I find the idea of focusing on just collecting boxed/slipcased editions quite a good idea. At a rough count there are about 50 UK different ones (I am including paperback boxed sets) on my shelves and I don't even have all the ones I would want in my collection (I don't have the pauline baynes hardback set for instance).

On garm's point about a single leaf suporting the whole weight: I have a really bad condition 1978 LOTR India-paper (no box, pages missing at the back and cover painted - yes, painted - grey - it cost a pound) so I have just tried holding one page and, lo and behold, it does work. Not even close to tearing. The paper is evidently deceptively strong.

On the subject of the Folio Editions, you may be interested in knowing that there was a Danish translation boxed set of Lord of the Rings also published in 1977 coinciding with the original Folio one which also used Fraser's drawings of Queen Margarethe's originals.

I attach some photos.

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Just to support what garm says, I too have half a dozen A&U 1sts with variations.

I do worry about the shelf space issue but, as with garm, it is part of my interest in Tolkien and it did kind of sneak up on me (and most have only cost a pound or two - literally).

I recently bought (on ebay) a copy of JRR Tolkien Author of the Century signed by Tom Shippey. The main reason I bought it, even though it was a second impression was that it also has, throughout, suggested amendments by Tom Shippey.

Whether these were just idle jottings or have been incorporated in later impressions, I don’t know.

There is nothing startling in the changes and the errors would have been spotted by many fans anyway but I thought it might be interesting to let other members know what Mr Shippey’s notes were and ask if anyone knows if later impressions remain unchanged.

page vi - two names to be added to the Acknowledgements
page 16, line 16 – “father Thror” corrected to “grandfather Thror”, “grandfather Thrain” corrected to “father Thrain”
page 25, line 26 – “Brill” corrected to “Bree”
page 31, line 28 – “eigi einhamr” the “a” is crossed out but the margin note suggests to insert “a” underlined (not sure what is intended myself)
page 39, line 13 – “Thor’s” corrected to “Odin’s”
page 68, line 2 – comma after “Witch-King” deleted and “who will” amended to “who would”
page 72, line 22 – after “the same as” add “or close to”; “grandfather” amended to “father”
page 107, line 6 – “chapter 3” amended to “chapter 4”
page 113, line 20 – move “is” to come after “lied about this”
page 175, line 18 – “The Head Shirriff” amended to “One of the Shirriffs”
page 197, line 5 – “1939” amended to “1938”
page 197, lines 6/7 – “published her own edition” amended to “completed and published it”
page 197, line 7 – “1951” amended to “1953”
page 211, line 3 – “in 1947” amended to “by 1947”
page 217, line 30 – “Voyage to Venus” amended to “Perelandra”
page 227, line 18 – “1987” amended to “1985”
page 270, line 5 – “1959” amended to “1954”; “over sixty” amended to “fifty-five”
page 270, line 28 – “1927” amended to “1929”;
page 278, line 10 – “twice” deleted;
page 278, line 11 – comma inserted after “1937”
page 278, line 11 – “in 1970” amended to “in 1962 and 1970”
page 278, line 11 – “Several” amended to “It and some”
page 286, line 24 – “a modern English father and son” amended to “three modern English characters”
page 287, line 2 – “Rateliffe” amended to “Rateliff”
page 345, col 1, line 5 – “Rateliffe” amended to “Rateliff”

4,000+ books altogether but only about 500 Tolkien-related.