Underwater Africa by Al J. Venter

Underwater Africa (Collectible 1971 Illustrated Diving Volume in Jacket)

A Lavishly Illustrated 1971 Survey of Diving, Wrecks and the Sea Around Africa, Edited by Al J. Venter

Bibliographic Specifications

• Title: Underwater Africa
• Author: Al J. Venter
• Editor: Al J. Venter
• Publisher: Purnell, Cape Town
• Publication Date: 1971
• Binding: Publisher's blue-green woven cloth hardcover with a pictorial dust jacket.
• Physical Format: Large, roughly quarto-sized illustrated volume. With colour photographs throughout, a colour photograph on the title page, and maps.
• Language: English

Official Condition Report

• The Book: Very Good (VG)
• Exterior / Boards: The blue-green woven cloth boards are clean, with tidy edges. The cloth at the head of the spine looks sound.
• Interior: The title page, copyright page, acknowledgements and the chapter 16 pages are clean, with no foxing or marks. The binding is firm.
• The Dust Jacket: Present, and protected in a durable archival-type plastic cover. The blue pictorial jacket is worn. The spine shows chipping and flaking at the head, near the title and author's name, and at the foot near the Purnell logo. The edges and corners show wear with white chipping, and there is creasing along the top of the back panel. The back panel has a clipped top right corner, a scuffed and rubbed patch of paint lower down, and some scratches.

Synopsis & Historical Value

Published in Cape Town by Purnell in 1971, Underwater Africa is a large, richly illustrated volume devoted to diving and the sea around the African continent. Colour photographs run throughout the book, supported by maps.

The chapters, drawn from several contributors under the editorship of Al J. Venter, range across shipwrecks, the hazards of diving such as the bends, and the emerging business of undersea mining. It makes for an engaging record of how diving and the African coast were viewed at the start of the 1970s.

A handsome period piece for collectors of South African diving, maritime and natural history literature, and for anyone who enjoys the golden age of illustrated Purnell publishing.

Author Profile: Al J. Venter

Albertus Johannes Venter was born in Kroonstad, South Africa, on 25 November 1938. He is a war journalist, documentary filmmaker and author, and served as African and Middle East correspondent for Jane's International Defence Review.

He has written six books on underwater diving, among them Under the Indian Ocean (Purnell, 1973), and is also known for his military titles including The Terror Fighters (Purnell, 1967), War Dog and Battle for Angola.

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