(Answered) What is the "first published" date for recent excerpts of an older work (eg, a modern selection of poetry originally published in the 1600s)?

[Lauren]

For example, this Dover edition (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7...) of the selected poetry of John Dunne, which was originally published in 1633, has a "first published" date of 1952 (when the Dover edition was, presumably, first published).

On the other hand, this Dover edition (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...) of collected poetry of Samuel Taylor Coleridge has a "first published" date of 1799 (when the most prominent poem was first published), even though the specific Dover compilation itself was certainly not published until some point in the 1900s.

Which is correct?

[Lauren]

Can anyone answer this?

[Martin]

It depends when that specific selection was first published.
If the poems were first gathered together for publication in 1952 that would be the correct date.

[annob [on hiatus]]

I can see reason in your argument Martin, and I don't believe there's anything in the Librarian Manual directly addressing the issue. But I have this dicussion post by the former Librarian Moderator saved as a bookmark:

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

"...the original publication date is the date the last of the content in that work was published"

So it homes in on the content, not when/how it was packaged together. I often use her advise for OPD for boxset editions of collected novels, and I assume it could be applied to collected poems the same way.

[Martin]

Thanks annob.
Wow, I keep thinking I'm applying the instructions in librarian manual in the most appropriate way and then discover there is a forum post giving different instructions.
It seems like staff could help us out by giving a comprehensive and up-to-date manual.

[annob [on hiatus]]

It's on my wishlist too :)

[Lauren]

annob wrote: "I can see reason in your argument Martin, and I don't believe there's anything in the Librarian Manual directly addressing the issue. But I have this dicussion post by the former Librarian Moderato..."

Thank you so much for sharing the answer!