Hardcover. 4to. Published by Quantuck Lane Press, New York. 2002. #119 of a limited edition of 250 copies signed by the late great Ricky Jay, as well as photographer Rosamond Purcell. With an additional signed photographic print by Purcell, laid in, as called for. Slipcased in matching cloth slipcase. Slipcase lightly rubbed and worn. Bound in cloth boards with titles present to the spine and with color pastedown and titles present to the front board. Boards have light shelf-wear present to the extremities. No ownership marks present. Text is clean and free of marks. Binding tight and solid. Plato said God invented dice. This we learn from one of Ricky Jay's fascinating essays in a delightful small volume that takes us from the earliest forms (astragalithe heel bones of hoofed quadrupeds, four of whose six sides were used for gaming) to the myriad types of "loading" and other means of cheating with dice in the modern era. Along the way we discover that Augustus, Caligula, and Nero were all inveterate players, that Queen Elizabeth issued a search and seizure order against the manufacture of false dice in 1598, and that dice made from celluloid, invented in 1869, remained stable for decades, and thenin a flashbegan to decompose. These are the dice of Rosamond Purcell's luminous and seductive photographs, images which transform entropy to an art form. Jay and Purcell give us a dual meditation on dice that will educate us and amuse us at the same time. ; 8 X 0.5 X 8.25 inches; 64 pages.

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Bibliographic Details

Title: Dice Deception, Fate, and Rotten Luck
Publisher: Quantuck Lane Pr & the Mill Rd, E-143
Publication Date: 2002
Language: English
ISBN 10: 0971454817
ISBN 13: 9780971454811
Binding: Hardcover
Condition: Very Good

About this title

Synopsis

Plato said God invented dice. This we learn from one of Ricky Jay's fascinating essays in a delightful small volume that takes us from the earliest forms (astragalithe heel bones of hoofed quadrupeds, four of whose six sides were used for gaming) to the myriad types of "loading" and other means of cheating with dice in the modern era. Along the way we discover that Augustus, Caligula, and Nero were all inveterate players, that Queen Elizabeth issued a search and seizure order against the manufacture of false dice in 1598, and that dice made from celluloid, invented in 1869, remained stable for decades, and thenin a flashbegan to decompose. These are the dice of Rosamond Purcell's luminous and seductive photographs, images which transform entropy to an art form. Jay and Purcell give us a dual meditation on dice that will educate us and amuse us at the same time. 13 color photographs.

About the Authors

Ricky Jay is one of the world's great sleight-of-hand artists and an expert on the world of fantastic entertainment. His award-winning one-man shows were directed by David Mamet, in whose many films Mr. Jay has appeared. He is author of New York Times Notable Books Learned Pigs & Fireproof Women, Jay's Journal of Anomalies, Extraordinary Exhibitions, and Dice: Deception, Fate & Rotten Luck with Rosamond Purcell. He lives in Los Angeles.

Rosamond Purcell is the author of Bookworm and Owls Head. She lives in Medford, Massachusetts.

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