Hardbound in Near Fine condition with Near Fine Dust Jacket, 114 pages includes CONTENTS,
BIBLIOGRAPHY, ILLUSTRATIONS too numerous to count, POSTSCRIPT, and
BIBLIOGRAPHY, measures approximately 5 ¾” x 8 ¾”.
The jacket is printed on light turquoise stock with blue ink, featuring an Angel Fish (aka Morrish Idol) on the cover. There is light wear to the edges, mostly noted at the corners and ends of the spine. It is otherwise, whole and complete,
free of any significant damage. Due to the delicateness of the jacket, it is rare to fine one still accompanying
the book. It has been placed in an Archival Quality clear Mylar jacket cover to help retain its perfection.
The boards are covered in bright turquoise cloth with titles in
brown on the spine. There are a couple slight color blemishes on the front board and a light bump
to the upper points. Otherwise the surfaces and clean, completely flat, straight and free of fading or edge wear..
The interior is clean, firmly bound with modest age toning. There is a previous owner name rubber stamped
in the upper corner of the fly page, but no further ownership marks, no creases or tears.
Generally, reprinted editions are not thought
to be as desirable as 1st editions, however, unique to this particular
Travel Book Club printing is the presentation of 19 of Mr. Gibbings reef plates
in blue-green ink; a feature that actually makes it far more outstanding that the original edition.
Robert Gibbings, noted Irish born author and woodcut illustrator,
became most known in the Pacific region for his achievements in OVER
THE REEFS and IORANA. An accomplished writer with a unique gift for
capturing the reality and the mystery of his subjects, Mr. Gibbings
while on location in Tahiti discovered a world quite unknown to most
of his established audience in the UK and America. At a time when
underwater photography was unheard of and prior to the introduction of
scuba diving, when most of the educated public envisioned undersea
life as a trout, bass or salmon, the Author discovered the beauty of
the reef.