497 pages, indexed. Overseas customers please note the book weighs over a kilo and will attract additional postage. The book once belonged to the University of Sydney Library. It's stamp is on the fore-edge. The back paste down sports a bar code, a discard stamp, and a catalogue label; the front end paper a white round price sticker, hiding a Berkelouw one. The covers are lightly creased, as is the spine. In its favour, its faults are aesthetic, and the body of the book is clean, and solid. A vey good copy, but not for the perfectionists or the squeamish. "Whether you're shopping in the local supermarket, visiting a specialist spice merchant or haggling over saffron in the markets of Istanbul, this book is the essential guide to the exotic world of herbs and spices. Celebrated spice trader Ian Hemphill has compiled a comprehensive, fascinating guide to choosing and using spices." (publisher)