The Lord of the Rings — First American Edition, 1/3/1 Set in Custom Clamshell

The First American Edition — A 1/3/1 Set

A complete three-volume set of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, published in Boston by Houghton Mifflin: The Fellowship of the Ring, first American impression, 1954; The Two Towers, third American impression, 1955, in its matching third-impression dust jacket; and The Return of the King, first American impression, 1956. The books retain their original blue cloth bindings and Walter Lorraine’s illustrated jackets, and are presented together in a red custom clamshell.

Fellowship is dated 1954 on its title page, with “First published in the United States 1954” on the copyright page. The Two Towers has an undated title page and the brief statement “Printed in Great Britain” on its verso, characteristic of the early American reprints. Return carries the date 1956 on its title page. The three titles have 424, 352 and 416 numbered pages respectively; each opens with the Ring verse and the runic-bordered title design.

British Sheets, American Publication

These early American editions were bound in the United States from sheets printed in Great Britain, giving them the text and typography of the corresponding British impressions in a distinct American binding and jacket design.

The Fellowship of the Ring was published in America on 21 October 1954. The Allen & Unwin archive records 1,550 sets of first-impression sheets supplied to Houghton Mifflin, including twelve advance copies sent by air. This is the original first-impression text, before the resetting used for the second British impression.

The third impression of The Two Towers was supplied in two batches during 1955: 800 sets of sheets in July and a further 1,000 in September, making 1,800 copies for the American publisher. The Return of the King followed on 5 January 1956, using 5,000 sets of sheets from the first British impression. Its 1956 title-page date therefore belongs to the first American issue, despite the British volume having appeared in 1955.

Original Blue Cloth, Lorraine Jackets and Maps

The blue cloth is lettered in gilt on both the front boards and spines, with small circular ornaments between the spine lettering. Walter Lorraine’s woodland jacket compositions distinguish the American edition from the British Ring-and-Eye design: yellow-brown for Fellowship, green for The Two Towers and pale grey-green with red drawing and lettering for Return. Fellowship has Tolkien’s portrait on the rear panel; the other rear panels carry reviews and biographical text. The Two Towers and Return front flaps retain their printed $5.00 prices; the Fellowship flap is unpriced.

Each volume retains its folding map at the rear: The West of Middle-earth at the End of the Third Age in the first two books, and Gondor, Rohan and Mordor in the third. Fellowship also contains the map of A Part of the Shire opposite page 24. Return includes Tolkien’s Appendices. The folding maps are shown attached and folded in place.

Red Custom Clamshell Case

A substantial red custom clamshell houses the three volumes in black inner trays. Its spine is ruled and lettered in gilt with the collective title, the individual volume titles, Tolkien’s name and “First U.S. Edition 1954–1956”. The front and rear are plain red. This is a later protective case accompanying the original cloth-bound books.

Condition

The blue cloth remains attractive, with rubbing, small marks and wear at the spine ends and corners. There is some variation in the blue and in the brightness of the gilt lettering between volumes. The page edges are toned, with scattered spotting. The endpapers show browning and foxing, particularly pronounced on both free endpapers of The Two Towers; Return also has noticeable spotting, while Fellowship is appreciably lighter. The photographed text openings are generally clean and legible.

The original jackets show surface soiling, browning, creasing, tears and losses at the edges and folds. The Two Towers has the most extensive loss, including a large missing area in the middle of the spine and further loss at its foot; Fellowship has a browned spine and edge wear, while Return has chips at the upper spine and rear corner. All three are fitted with clear protective sleeves. The red clamshell is well preserved, with bright gilt lettering and light surface wear.

Bibliographical reference: Wayne G. Hammond and Douglas A. Anderson, J.R.R. Tolkien: A Descriptive Bibliography, pp. 99–102.

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