Third impression, third impression, and second impression, in dust jackets.
Publisher and Year: London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1955
Edition: Three volumes, comprising (1) The Fellowship of the Ring (3rd impression), The Two Towers (2nd impression), and The Return of the King (2nd impression), each in the correct and unclipped dust jacket. The Fellowship of the Ring is slightly shorter than the other two volumes, as issued. Of note, the copyright page of The Two Towers is misleading and bears a known misprint; although it states that it is a second impression, the book is in fact a third impression because it lacks the date of 1955 on the title page. Of these specific impressions, just 500 copies of The Fellowship of the Ring were made, compared with 3,000 of The Two Towers and 4,000 of Return of the King. (Hammond & Anderson, 1993, A5; later amended by Hammond in articles published in The Tolkien Collector in 1995 [No. 9 and No. 11] and 2000 [No. 23]; The TolkienBooks website, “Printing and Binding The Lord of the Rings”)
Condition and Description: Three octavo volumes, publisher’s red cloth stamped in gilt, red topstains, other edges plain, map bound at the rear of each volume, all in dust jackets. 423 pp. (Vol. 1); 352 pp. (Vol. 2); 416 pp (Vol. 3). Securely bound and hinges firm. Topstain of the first two volumes faded. Clean cloth with minimal handling wear. Gilt of Vol. 2 a little dulled but legible; gilt remains bright on the other volumes. Christmas inscription in pencil to the front free endpaper of the second volume. Small and neat name in ink to the front free endpaper of the third volume. Pages otherwise clear and without any other prior owner markings. Dust jackets are toned (especially the spines), rubbed, and a little soiled and stained. Jacket of The Fellowship of the Ring has very small losses to the extremities and a larger chip to the bottom edge of the front panel (2.25” width and 1” height at the tallest point), with loss to most of the “J” and part of the “R” in the author’s initials, and discoloration on either side of that area where a piece of tape had been removed. That jacket also has had tape removed from the verso, leaving rectangular discoloration that is not visible from the recto. Preserved in archival mylar covers and in a clamshell case stamped in gilt.
“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
Inventory ID: 708 - 417 - 021
Third impression, third impression, and second impression, in dust jackets.
Publisher and Year: London: George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1955
Edition: Three volumes, comprising (1) The Fellowship of the Ring (3rd impression), The Two Towers (2nd impression), and The Return of the King (2nd impression), each in the correct and unclipped dust jacket. The Fellowship of the Ring is slightly shorter than the other two volumes, as issued. Of note, the copyright page of The Two Towers is misleading and bears a known misprint; although it states that it is a second impression, the book is in fact a third impression because it lacks the date of 1955 on the title page. Of these specific impressions, just 500 copies of The Fellowship of the Ring were made, compared with 3,000 of The Two Towers and 4,000 of Return of the King. (Hammond & Anderson, 1993, A5; later amended by Hammond in articles published in The Tolkien Collector in 1995 [No. 9 and No. 11] and 2000 [No. 23]; The TolkienBooks website, “Printing and Binding The Lord of the Rings”)
Condition and Description: Three octavo volumes, publisher’s red cloth stamped in gilt, red topstains, other edges plain, map bound at the rear of each volume, all in dust jackets. 423 pp. (Vol. 1); 352 pp. (Vol. 2); 416 pp (Vol. 3). Securely bound and hinges firm. Topstain of the first two volumes faded. Clean cloth with minimal handling wear. Gilt of Vol. 2 a little dulled but legible; gilt remains bright on the other volumes. Christmas inscription in pencil to the front free endpaper of the second volume. Small and neat name in ink to the front free endpaper of the third volume. Pages otherwise clear and without any other prior owner markings. Dust jackets are toned (especially the spines), rubbed, and a little soiled and stained. Jacket of The Fellowship of the Ring has very small losses to the extremities and a larger chip to the bottom edge of the front panel (2.25” width and 1” height at the tallest point), with loss to most of the “J” and part of the “R” in the author’s initials, and discoloration on either side of that area where a piece of tape had been removed. That jacket also has had tape removed from the verso, leaving rectangular discoloration that is not visible from the recto. Preserved in archival mylar covers and in a clamshell case stamped in gilt.
“It's a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
Inventory ID: 708 - 417 - 021
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