The history of Ferrari bound in a book

Italian sportscar manufacturer Ferrari brings a single copy of its limited edition book, which chronicles its 60 year long history, worth Rs 1.25 crore to India.
Limited edition has assumed a new meaning, at least for automobile enthusiasts, with the prized possession that the Italian sports car manufacturer Ferrari has brought into the country this week.
Five years ago, at its headquarters Maranello, Italy, the company took a decision to chronicle its 60 year long history into a limited edition book, and over the next 60 months, a team dedicated to the task scoured through three million pictures, newspaper articles, published interviews, behind-the-scene pictures of the company’s workshop, et al to come up with the most exclusive (and some unpublished) snapshots of Ferrari’s history to include in the book that was to be known as the brand’s biography.
And that’s how the Ferrari Opus, the book with the history of the company known for its prancing horse logo, was born. From that initial idea, several editions of the book were conceptualised, which ultimately lead to the classic edition (strictly limited to 4,100 copies worldwide), the Cavallino Rampante edition (limited to 500 copies worldwide), the Enzo edition (limited to 400 copies worldwide) and the highly prized Enzo ‘Diamante’ edition, featuring a diamond-encrusted prancing horse on the cover (strictly limited to just a copy per country). The reason this story made headlines in India is that the country is among the approximately three dozen nations in the world to get a copy of the book, which is priced at USD 2,40,000 or Rs 1.25 crore.
Karl Fowler, CEO of Opus Media, which has come out with the book for Ferrari, was in India for the launch of the book, which is being touted as the most expensive book to come to the country. He told us that it’s not just because of the growing buying power of Indians that the book came to India. “It’s because Indians appreciate art and culture, and this book is a work of art. It chronicles 60 years of Ferrari’s fascinating journey in this fantastic book. This diamante edition has a 30-carat prancing horse on the cover and is a priceless possession,” he said, in a thought that was echoed by Ashish Chordia, chairman of Shreyans Inc, which has brought Ferrari to India. Ashish said, “We believe that Indians know how to appreciate art. This book shouldn’t be considered as just a connoisseur’s fantasy because of its price, but also because it talks about Ferrari in a unique way.”
The Official Ferrari Opus weighs 37 kilos, contains 2,00,000 words and more than 2,000 pictures across 852 pages. It also includes two metre long gatefold images and exclusive interviews with the motorsport legends that have been part of Ferrari’s unique history. The question is – are you among those in the world willing to shell out Rs 1.25 crores for it?