About this Item
Stated 'First Edition 1939.' The first edition of this classic autobiography is fairly rare, a couple of others are for sale on the Internet. But this one, once listed, will be the Only book for sale in collectible condition. Moreover, this book has its dust jacket and it is in quite decent condition. The covers of the book are very clean. The gilt lettering on the spine is very bright, no fading, no rubbing. The cover edges are in excellent shape, no rubbing, no fading. The cover corners, same deal, no rubbing, no fading. There is one thin fissure-like crease off the front middle edge (see fourth photo, not much of anything), and there is a slight turning down or in of the cloth above the front bottom corner, probably the result of a slight bump. The page edges look very clean. Odd in my experience, only the bottom page edge is deckled or rough-cut. However, I saw only two (consecutive) pages with a slightly rough edge, no losses or tears. One impact of the rough-cut edge, all the pages are not cut at the same length, some a little shorter, some a little longer. This book is also unique for being very solidly bound. It is square and the spine is straight. The pages are nicely tight from cover to cover and the covers are nicely tight as well. There are no binding issues of any kind anywhere. The interior of the book is in excellent condition. The pages are exceptionally clean. Scrolling through, I'm not finding even one instance of soiling. There isn't any conspicuous creasing, no turned-down corners or placeholder creases. The light bump to the front bottom corner created a slight turning in just above the tip of some early pages bottom corners, a tiny semi-crease or crinkle, again not much of anything. There are no markings in the book. There are no attachments of any kind. And no one has written their name or anything else anywhere. You can see the dust jacket in the first few photos. It's very clean. When I purchased the book some years ago I didn't need to place it into a protective cover, it already had one. If you look closely at the second photo you should notice that the 'An' is at a slight angle. I removed the protective cover and found that the little piece of the jacket at the top of the spine had detached and the previous owner had taped it in place, but at an angle. I've chosen not to try (risky) to correct that. The jacket is now in a new protective cover. There is also a small loss at both the top and bottom edges of the spine (only tiny losses at the corners), one very small loss at the front side of the spine (first photo), and a small closed tear off the front bottom edge. Still, overall, the jacket presents quite well and was clearly protected over much of its life, as I think the material of the jacket would not have held up so well without this protection. I'd note also that the spine is toned, darker than the front and rear. The flaps are in very nice condition, with only light toning at the margins, no soiling, no tears, no significant creasing. The jacket is NOT price-clipped, not clipped at all. The price is present at the bottom of the front flap. The Very Good Minus rating takes into account the age of the jacket. From the dust jacket: 'Prof. Collingwood has written the most interesting book that has come out of Oxford for some time. He writes with passion and elegance the story of his mental life; and because he is a brilliant and gifted man, with the widest sympathies of mind, that story reflects some of the profoundest intellectual difficulties of our age. In consequence his book extends far beyond the field of Oxford in its interest; it is a document of our time.'--Spectator. 'This book is Prof. Collingwood's philosophical testament. It is a challenging and vital book'-- Manchester Guardian. 'Like all Prof. Collingwood's books, this was one which he 'had it in him' to write-- it is alive from the first page to the last, and has definite dramatic force and unity.'-- Scotsman. Seller Inventory # 004661
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