ERB Firsts Title




Burroughs, Inc. published 24 first edition books which included dust jackets (DJ) or dust wrappers. Some of the DJ's had a protective laminate covering. Over the years ERB, Inc. produced three distinctive types of first edition dust jackets. A fourth type is in circulation but may actually be a later reprint edition based on the original plates.

Displayed here are examples of the 3 types of first edition dust jackets, and, also the 4th type who's origin is not fully understood. Also, at the bottom of the page are photo's of later reprint edition dust jackets.      




Type 1 - Heavy Laminate; has a plastic sheen look when examined under the light and is heavier and stiffer than the non-laminated dust jacket. Due to poor handling this type of dust jacket may show small chips exposing the paper beneath the illustration. This is due to the plastic laminate chipping off and taking the color from the illustration with it. Unknown how laminate was applied.








Above are close-up examples of the Type 1 heavy laminated dust jacket. They show the type of chipping common to the heavier laminated dust jackets. The lower right corner of the 2nd photo shows a clear adhesive tape that someone had applied to the dust jacket. The photo's do not adequately protray the plastic sheen of the laminated dust jackets.

Type 2 - Wrap-around Laminate; this type of plastic appears to have been applied over the dust jacket illustration and wraps over the top and bottom edges about a 1/4" to 3/4". It is a very thin plastic and can peel off the illustration without removing the paper beneath, especially if the dust jacket has been exposed to moisture.



Above shows the top edge of the back side of a Type 2 dust jacket. Note the plastic has started to come up off the paper.



Here is the bottom edge of the same dust jacket. The plastic wrap-around is much taller however this can vary and usually the top and bottom height is about the same.



This photo shows where the plastic has peeled away. This is from the inside flap of "Tarzan's Quest".




Here is an example where most of the plastic has lifted from the paper giving it a "rippled" appearance.


Type 3 - Non-laminated semi-gloss paper; appearence is exactly like that of the laminated dust jacket. The paper has a glossy look without the plastic sheen as on the laminated versions. The later dust jackets, like "Tarzan and the Foreign Legion", used a much thinner stock of paper.




1931 "Tarzan the Invincible" - heavier paper stock than "Tarzan and the Foreign Legion" shown below.



"Tarzan and the Lion Man" - also a heavier paper stock than "Tarzan and the Foreign Legion" shown below. This jacket is from the 1940 red cover version which used the same dust jackets as on the 1934 edition.



1944 "Land of Terror" - heavier paper stock than "Tarzan and the Foreign Legion" shown below. Note that here we see about an 1/8" egg-shell colored vertical strip, similar to a Type 4 dust jacket. This is the normal appearance based on viewing other aged copies which are identical.



1947 "Tarzan and the Foreign Legion" - this jacket is made of a very light paper stock. It has extra wide inner flaps and a the vertical egg shell color bar. However this dust jacket was on a mint condition book and is assumed to be originally sold with the book. The extra wide inner flap and 1/4" vertical strip are similar to that which was found on a "Back to the Stone Age" Type 4 dust jacket, which would suggest that the Type 4 dust jackets were all printed around this time.


Type 4 - Non-laminated semi-gloss paper; they may differ slightly from the above dust jackets in that the end panels either are whiter, or, have a vertical egg shell color separation between the full color illustration and the end paper, or, the paper weight is not as heavy, or, the inner flaps are wider. Most notably, these jackets were primarily sold as mint unused jackets that were purchased from Burroughs, Inc. after the 1958 fire. Their origin at this time is not fully understood. Examples below will illustrate some of the differences between Type 4 dust jackets and the others.



1937 "Back to the Stone Age" - Type 1 laminated heavy paper stock.



Type 4 version - lighter grade paper, note the 3/8" verticle "egg shell" colored strip.



Above is from "Tarzan and the Forbidden City" and is the Type 1 heavy laminate dust jacket.



Above is from "Tarzan and the Forbidden City" and is the Type 4 dust jacket. Notice the distinct color separation between the front illustration and the front inside flap.



Above is from "Tarzan and the Forbidden City" and is a reproduction dust jacket from Bruce Wood. Here you'll see the tan color to the right of the large red "N" is not as wide as in Type 4 above.