The Fellowship of the Ring – J.R.R. Tolkien – 1965 | Mao China Pirated Edition

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien first appeared in 1954. It includes the original dust jacket and the highly desirable folding map at the end. This curious example includes a Chinese colophon dated 1969, linking it to be a pirated Chinese printing at the height of the Mao Zedong cultural purge; certainly a noteworthy example of undocumented and unauthorized printings of Tolkien.

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Fellowship of the Ring, Being the First Part of The Lord of the Rings
• Author(s): J.R.R. Tolkien
• Publisher: Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company [Guishon Book Company, Zuo Change Printing]
• Edition: Second Edition, Fourth Printing, 1965 [Zhou Zheng, 1969 pirated printing]
• Format: (8vo), single volume
• Binding: Original green cloth
• Size:  8.25in x 5.5in (21 x 14 cm)
• Collation: 423 pp
• Illustrations: One large folding map affixed at rear
• Contents Include:
  • The Fellowship of the Ring full text
  • Preface and Prologue
  • Appendices with names, languages, and histories

Condition:

Very Good. Cloth binding remains clean and secure with only mild wear. The folding map is intact. Text shows occasional foxing and light stains. The dust jacket is present, showing edgewear and visible fraying.

Why Collect This?

• Curious Chinese printing colophon, pirated edition not common to American readership – printed during the height of the Mao Zedong cultural purge.
• Retains original map, often lacking
• “original” dust jacket – noticeably different from the American original
• Undocumented and unauthorized printing of Tolkien

Item Number: #28929