Dead Cert | 1962, Signed Uncorrected Proof, Inscribed to a Legendary Collector.

Dead Cert—Signed Uncorrected Proof, Inscribed to a Legendary Collector

Before Dick Francis became the undisputed champion of crime fiction, there was Dead Cert—his debut thriller that set the pace for a legendary career. This is the rarest form of that first outing: an uncorrected proof copy, signed and warmly inscribed to Clive Hirschhorn, one of the great rare book collectors of the last fifty years.

Proof copies are scarce. Signed proof copies are rarer still. A signed proof inscribed to a collector of Hirschhorn’s stature? Almost unheard of—rarer than a 100/1 outsider storming home at Aintree.

A true collector’s piece in excellent condition and housed in a custom book box.

Clive Hirschhorn, one of the most respected rare book collectors of the past fifty years, amassed a remarkable collection beginning in the mid-1980s, focusing on the works of notable 20th-century authors, including Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Graham Greene, William Faulkner, and John Steinbeck. In October 2012, he made headlines when a significant portion of his collection was auctioned.