Identification points are listed only where two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 22 Oct 2026.
No sales recorded yet
We value a printing from verified sales of that exact printing, and none of the first impression has come to auction in our records so far. The chart and the value by condition appear here as soon as one does.
Pro members with this book on their wantlist are emailed when it sells under their price.
Macbeth was never printed in Shakespeare's lifetime; its first appearance is in the First Folio, 'Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies', London, 1623, published by Edward Blount with William and Isaac Jaggard and entered in the Stationers' Register on 8 November 1623. It is one of 18 plays with no earlier printing, and the Folio text underlies all modern editions. The book is a large folio with Martin Droeshout's engraved portrait of the author, faced by Ben Jonson's verses 'To the Reader'. Perhaps 750 copies were printed and roughly 233 to 235 survive, depending on the census, with 82 at the Folger Shakespeare Library, so a complete copy is effectively a museum piece. Anything offered as a first Macbeth is more likely a later Folio (the Second Folio is 1632), a later separate edition or a facsimile; facsimiles have been made since the 19th century, including one of 1910, so check paper, size and any reproduction statement.
We have not yet confirmed the issue points that tell this first impression from later ones. Until we do, compare your copy's title page and copyright page with the publisher, place and year above: any later printing or edition statement means it is not this one.
Know the points? Tell us. We publish them, with credit, once a second source agrees.
Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount (First Folio), London, in 1623, in hardback.
Points of issue are listed only where at least two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 22 October 2026. Reviewed by Harriet Ellis; read how we check facts.
Points of issue are small, documented details, such as a misprint later corrected, a binding colour or a jacket price, …
Read the guide →7 min readTo identify a first edition, check that your copy is the first printing of the first edition. Read the copyright …
Read the guide →6 min readBook condition grading uses a six-step trade scale: Fine, Near Fine, Very Good, Good, Fair and Poor. Collectors grade the …
Read the guide →