The Maltese Falcon

1983. San Francisco: The Arion Press, 1983.

4to (8.25 x 10.25 inches), 291 pp. Illustrated with black and white photographs. Bound by the Schuberth Bookbindery in grey cloth with a quarter leather backstrip lettered in silver, both boards with falcon onlay in black leather with silver trim and a red eye. Matching grey cloth slipcase. Near fine copy with a single scuff to the backstrip and faint wear to the slipcase. Original prospectus and order slip laid in. Contemporary newspaper review of the Arion Press edition laid in to the folded prospectus, which has toned the former somewhat.

§ One of 400 copies. The quintessential San (truncated) Francisco detective story, superbly printed by the city's own Arion Press. From the preface: "The Arion Press edition of The Maltese Falcon is a tribute to Hammett's achievement. The design of the book reflects the spirit of the period in which it was written while giving its format an enduring presence... The forty-six illustrations are photographs of San Francisco Bay Area locations named or established by Hammett in the narrative. Most pictures were shot around the time of the actual setting of the story, five days during 1928. At the back of the book are notes identifying each photo and its reference in the text. (Inventory #: 126621)