title page and lack the original three-volume half-title and cancel-leaf structure of the 1814 sheets.P-034764

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since a first edition?

A first edition of Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since by Walter Scott (Archibald Constable and Co.) is identified by: First edition, published anonymously (as with all Waverley novels before 1827) in three volumes, an edition of 1,000 copies, issued 7 July 1814 in Edinburgh with the London issue following later that month.

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. The Edinburgh (Constable) issue of 7 July 1814 precedes the London (Longman) issue later the same month.

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

Scott did not publicly acknowledge authorship of the Waverley novels until 1827. Later one-volume reprints and cheap 'Author's Edition' sets from 1829 onward, beginning with Robert Cadell's 48-volume 'Magnum Opus,' carry Scott's name on the title page and lack the original three-volume half-title and cancel-leaf structure of the 1814 sheets.

I have a first edition of Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since — 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.