Is My Copy of Wives and Daughters a First Edition?

The points of issue

• True first in book form: Smith, Elder & Co., London, 1866, in two volumes, large octavo, with eighteen wood-engraved plates by George du Maurier (ten in Vol. I, eight in Vol. II)
• Sadleir 936, Wolff 2428
• Original binding is publisher's burgundy/maroon cloth, gilt; collation Vol. I [iv], 336 pp and Vol. II [iv], 332 pp. Published posthumously — Gaskell died in November 1865 leaving the story a chapter short — with a concluding note supplied by the Cornhill editor Frederick Greenwood

How Smith, Elder & Co. marked a first edition

• No explicit edition statement in the Victorian era: first printings are identified by the date on the title page and by the ABSENCE of any 'second edition' / 'new edition' wording on the title page or half-title.
• Publisher's catalogue or advertisements bound in (usually at the rear, sometimes the front): on a true first the inserted ads are dated at or before the title-page year; later catalogue dates indicate a later printing…

Full Smith, Elder & 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. 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.
3. Verify this is the UK true first — not a later-market or reprint edition.
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 London Smith, Elder two-volume issue of 1866 is the true first; a first American edition followed the same year from Harper & Brothers, New York (1866), a separate later-in-year setting, so London holds precedence. The novel was serialised in the Cornhill Magazine, August 1864–January 1866.P-045198

Telling it from reprints & book-club editions

The Harper (New York) 1866 issue is the American first, not a reprint of the London sheets; later reprints and one-volume/collected settings are 'first thus,' not the 1866 two-volume first.P-045199

Frequently asked questions

Is my copy of Wives and Daughters a first edition?

A first edition of Wives and Daughters by Elizabeth Gaskell (Smith, Elder & Co.) is identified by: True first in book form: Smith, Elder & Co., London, 1866, in two volumes, large octavo, with eighteen wood-engraved plates by George du Maurier (ten in Vol. I, eight in Vol. II); Sadleir 936, Wolff 2428.

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 London Smith, Elder two-volume issue of 1866 is the true first; a first American edition followed the same year from Harper & Brothers, New York (1866), a separate later-in-year setting, so London holds precedence.

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

The Harper (New York) 1866 issue is the American first, not a reprint of the London sheets; later reprints and one-volume/collected settings are 'first thus,' not the 1866 two-volume first.

I have a first edition of Wives and Daughters — 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.