The phrase "an example of the first" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when referring to a specific instance or illustration of something that has been previously mentioned or categorized as the first in a series.
Example: "In our discussion about renewable energy sources, solar power is an example of the first type of energy that can be harnessed directly from the sun."
Alternatives: "a case of the first" or "a representation of the first".
For an example of the first, look at Iran, Turkey's neighbour.
Finally, an example of the first simulations of the interactions between a liquid jet and a plasma is presented.
Here we find an example of the first map of Norway drawn and issued by a Norwegian cartographer, Ove Andreas Wangensteen, in 1763.
As an example of the first, let's look at a really old track that's on the first volume of Dillanthology: The Light by Common.
As an example of the first, he cites GlaxoSmithKline's sprawling HQ on Great West Road in London, with its integrated shops and hair salon.
Plato's Republic is an example of the second; the Principia Ethica (1903) of G.E. Moore (1873 1958), a founder of analytic philosophy, is an example of the first.
The Sun with its continuous spectrum is an example of the first, while a radio transmitter tuned to one frequency exemplifies the second category.
"What we think we have found is an example of the first generation of planets formed in the universe," Dr. Steinn Sigurdsson of Pennsylvania State University announced at a news conference at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in Washington.
A ceramic statue of Uncle Tom with Little Eva on his knee -- not part of the house's original contents -- is an example of the first effort at mass marketing of literary characters in American history.
There's also interesting art at the De La Warr Pavillion, which is compelling in itself as an example of the first Modernist public space built in Britain (01424 229111; dlwp.com).
As an example of the first sort, take the debate that is going on in many Western countries about how to accommodate Islam, with all its symbols, practices and prohibitions, in a liberal society.
