Halbritter's Armoury: An introduction to the secret weapons of history.

UK,slim,square 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn.[First published in Germany, 1977 by Carl Hanser Verlag,Munchen.Wien.] FINE/FINE.No owner inscrptn, dw/dj unclipped - no publisher price.Bright,crisp,clean, glossy laminated illustrated dw/dj; with negligible shelf-wear and creasing to edges and corners - no nicks or tears present.Rear bd's vertical quarter,towards spine/backstrip's edge,appears to be sunned/faded - proximity of smaller book - or it could be part of the distressed,antique look/design of book? Top+fore-edges bright and clean; contents bright,tight and pristine - no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners - an unread copy? Bright,clean, publisher's original,plain dark brown cloth boards with bright, crisp,stamped gilt letters to spine/backstrip with immaculate plain tan/ brown endpapers.UK,slim,square 8vo HB+dw/dj,1st edn,6- 160pp [paginated] includes approx 145 b/w illus,6 double-page b/w illus - all by Kurt Halbritter and wittily translated text by Jamie Muir, 2pp index and 2pp blanks to rear. As the author explains in his foreword: "What distinguishes this book from all other histories of weaponry is that,for the first time,it examines principally an aspect of the subject hitherto unexplored: design failure.And in particular the failure in design of secret weaponry from antiquity to recent times". The book has taken many years of extensive,privately-funded research and though it cannot claim to be a catalogue raisonee of all such weapons it does aim to examine wherever possible the basic prototype rather than its multitudinous variants.It reveals to the world such previously unknown weapons as the Merry-Go Wound and the Terror Bell.It tells too,of the uncontrollable Baconeers,uncovers the deficiencies of the Carthaginian Stork Squadron and chronicles the sad fate of Tutankhamen's Wall.The author presumes that his readers do not wish to be bored by measurements and specifications,nor by the quotation of sources. Meticulously drawn,Halbritter's Armoury is the perfect gift for all students of history,not as it was but as it might have been.It has been wittily translated by Jamie Muir. Kurt Halbritter was born in Frankfurt,Germany,in 1924. Intensely sensitive to his surroundings,his drawings were very often inspired by social criticism,ranging from the subtly ironical to the bitterly angry.In whatever he did,however,he remained a supreme draughtsman.From 1962 to 1974 he was a leading staff contributor to the German satirical magazine 'Pardon'.He died in 1978. Jamie Muir,son of Frank Muir (1920-1998),a much admired English comedy writer,radio and television personality. Please contact rpaxtonden@blueyonder.co.uk ,because of the lighter weight and value of this item,for correct,insured (where necessary) shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas buyers - BEFORE ordering through the order page!