Near fine copy of a first edition, very early third UK Bloomsbury printing of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, with a number line 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3. The first few printings of this title were released in a very limited print run comparable to the first edition, and as with the first printing, this very early reprint does not yet feature the Hogwarts shield on the title page, which was introduced in later printings.
The pictorial boards are near fine, with bumped spine ends and sharp corners. The binding is very tight, and the endpapers are clean, with no marks, inscriptions, or stamps. The pages are clean and bright, with hardly any browning to the edges. The book is undoubtedly unread. The near fine unclipped dust jacket is a little faded towards the spine and top edge, but without shelf- or edgewear. This first-state jacket was also used for the first printing, featuring issue points on the front flap that were changed in later printings (e.g., Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone not italicized; no comma after 'Tom El-Shawk, Age 11;' 'Age' capitalized). Dust Jacket is now protected by a removable Brodart transparant archival cover.
