This is Paolo Orsacchini’s striking design for a limited anniversary edition of the Italian publication of Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.
The book comes wet. Soaked in sea water then sealed in a nice clear pouch.
Luckily, the paper is waterproof so if you want to read it you simply set the book out in the sun. Let it dry then read.
I haven’t been able to find out much about the book details, like size of the edition and retail price, but the image and the story have been deservedly making the rounds of the design blogs.
The concept alone puts it in the same class of the limited edition of Ray Bradbury’s Farenheit 451 which was published in 1953. The edition consisted of 200 signed and numbered copies bound in a form of asbestos! Collectible copies today sell for around $15,000.
The high-end Jules Verne collectors are going to be tempted to buy two copies of this edition, one to buy and hold and one to buy and dry.