Many reproduction dust jackets were created by series book collectors 20 to 30 years ago and placed on bare series books. Some reproductions were marked as such, but others weren't. The people who owned the books with reproduction dust jackets are now beginning to pass on, and their books are getting dispersed back into the marketplace. The sellers don't know that the dust jackets are reproductions. This is a big problem if you don't know what the warning signs are. Even if you do know the warning signs, you can still be deceived quite easily.
I will start with a recent example to show my thought process as I view a jacket that is of concern. This will give you an idea of what the clues are, and I will then explain in greater detail.
A 1930A-1 Nancy Drew Old Clock which appeared at first glance to have a dust jacket came up for sale on eBay. (Click on each image in order to see a better version.)
Except... there was a problem. When I first viewed the listing, I felt that something wasn't right about it. If another Old Clock book with dust jacket had been in the same photo, it would have been obvious. By itself, I couldn't tell whether I was right about something being off about the jacket.
It's often hard to tell from online photos. Sellers use varying equipment and lighting, and items often don't appear exactly as they truly are.
I looked at the back panel.
Once again, something seemed off to me, especially along the right edge of the back panel and most particularly at the top near the spine. It looked like it might be a copy. I still wasn't sure.
The front flap bothered me because of the shadow along the left side. But then, that didn't necessarily mean anything. I then looked at the right edge of the front flap. I could see a telltale sign that did mean something.
Compare the jacket from the auction to the first printing dust jacket that I own.
Look at how far the red print is from the right edge of each jacket. Notice that the red print on the auction DJ is closer to the right edge than on my real DJ.
I looked at the back flap of the auction DJ.
I compared it to my dust jacket.
It was obvious. The back flap of the auction DJ is cut off along the left edge rather noticeably. I knew then that the auction DJ must be a copy dust jacket.
I communicated with Jennifer Fisher, who checked her photo of a copy dust jacket that was made for her by another collector using their 1930A-1 jacket as the source DJ. Bingo.
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| Image courtesy of Jennifer Fisher, www.nancydrewsleuth.com |
Now, look at the spine of the auction DJ.
The auction jacket and Jennifer Fisher's copy jacket have the same swirly pattern in the center left spine. They are from the same source. Jenn verified that the collector who copied the jacket also provided a copy to the person who owned the book in the auction. So, we knew that the auction DJ was indeed a copy.
I was suspicious from the beginning since I've seen many copy jackets and printed them myself many years ago. I've seen how they appear in listings, and they can be difficult to spot. But there are always signs.
A couple days later, the seller listed another 1930A-1 Nancy Drew Old Clock book but with an authentic 1930A-1 dust jacket. The seller's copy dust jacket is shown at the left, and the seller's original jacket is shown on the right. Comparing the images reveals how washed-out the copy dust jacket is. They often don't look as good as originals.
Another listing by the same seller also didn't look right.
The promotional wrapper is so scarce that only a handful exist. We only know of a few, maybe three or four of them. The wrapper is so scarce that I featured it in my post, Ten Rarest Nancy Drew Items and Collectibles. That post, by the way, is by an unbelievably huge amount the most popular post in this blog's history, and it's always floating in the right sidebar as a popular post.
The wrapper looks okay in the above photo except that it is sized too small. The original wrapper should extend all the way across the front panel.
Nancy Drew collector Meredith Jaffe provided this image of the book she owns, which has the authentic wrapper.
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| Image courtesy Meredith Jaffe |
Meredith's wrapper establishes that the wrapper from the auction cannot be real.
Before I continue with how to determine whether a jacket is real, keep in mind that nearly all jackets that appear for sale online are real, at least 99% of them. While copies do show up often enough, they are uncommon and dispersed throughout the online supply in low quantities. Mainly, buyers should be aware of the warning signs just in case a jacket looks off in some fashion.
Let's go through what you should know and how you can determine whether a jacket might be of concern.
How to tell from online listings
Reproduction dust jackets are almost always in mylar covers.
Don't misunderstand my meaning. Most jackets with or without mylar covers are real. However, reproduction dust jackets are almost always enclosed in mylar, because they look much more real if in mylar. This means that a jacket that is not in mylar is almost certainly fine. I don't worry about dust jackets that are not in mylar. While within the realm of possibility, the chance of acquiring a copy dust jacket that is not in mylar is extremely low.
Again, most jackets in mylar are fine. But the copy dust jacket will be in mylar rather than not. You have far less reason to be concerned about a jacket that is not in mylar.
The jacket is in extremely nice shape to where it looks new and has paper that is bright white.
Jackets that are in too nice of shape and are in mylar should be checked more carefully. Old jackets can surface with no wear after having been stored in perfect conditions, so jackets that are high-grade aren't necessarily copies. However, especially perfect jackets should be examined well just in case.
The colors are off or seem washed-out.
This is a strong indicator that the jacket is a copy, since printer ink on plain paper just isn't going to look the same. In some cases, certain dust jackets never reproduce with the same colors as the original dust jacket.
Beverly Gray at the World's Fair is a prime example. The original dust jackets are decidedly green in tint, but printed copies almost always end up with a bit of a purple tint. I have made printed copies myself, and I could never get the color to reproduce right. The professionally printed American Web Books reprints of World's Fair also have a purple tint.
The above photo shows the original World's Fair from my collection on the left alongside the American Web Books reprint on the right.
The cover art and print on the jacket seem to be of lower resolution.
If the dust jacket image looks off like it might be a copy, then it probably is.
The front and back flaps are cut off at the outer edges, most often on the back flap.
Dust jackets are longer than legal-sized paper, so the entire dust jacket image does fit on the paper. Some people print the jacket centered so that both flaps are cut off slightly. Other people reproduce the entire front flap with the back flap noticeably cut off.
The book is in much worse condition than the dust jacket.
Sometimes real jackets are placed on poor condition books, so this situation doesn't guarantee that a jacket is a copy. It does indicate that the jacket is not original to the book.
Sometimes libraries stored jackets apart from the books, and sometimes stacks of nice dust jackets come up for sale. People buy them and place them on their own books. This is why a nice jacket on a poor condition book does not mean that the jacket is a copy. However, if the jacket has other red flags and is on a book that is in rather poor condition, then it is likely a copy jacket.
How to tell in person
In most cases, when you hold a book with a reproduction dust jacket in person, you will know immediately that the jacket is a copy. The paper used is often just regular paper that is not glossy. The jacket usually will be in a mylar cover, so if you have any concern, remove the jacket from the mylar cover. Doing that will usually allow you to tell.
You can also use a black light. Copy jackets printed on modern paper glow under black light, and vintage jackets do not.
Sometimes, I have questioned vintage jackets when the jackets are in especially nice shape and the paper is thin. Some Grosset & Dunlap jackets from the late 1950s were printed on very thin paper, and those are the ones I more carefully examine when they seem especially nice and bright. What I look for is what appears to be varnish that extends off of the front cover illustration onto the front flap. If that is present the same as always and nothing looks strange about the jacket, then I assume that the jacket is real. I could also use a black light, but I've never felt the need.
Caveat
We are fortunate in that series book jacket reproductions are typically not printed commercially. Most reproduction dust jackets created for series books were done by individuals on home equipment, and those are easy to spot. If a jacket was printed commercially, then it will be much harder to tell.
For more information about identifying dust jacket reproductions including ones made commercially, read these articles.
How Do I Identify a Facsimile Dust Jacket?
The Finer Print - Growing Concern Over Facsimile Dust Jackets
