Wow...I had no idea...wonder if Mr Postman knows how valuable his book is?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Anvils-America-Signed-First-Edition-First-Printing-/320543986550?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa1e91376#ht_500wt_1011

Shoot Postman will still sign them for you---my wife bought mine for me and so it came inscribed to *her*!

I bought mine at the Saltfork conference last year and it was sighed by Mr. Postman....didn't pay THAT much for it either!! If you check amazon.com for 'The Blacksmith's Cookbook' by Mr. Whitaker you'll see that the seller wants $500.00 for it UNSIGNED! and it's spiral bound and paperback to boot!

There were only 1,000 copies printed for the 1st edition. Mine is signed but also has a hand written number and date of the signature on page vi. That makes the book special, but just how special in terms of dollars, I can't say.

http://www.turleyforge.com Granddaddy of Blacksmith Schools

Yes: The book is from first printing which makes it more valuable,BUT, It DOES NOT HAVE DUST JACKET,which greatly diminishes it's collector value. If you have valuable books guys, keep the dust jackets in good shape. Stop by a local book store and they will charge a buck to put BRODART protective cover over it for you. I used to deal in rare and antiquarian books. I told NMBA I'd bring some Brodart to next conference to protect some of their books.