Terminology of Book Conditions
|
MINT
EXACTLY as issued by the publisher. dust jackets are present and immaculate. book is overall "virgo intacta".
VERY FINE
as "MINT" but has been read and may have some flaws to dust jacket
FINE
NO VISIBLE WEAR. but inscriptions, names, small stamps, etc may be present. NO actual wear
VERY GOOD
entirely intact, nothing missing, no cover fading, splotches, torn ends, etc.
|
GOOD (+)
not up to very good but still better than good
GOOD
average used condition but intact. no missing end papers, plates, etc. ordinary wear, evidence of having been read and liked, sticky fingers, scotch glass rings, underlined passages, and marginalia, fading, sunning, etc.
FAIR
shaken, missing end papers but not plates [illustrations bound in, usuallly on glassy stock and printed one side only]. text ALL present
|
POOR
lousy, missing pages. assaulted by apprentice librarians by stamps, cheap rebindings, endpapers ripped.
READING COPY
see "FAIR". a book which is meant to be read until a better one appears which won't.
|
|