First impression
1960At a glance
Points of issue
- copyright pagestates "First Edition" with no impression named→ first printing
- jacket rear panelphotograph of Lee credited to Truman Capote→ first issue jacket
First edition
Hardback
To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)
Publisher Lippincott
Year 1960
Identification points are listed only where two independent sources agree. Last reviewed 22 Oct 2026.
Market value
What decides the price
- It is the first edition, which is the one collectors want.
- The first printing is told from later ones by 2 points of issue listed below.
- The original dust jacket carries much of the price for a book of this age; its condition matters as much as the book's.
- Condition is graded separately for book and jacket, from Fine down to Poor.
- Recorded sales
- 2
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Price history
2 recorded sales
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Quick answer
| Published | Lippincott, Philadelphia & New York, 1960 |
|---|---|
| Spot it | Copyright page: states "First Edition" with no impression named |
| Also check | Jacket rear panel: photograph of Lee credited to Truman Capote |
| Binding | Hardback |
- How do I identify a To Kill a Mockingbird first edition?
- Check these points. Copyright page: states "First Edition" with no impression named. Jacket rear panel: photograph of Lee credited to Truman Capote. Each point is confirmed by at least two independent sources.
- Who published the To Kill a Mockingbird first edition?
- Lippincott, Philadelphia & New York, in 1960, in hardback.
How to identify this edition
Published 11 July 1960. Brown paper boards with a green cloth spine lettered in brown. The first printing's copyright page states "First Edition"; later impressions name the impression there (for example ninth or twenty-first). The jacket is priced $3.95 on the front flap, but later impression jackets carry the same price, so the price alone proves little. On the first issue jacket the rear panel photograph of Lee is credited to Truman Capote. Book of the Month Club and Reader's Digest condensed issues are not firsts.
How Lippincott marked its first editions
- From about 1925 Lippincott marked later printings (or impressions) on the copyright page, so a copy with no such note is likely a first printing.
- From about 1925 many first printings also state "First Edition" on the copyright page, but not every title carries it.
- From the 1970s, after the move into Harper & Row, a number row was added, and books under the Lippincott and Crowell imprint state "First Edition" with a number row.
- A number row counts printings: the lowest number left in the row gives the printing, so a row that still includes "1" points to a first printing.
- Book club copies (a general tell for US trade houses; no mark specific to this house was found): a jacket flap with no printed price is the commonest sign, though a printed price does not on its own rule out a club copy. Also look for a small blind stamp, such as a dot or square, pressed into the rear board, and for a book that is smaller and more cheaply made than the trade edition.
Read the full guide to Lippincott first editions, decade by decade, and check your copy's copyright page against it. Our number line decoder reads the printing from the row of numbers.
Printing by printing
Printings and states
Frequently asked questions
How do I identify a To Kill a Mockingbird first edition?
Check these points. Copyright page: states "First Edition" with no impression named. Jacket rear panel: photograph of Lee credited to Truman Capote. Each point is confirmed by at least two independent sources.
Who published the To Kill a Mockingbird first edition?
Lippincott, Philadelphia & New York, in 1960, in hardback.
Where these facts come from
- To Kill a Mockingbird, Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org)
- To Kill a Mockingbird first edition lot 48785, Nate D. Sanders Auctions, 2018 (natedsanders.com)
- Harper Lee's First Editions of To Kill A Mocking Bird, Rare and Antique Books (rareandantiquebooks.com)
- Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird, Potter and Potter Auctions (auction.potterauctions.com)
- To Kill a Mockingbird (ninth impression), The First Edition Rare Books (thefirstedition.com)
- To Kill a Mockingbird (twenty-first impression), The First Edition Rare Books (thefirstedition.com)
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.
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