The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
The Scarlett Letter was one of the first mass-produced novels in the United States, prior printing of books generally done by hand. The 2,500 copies first printed sold out in days, and the mass-production of books opened up conversation about books and authors to a wider-audience on a national level. The first edition of The Scarlet Letter sold out in ten days and “made Hawthorne’s fame, changed his fortune and gave to our literature its first symbolic novel a year before the appearance of Melville’s Moby-Dick” (Bradley). Although an instant best-seller, the books sales over fourteen years only brought the author $1500.
First Edition Identification and Notes
First edition published by Ticknor, Reeds and Fields, in Boston 1850. Main first edition marker is "reduplicate" instead of "repudiate" on page 21 Four page publisher's adverts at front dated March 1, 1850 and preceding the free end paper. The brown T-cloth favored by Ticknor & Fields is famous for becoming brittle with age, and cracking or fraying at the spine tips. First editions can run upwards of $20,000.
The second edition adds a preface and has a Metcalf imprint on verso of title-page. The third printing has the same preface but has a Hobart & Robbins imprint on verso of title-page.
Other Collectible or Notable Editions
From Abaa.org Checklist of Hawthorne's first and major editions:
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Available copies

Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Fine
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$22,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Fine
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$18,500.00
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Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$12,500.00
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THE SCARLET LETTER
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Type Punch Matrix
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Near fine
- Item Price
-
$10,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Bookbid Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$8,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Bookbid Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$7,500.00
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The scarlet letter
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Rootenberg Rare Books & Manuscripts
- Published
- 1850
- Item Price
-
$7,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Bookbid Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Fine
- Edition
- First edition
- Item Price
-
$5,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- First Edition
- Item Price
-
$5,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter: A Romance.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$4,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by HAWTHORNE, NATHANIEL
- Seller
- Blue Sky Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Fine
- Edition
- First edition
- Item Price
-
$4,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Bookbid Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Good
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$4,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by HAWTHORNE, NATHANIEL
- Seller
- Arader Galleries
- Item Price
-
$3,800.00
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THE SCARLET LETTER.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- Waverley Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Good with no dust jacket
- Edition
- First Edition; First Printing
- Item Price
-
$3,750.00
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The Scarlet Letter: A Romance.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$3,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quintessential Rare Books, LLC
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$3,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter,
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- Peter Harrington
- Published
- 1850
- Item Price
-
$2,856.20
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Edition
- First Edition
- Item Price
-
$2,750.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Burnside Rare Books, ABAA
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- First Edition
- Item Price
-
$2,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel; Illustrated by Hugh Thomson
- Seller
- Raptis Rare Books
- Published
- 1920
- Item Price
-
$2,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter. A Romance
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel (1804-1864)
- Seller
- Adrian Harrington Rare Books
- Item Price
-
$2,070.75
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The Scarlet Letter. A Romance.
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Howard S. Mott, Inc
- Published
- 1850
- Edition
- First
- Item Price
-
$2,000.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Denali Bay LLC
- Published
- ND
- Condition
- Good+
- Item Price
-
$1,863.00
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THE SCARLET LETTER. A Romance
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Sumner & Stillman
- Published
- 1850
- Item Price
-
$1,750.00
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The Scarlet Letter: A Romance
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Houle Rare Books & Autographs
- Published
- 1904
- Item Price
-
$1,500.00
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THE SCARLET LETTER
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Type Punch Matrix
- Published
- 1892
- Condition
- Very good
- Item Price
-
$1,500.00
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The Scarlet Letter: A Kaplan SAT Score-Raising Classic
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 2005-08-01
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9780743264693
- Item Price
-
$1,404.70
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The Scarlet Letter.
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- Peter Harrington
- Published
- 1904
- Item Price
-
$1,392.40
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The Scarlet Letter (Everyman Paperbacks)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 1972-02-04
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9780460011228
- Item Price
-
$1,366.39
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The Scarlet Letter, A Romance
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- James Cummins Bookseller
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Original brown cloth, some rubbing at head and tail of spine. Very good plus
- Edition
- Second Edition, first printing, with the Hobart & Robbins imprin
- Item Price
-
$1,250.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Weller Book Works ABAA/ILAB
- Published
- 1851
- Condition
- Very Good
- Item Price
-
$1,100.00
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The Scarlet Letter; A Romance (Fine Binding)
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Dale Steffey Books
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Edition
- Later British Edition
- Item Price
-
$1,000.00
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A Medicine for Melancholy
by Bradbury, Ray
- Seller
- Bookbid Rare Books
- Published
- 1959
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- 1st Edition
- Item Price
-
$950.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Argosy Book Store
- Published
- 1892
- Condition
- near fine
- Item Price
-
$750.00
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The Scarlet Letter; A Romance
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Locus Solus Rare Books
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Slight lean; few internal marks and smudges; a pair of early ownership inscriptions; shelf rubbed and with wear to head and heel
- Edition
- Second edition
- Item Price
-
$750.00
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The Scarlet Letter: A Romance
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Argosy Book Store
- Condition
- very good(+)
- Item Price
-
$750.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Tiffany Trusiak
- Published
- 1892
- Item Price
-
$650.00
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The Scarlet Letter, A Romance
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Sandra L Hoekstra Bookseller
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very good
- Edition
- Second Edition
- Item Price
-
$650.00
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The Scarlet Letter (The 100 Greatest Books Ever Written)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 1983-03-09
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9781125497999
- Item Price
-
$529.64
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THE SCARLET LETTER, A ROMANCE (2ND EDITION)
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Easton's Books, Inc.
- Published
- 1851
- Condition
- VG/NONE; Hardback in Very Good condition without dust jacket.
- Edition
- 2nd Edition
- Item Price
-
$500.00
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The Scarlet Letter (Centenary Edition of the Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, Vol. 1)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 2007-08-03
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9780814200599
- Item Price
-
$451.27
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THE SCARLET LETTER: A Romance Literally Reprinted from the First Edition, with Fifteen Original Colored Illustrations by A. Robaudi and C. Graham
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Quill & Brush
- Published
- 1904
- Item Price
-
$450.00
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The Scarlet Letter, A Romance
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel
- Seller
- Row by Row Bookshop
- Published
- 1850
- Condition
- Very Good
- Edition
- Second Edition First Issue
- Item Price
-
$450.00
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The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 1984-12-01
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9780899664941
- Item Price
-
$420.64
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The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 2010-02-09
- Condition
- Good
- ISBN
- 9781453660294
- Item Price
-
$411.24
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THE SCARLET LETTER.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- Maxwell's Bookmark
- Edition
- First illustrated edition.
- Item Price
-
$400.00
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The Scarlet Letter.
by Hawthorne, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- The Hermitage Bookshop, Member ABAA
- Published
- 1904.
- Condition
- Fine in cloth chemise.
- Edition
- One of 125 copies.
- Item Price
-
$350.00
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The Scarlet Letter.
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel.
- Seller
- Peter Harrington
- Published
- 1992
- Item Price
-
$321.32
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The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Seller
- Books Express
- Published
- 2009-07-07
- Condition
- New
- ISBN
- 9781442140714
- Item Price
-
$282.15
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The Scarlet Letter
by HAWTHORNE, Nathaniel [illustr. Hugh THOMSON]
- Seller
- Adrian Harrington Rare Books
- Item Price
-
$278.48