Are first edition books worth anything?
First editions are sought-after by book collectors and a first edition is usually more valuable than a later printing. A first edition signed by the author will have even greater value.
How can you tell if first edition book is valuable?
Identifying the First Edition of a Book Another common method of identification is the number line – that’s a line of numbers on the copyright page. Usually, if a one is present in the line then it’s a first edition.
What is the rarest first edition book?
10 of the Most Rare Books of All Time
- Shakespeare’s First Folio.
- The Gutenberg Bible.
- The Birds of America.
- The Codex of Leicester.
- Don Quixote.
- Tamerlane and Other Poems.
- Ptolemy’s Geographia Cosmographia.
- On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres.
How much do first edition books sell for?
Because there are so few first edition copies available, they can be resold for a lot of money. The most expensive first edition was sold on AbeBooks for almost $3,000, and signed first editions are now being sold on the site for up to $1,350.
Why is first edition so expensive?
Typically, the first edition of an author’s first book will be in highest demand because it was initially printed for a small audience. When these books become popular, the next novel from a writer will have a much larger edition size. An excellent example of this is J. K. Rowling’s books.
What is so special about first edition books?
First editions are prized because they are as close as a reader can get to the source. This is the way the book first appeared to readers, with the original cover art, and sometimes even the original typos.
Why are first edition books so valuable?
Why do some people collect first editions of books? Book collectors value first editions because it’s the closest one can get to the author’s intent. The author is usually more invested and involved in the first printing process because it’s the first time their work is born and introduced to the world.
What’s the most expensive first edition book?
These are the 5 most expensive First Edition books ever sold:
- The Gospel of Henry the Lion by Order of Saint Benedict – $11.7 million.
- Birds of America by James Audubon – $11.5 million.
- The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer – $7.5 million.
- First Folio by William Shakespeare – $6,166,000.
What’s the most expensive book ever sold?
Codex Leicester
Leonardo da Vinci’s “Codex Leicester,” also known as the “Codex Hammer,” is the most expensive book ever sold. The 72-page linen manuscript includes Leonardo’s thoughts, theories and observations of the world, like the movement of water, fossils and the luminosity of the moon.
Does first edition mean first printing?
As we’ve mentioned elsewhere, first edition means the first printing of a book. That’s because the first printing only represents a portion of the total number of copies of a book that the publisher hopes to sell. That first printing is just an installment on what they hope to be a long term investment in that book.
Is a second printing a first edition?
To publishers, a first edition is the first version of a book before changes are made (forewords added, afterwords added, typos corrected, whatever requires a new typeset). That is a second printing, first edition.