Finding A Study in Scarlet
A private afternoon, a surviving first edition, and a magnificent obsession.
An extraordinary encounter by James Biss with one of the rarest surviving copies of the 1887 Beeton's Christmas Annual — the very volume in which Sherlock Holmes first appeared before the world.
A Singular Copy
The first appearance of Sherlock Holmes in the 1887 Beeton's Christmas Annual was never engineered to survive. Printed on inexpensive, high-acid pulp paper intended to be read briefly and discarded, only a few dozen copies are believed to survive in any condition today.
This particular copy possessed an additional distinction of extraordinary importance. On page 90, line 23, the capital letter "I" is missing — a tiny mechanical flaw created during the earliest hours of the press run when a loose piece of lead type was physically lifted from the forme by the tacky ink rollers of the printing press itself.
The combination of structural completeness and the uncorrected missing "I" places this specific survival into an almost incomprehensible tier of rarity. Only three known complete examples are believed to exist in this state.
What £25 Bought — and Everything It Could Not
In 1886, Arthur Conan Doyle signed away the complete and absolute copyright to A Study in Scarlet for a flat fee of £25 — roughly £3,500 in today's money. No royalties. No future percentages. No residual rights of any kind. He never made another penny from the publication.
The text that introduced Sherlock Holmes to the world and permanently altered the course of detective fiction was sold for the price of a month's rent.
"My sincere hope is that you will not rush through these pages. Turn down the harsh lights if you can. Read slowly. Holmes belongs unusually well to dim light." — James Biss
NOW AVAILABLE! Worldwide, at fine booksellers. The story continues in Finding The Sign of the Four.