Treharne, Evan – British Heavyweight Champions

Description

Treharne, Evan ‘British Heavyweight Champions’ 1959 1st edition. F.C. Avis, 26 Gordonbrock Road, London, S.E.4. 144-pages. VG condition with a good non-price clipped dust jacket. The handwritten name and book stamp of longtime South African boxing collector/historian, J. Karel de Vries is on the frontispiece.

British Heavyweight Champions by Evan R. Treharne, published in 1959, is a comprehensive, meticulously compiled historical chronicle documenting the history of British prize fighting and professional boxing in the maximum weight class.

Content & Structural Description:
• The Chronology: Across 144 pages, the book profiles seventeen of the most legendary and culturally significant British heavyweight boxers spanning the late 19th century to the mid-20th century. Featured fighters include the iconic “Bombardier” Billy Wells, Tommy Farr (famous for going the distance with Joe Louis), Brian London, and a young Henry Cooper right around the time he was ascending to the British championship.
• The Text: The book is written as a series of tight biographical and anecdotal sketches focusing on the fighters’ most dramatic bouts, career trajectories, and their impacts on the British sporting landscape.
• Illustrations: The text block is supplemented throughout by rare monochrome (black-and-white) photographic plates and portrait illustrations showcasing the boxers in classic fighting poses or action shots.
• Binding & Format: The standard hardcover edition is bound in original brown or terracotta cloth boards featuring sharp gold gilt lettering stamped down the spine. (Note: F.C. Avis concurrently issued a smaller, pocket-sized softcover variant in stiff card wrappers, but the hardcover trade edition is the standard library copy).
• Dust Jacket: The original pictorial dust jacket features a striking graphic layout or boxing imagery typical of late-1950s British sports books.