Ranging from the 1950s to the present day and spanning the globe, the artwork reveals how Bond's unique brand of glamour has been adapted to widely differing times and places.
"The books have been in print since they were first published, and have now been printed in almost every language," said Selina Skipwith, curator of "Bond Bound: Ian Fleming and the Art of Cover Design" at the Fleming Collection gallery in London's affluent Mayfair district.
She said the covers "are a great survey of taste and of what was permissible. The U.S. is much happier with guns, while the Europeans are much more relaxed about nudity."The earliest cover, from the 1955 paperback edition of Bond's debut, "Casino Royale," shows a strangely bland Bond, bow-tied and with a carnation in his buttonhole, seated at a poker table. Later covers are slicker and racier-near-naked women, gleaming guns and glimmering diamonds are popular motifs.
The exhibition is one of several events marking the centenary of the birth of Bond's creator, Ian Fleming, and also includes Fleming memorabilia from collectors around the world.
