The Hobbit — 1973 First Printing of the Houghton Mifflin Collector’s Edition in Original Slipcase

First Printing of the Green Collector’s Edition

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Hobbit, or There and Back Again. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1973. First printing of the American Collector’s Edition, illustrated by Tolkien and complete with its original publisher’s slipcase.

The copyright page explicitly states “First Printing Collector’s Edition”, followed by the printer’s letter H. It gives ISBN 0-395-17711-1, Library of Congress catalogue card number 73-8769 and “Printed in the U.S.A.” The 1966 copyright date relates to the revised text. This specially designed Collector’s Edition was published on 24 October 1973, with 20,000 copies in the first printing.

Tolkien’s Illustrations and Maps

The edition uses the setting of the revised American text, with five colour illustrations by Tolkien added. The monochrome drawings and both maps are printed in black and green, with a fine green border around the text pages. The photographed openings include the colour views of Rivendell and Conversation with Smaug, a green-and-black illustration from the story, Thror’s Map near the front and the Map of Wilderland at the rear.

Original Decorated Binding and Pictorial Slipcase

Bound in dark green textured simulated leather, with gold and red decoration. A broad runic border encloses Tolkien’s mountain-and-forest design on the front board. The spine repeats the runic ornament and red rules around the title and author’s name. The rear board is plain. The green marbling on all three page edges and the plain green endpapers complete the edition’s coordinated design.

The original slipcase is covered in matching dark green textured material and carries a rectangular pictorial label in green, black and yellow. The label repeats Tolkien’s mountain-and-forest design, with the title above and the author’s name below. The book and its original publisher’s slipcase are offered together.

Condition

A pleasing, well-preserved first printing, with bright gold and red decoration and strongly coloured marbled page edges. There is light rubbing to the binding extremities, with a small worn area at the head of the spine. The illustrated and map openings are clean and clear, and the green endpapers are present. Several small dark marks are visible along the lower margin of the copyright page, with faint spotting on that leaf; these are shown in the photographs.

The matching slipcase has light surface rubbing and minor edge and corner wear. Its pictorial label remains complete and legible. The gallery begins with the slipcase from all sides, followed by the book, its decorated binding, the first-printing statement and the illustrated interior.

A genuine first printing of the classic green American Collector’s Edition, retaining its original matching slipcase.

Bibliographical reference: Wayne G. Hammond and Douglas A. Anderson, J.R.R. Tolkien: A Descriptive Bibliography, pp. 47–48.

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