Curio

State Library of New South Wales
William Shakespeare First Folio

William Shakespeare First Folio

Originally published 1632;
Facsimile edition 1909

Following William Shakespeare’s death in 1616, John Hemmings and Henry Condell, both members of Shakespeare's acting company, the King's Players, sorted through the numerous versions of his plays circulating at the time to compile the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays. Known as the First Folio, it was published in 1623, containing 36 plays in 900 pages. It remains the only known source for 18 of Shakespeare’s plays, including Macbeth, The Tempest and Twelfth Night. Three later versions of the folio were published, each different due to typographical variation and errors, editorial changes and the particular printing process used.

The Second Folio was published in 1632. The facsimile seen here was printed in London in 1909.

A note in the back of the Library’s Third Folio reads ‘the binding of this booke cost five pence’.

During World War II, the Library’s copy of the First Folio of Shakespeare’s plays, published in 1623 only seven years after Shakespeare's death, was moved in secret to Armidale Teachers College for safekeeping in case the city of Sydney was attacked.

In 1998 a copy of the First Folio was stolen from Durham University, England. It was later recovered and put on public display after a twelve-year absence. It had been badly damaged and is missing its cover and title page. The eccentric British Antiques dealer Raymond Scott was jailed for eight years for handling stolen goods but he was acquitted of the theft.

It is believed that around 750 copies of the First Folio were printed and an estimated 228 are still in existence. The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC holds the world’s largest collection of 82 copies.

Printed in 1623, the First Folio was not only the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays to be published; it was also the first folio book of plays to be published in England.

The Mitchell Library is the only institution in Australia to hold copies of all four Shakespeare folios.