Come on in and take a look around! We've made buying individual Mineshaft back issues and full sets as well as subscribing to Mineshaft easier than ever with our shopping cart. Also check out our postcards too! For postage prices and to pay by check or money order press here.
The size of the magazine is 8 1/2 inches x 5 1/2 inches. All copies are printed on off-set press, are uncirculated, and are in the best condition that we can keep them in, often in near mint condition or better. All issues are first & only printings. The print run is very low and our supply of many of the back issues is running out. Don't wait before it's too late! Email Gioia with any questions at holagioia@yahoo.com.
Mineshaft #21: Front cover hand lettered and designed by Robert Crumb, plus five wonderful pages of sketchbook drawings inside! Back cover by Christoph Mueller, "My Angel of Sin"! The life of famous Beat underground poet, Diane Di Prima, drawn and written by Mary Fleener (with guest Harvey Pekar)! Poetry by Diane Di Prima! "Pat & Corky" fiction by J.R. Helton, Zippy the Pinhead and how Bill Griffith got his start! New artwork by Christoph Mueller (with guest Joe Coleman) and William Crook, Jr.! Jay Lynch & Ed Piskor's story about Lynch and Crumb going to visit Chester Gould! "In Praise of Goth Beauticians" by Andrei Codrescu and illustrated by Aaron Lange! Plus the long awaited next chapter to the Green Star by editor Everett Rand, also Frank Stack, Bruce Simon, Aaron Lange, letters from around the globe and more!! First printing. 48 pages. Cover printed on beautiful French Paper Co. Speckletone Starch White. 1,350 copies printed in February, 2008. Limited Time Offer: $5.95!
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Mineshaft #20: This 56 PAGE Anniversary Issue MINESHAFT #20 has a Special centerfold blue section by R. Crumb, front cover & new poems by Billy Childish, back cover by R. Crumb (featuring the Vulture Demoness!), plus new artwork, articles, and features by Mary Fleener (Fleener reviews Aline Kominsky Crumb's new book "Need More Love"!), Kim Deitch, Art Spiegelman, Spain, Jay Kinney, Robert Armstrong, Jay Lynch, Ed Piskor, Frank Stack, Simon Deitch, William Crook Jr., Aaron Lange, Fly, lots of letters from around the globe (including Robert Crumb, Joe Coleman, Mary Fleener, & Kim Deitch!) a Special index for MINESHAFT #11-20 and more! First printing. 52 pages. 1,350 copies printed in September, 2007. ($6.95)
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Mineshaft #19: A fantastic two color front cover by Peter Bagge! And back cover by Robert Crumb! Plus wait 'til you open the covers and take a look at the beautiful 10 PAGE FEATURE OF SKETCHBOOK DRAWINGS by R. CRUMB (and long letter too)! Comics by Jay Lynch & Ed Piskor, Mary Fleener, Aaron Lange, and yes! Dirty Diana continues her wild adventures (by Frank Stack)! New work by Andrei Codrescu illustrated by Justin Green, J.R. Helton, Bruce Simon, Mark Terrill, Bill Griffith, Penny Van Horn, Robert Armstrong, Carol Tyler, Don Donahue, Simon Deitch, Jay Lynch's "Nard n' Pat", and SPAIN! Don't miss this exciting issue! First printing. 52 pages. 1,600 copies printed in February, 2007. ($6.95)
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Mineshaft #18: Featuring Rubber Suit Monsters of the Drive-In Era and a spine-tingling two color front cover by Simon Deitch with back cover cartoon of "Nard N' Pat" by Jay Lynch! Beautiful centerfold, long letter, & new drawings by R. Crumb. Sketchbook drawings by Peter Poplaski. Circus & Amazon Strong Women photos from the l940s by Orrin J. Heller with text by his son Larry Heller. The next chapter of “The Adventures of Dirty Diana” by Foolbert Sturgeon (a.k.a. Frank Stack)! Autobiographical comix by Jay Lynch & Ed Piskor. "Into the Mineshaft" photos by Heidi Greene featuring a rogues gallery of underground geniuses reading Mineshaft including: Robert Williams, Gary Arlington, Spain, Kim Deitch & Pam Butler, Frank Kozik, Justin Green & Carol Tyler, Frank Stack, Joe Coleman & more! Excerpt from Ace Backword's novel ACID. Plus amazing new poetry by Billy Childish, comics by Kim Deitch, art by KRK Ryden & more!! First printing. 52 pages. 1,350 copies printed in October, 2006. ($6.95)
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Mineshaft #17: This GIANT 64 PAGE ISSUE of Mineshaft features 15 PAGES OF R. CRUMB SKETCHBOOK DRAWINGS from June, 2004 to December, 2005 including: "Hugh M. Hefner & Friend", "WAKE UP!!", "Aline", "Russ Myer with Vixens", "GOD'S NOT PLEASED...", "Failure in Sudan", "U.S. Army Private Lynndie England & Prisoner at Abu Ghraib Prison In Iraq", "The Attack Of The Killer Nerds", "Why Is The Infinity of Space BLACK?", "Ol' BELKNAP", & more! ALSO: a beautiful centerfold & back cover art by Aline Kominsky-Crumb, "The Adventures of Dirty Diana" & front cover by Frank Stack, "GRIFFY'S TOP 40 ON COMICS AND THEIR CREATION" by Bill Griffith, 3 sketchbook drawings by Spain, "Movie Daze" by Bruce Simon, "SOPHIE IN AMERICA 2004" Sketchbook Drawings by Sophie Crumb, "Inside the Mineshaft" by Gioia Palmieri (with photos of Kim Deitch, Pam Butler, Fay Lovsky, & Dominique Cravic and the Primitifs du Futur), 2 pages of comics by Carol Tyler, letter from Gilbert Shelton with a drawing of Wonder Warthog, 1 page of art by Peter Poplaski (continued next issue), 2 pages of art by Kim Deitch, 1 page of art by Pamela Butler, "The Green Star" by Everett Rand, 1 page of art by Robert Armstrong, plus letters from R. Crumb, Eric Reynolds, Gene Deitch, Frank Stack, Carol Tyler, Robert Armstrong, Justin Green, & more from around the globe! First printing. 64 pages. 1,500 copies printed in May, 2006. ($6.95)
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Mineshaft #16: This beautiful & packed 52 page issue of Mineshaft has a FANTASTIC front cover by Robert Armstrong (creator of Mickey Rat & the Couch Potatoes!) and the backcover art is by Robert Crumb! All 3 Deitch Brothers are together in one issue with, "The Golem: a tale of the Dark Ages" written by Seth Deitch with illustations by Simon Deitch, and a beautiful Kim Deitch centerfold! There's a fascinating 6 page illustrated letter from R. Crumb, "View from Sauve" (with 3 pages of sketchbook drawings), & another insightful letter by Crumb in which he writes about artistic freedom-underground comix-&-Harvey Kurtzman in the letters pages. Travel to Vancouver, B.C. with "Zippy" creator Bill Griffith... and then to Varanasi India with Gioia...! Five amazing comics by Twisted Sister Penny Van Horn! "Dinosaur Girl" sketches & "Son of the Phanty" comic (continued from last issue) by Frank Stack! Comics by Justin Green & B.N. Duncan, "Love Note to New Orleans" by Andrei Codrescu, fiction, photos, and more letters (including Ace Backwords, & Robert Armstrong!) from around the globe and more, more, more!! First printing. 52 pages with French Paper Company Butcher Blue cover paper. 1,500 copies printed in November, 2005. ($6.95)
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Mineshaft #15: Robert Crumb drew the beautiful prehistoric AMAZON front cover & inside there are 5 more pages of art by Crumb titled, "The Curse of the Fetish Obsession", and featuring illustrations of both Carol Vinson and Carol Engberg! Kim Deitch designed the new "Mail" logo that now appears at the top of the letters section, and also contributed a photo of Dominick Marafioti, National Chief of the Buck Jones Rangers of America, and an illustration of Capitola the misfit girl Hero of The Hidden Hand by the gifted but almost forgotten serial novelist E.D.E.N. Southworth. Kim's letter, "Buck Jones and Fabulous Literary Trash," offers fascinating insight into the creative & inspired genius of Deitch's interior world, and also recounts the incredible story of Dominick Marafioti and his moment of epiphany regarding the famous cowboy & western star, Buck Jones... This is Frank Stack's first appearance in "Mineshaft!" Stack, also known as Foolbert Sturgeon to underground comix fans, and one of my favorite painters, contributed a funny & insightful 3 page Jesus strip, "JESUS Gets Fed Up" & the first half of a terrific Phantom satire, "The Ersatz Adventures of the Phanty!" continued next issue... There's a very nutty & beautiful centerfold by Robert Armstrong... Armstrong is the creator of "Mickey Rat," played with The Cheap Suit Serenaders, actually coined the phrase "couch potato," played musical saw on the title soundtrack of the film "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," and is one of the most original & talented painters around... Don't miss the front cover art by Armstrong for Mineshaft #16! It was a big surprise when Ace Backwords sent us this rarely seen interview with Charles Bukowski, originally published in his Twisted Image newsletter in Berkeley in 1992... In "Bukowski On World War II" Bukowski talks about what it was like to sit out "the Good War," and also offers his perspective on war in general... "First, I am not a believer that there are 'good' wars or 'bad' wars. When people believe they are in a 'bad' war it only means that the propaganda machines failed at their job." -Charles Bukowski ...Lili St. Cyr, Tempest Storm, & other legendary Burlesque Superstars visit the pages of Mineshaft in "Los Angeles Burlesque" by Bruce Simon, a nostalgic look back at the amazing burlesque newspaper ads from the Los Angeles Examiner circa 1947-1955! ...Andrei Codrescu is a writer & poet, editor of Exquisite Corpse, & a commentator on National Public Radio. His essay "Prague" shows why he's crazy, and is such a humorous & poetic writer... Also... Simon Deitch's old comics tribute, "Note from the CRYPT" which features 4 comic book-pulp covers from his very strange dreams... "The Cauldron of TERROR," "From Out of the OOZE," "GRIMM Tales," and "It Serves You Right To SUFFER Comics!" Letters (including Justin Green, B.N. Duncan, Charles Bukowski, & Ace Backwords) and More from around the globe! First printing. 48 pages. 1,350 copies printed in April, 2005. ($15.00)
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Mineshaft #14: This is a beautiful issue! Phoebe Gloeckner, author of the collection of comix, A Child's Life, & the novel, Diary of a Teenage Girl, drew the beautiful front cover art. Robert Crumb contributed the back cover art, front cover logo, inside cover comic strip, a 3 page illustrated letter, & 5 new pages of sketchbook drawings (including portraits of Amazons Lilla Burris & Danga Vileisis from the "Milford High School Yearbook" in 1961) that are truly amazing! Kim Deitch contributed an X-rated Waldo the Cat centerfold (inspired by "The Stuff of Dreams" #3) & beautiful portrait of Louise Brooks, "strung out & broke circa 1932"! Also included are Simon Deitch's mythological drawings of Medusa, the Sphinx, Orestes, & more! Billy Childish's poem "i am here to build jurrusolom." The latest serial installment of The Green Star! Plus L.A. poet Wanda Coleman, Bruce Simon (Kool TV Kiddie Host feature starring Willie the Worm, Thunderbolt the Wondercolt, & Kartoon Karnival!), Gioia Palmieri's editorial, "Inside the Mineshaft" about how the mag got its start, Ace Backwords' comic "My Troubles With Art", B. N. Duncan, Robert Armstrong, portrait of Henry Miller by his old friend Irving Stettner ("The creative artist in the world today stands as much chance as a sewer rat." -Henry Miller) and a tribute to Dominique Cravic & the Ukulele Club de Paris! Fiction, artwork, letters and more from around the globe! First printing. 56 pages. 600 copies printed in October, 2004. ($15.00)
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Mineshaft #13: Front cover art by R. Crumb! Plus 3 more pages of sketchbook drawings by Crumb & a front cover-centerfold inside! There's also a four page spread & back cover art by Robert Armstrong! Also featured are four letters from Kim Deitch, author of Boulevard of Broken Dreams, with previously unpublished "Waldo the Cat" illustrations! Kim is a great letter writer. Here he talks about underground comix and his own life, and gives his insightful opinions on Vanity Fair, Charlie Chaplin, Max Brand and more! Kim's brother, the rarely seen underground comix genius Simon Deitch pitched in with some mythological drawings and a fascinating letter to the editor (check out the mind-boggling 7 page sequel to his mythological interpretations in #14!)... There's a 9 page photo documentary with text by Berkeley comix artist B.N. Duncan of the eccentric street people and artists who hang out on Berkeley's Telegraph Avenue... In addition to being an underground comix artist, Duncan is a photographer & anthropologist who studies the world he lives in: street life! 3 new poems by Billy Childish (including the classic, "we have war becouse we love war", lots of letters (including B. N. Duncan & Peter Bagge!), & more! First printing. 48 pages. 600 copies printed in February, 2004. VF+ ($7.00)
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Mineshaft #12: This issue features a beautiful Kim Deitch drawing on the front cover & R. Crumb’s “Pyramid of Evil” is on the back. Also featured are 5 pages of sketchbook drawings by Crumb (in sequential order continued from #11), a Kim Deitch centerfold, 2 S&M cartoons by B.N. Duncan, an Albert Cossery interview-review, Olivier Berthe, L.A. poet Wanda Coleman, “All-Star Poetry Cavalcade,” Jeffrey Weinberg, letters (including R. Crumb, Jim Woodring, & Chris Hill!), Ace Backwords’ comic strip “What If Cartoon Characters Took Drugs” & more! First printing. 32 pages. 500 copies printed in October, 2003. ($15.00)
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Mineshaft #11: I think R. Crumb’s drawing, “Hell World Of Lust,” on the front cover of this issue is a masterpiece. This is a great issue. It’s printed on an off-white textured cover (like the purple #10). There’s a terrific Kim Deitch drawing on the back cover (his first appearance in the mag)! Also featured are Tommy Trantino’s short story, “Perseverance,” 3 pages of sketchbook drawings by Crumb, an amazing photo-spread, “THE BIG PIT,” shot in a Madagascar sapphire mine by French photographer Olivier Berthe, “My Troubles With LSD” comic strip by Ace Backwords, photos by Gioia Palmieri, art by Robert Volckens, lots of letters and other fascinating contributions. Printed on Strathmore Ivory cover paper. First printing. 40 pages. 550 copies printed in June, 2003. ($10.00)
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Mineshaft #10: This is the 10th Anniversary Issue of Mineshaft. This BIG 56 PAGE ANNIVERSAY ISSUE features front cover art & 2 new logos by R. Crumb! There’s ALSO A 10 PAGE SECTION OF SKETCHBOOK DRAWINGS & LETTERS FROM CRUMB (including a great photo of his brother Maxon with girlfriend Yannick). Robert is a terrific letter writer. DON’T MISS THIS if you’re interested in R. Crumb & his relationship to Mineshaft... Also for the first time in Mineshaft there are poems by British poet, musician, & painter Billy Childish. I think Childish is one of the most talented and entertaining poets in the world today. Number 10 has three new poems by Billy including the poem-interview, "A brief history of Billy Childish." Comix by B.N. Duncan, Sparrky, & Ace Backwords , a large letters section (which we’ve continued in every issue since), and a Mineshaft Index covering all the contributions to the first 10 issues. Printed on Strathmore Bordeaux purple cover paper. First printing. 56 pages. 600 copies printed in January, 2003 (unfortunately 100 or more of these copies were damaged & detroyed). ($15.00)
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Mineshaft #9: Featuring front cover art and 2 new logos by R. Crumb plus 3 far-out pages of sketchbook drawings by Crumb (including "Hypnagogic Hoodoo!")! Also Gioia Palmieri's photo-story about traveling down to Tierra del Fuego, and B.N. Duncan’s 4 pages of S&M cartoons... B.N. Duncan was a regular contributor to WEIRDO, and was editor of the amazing underground Berkeley magazine Tele Times. Hooking up with Duncan was great luck for the magazine. We knew that publishing these cartoons would be offensive to a lot of people, but they're funny... It's satire... There’s also a lot of truth to these illustrations. First printing. 40 pages. 550 copies printed in August, 2002. ($7.00)
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Mineshaft #8: Back cover art by Robert Crumb & five more pages of amazing sketchbook drawings by Crumb (“I’m such a fucking QUEER...”), plus a new title page logo! New Orleans poet & artist Jorin Ostroska (a regular contributor since Mineshaft #1) drew the funky front cover. Surrealist Ronnie Burk did the centerfold. This issue also features a chapter from Tommy Trantino’s long out-of-print book, Lock the Lock, a photo spread of “James Joyce’s Ulysses in 1963” by Darlene Fife, an editorial essay on Charlie Chaplin and his film "Modern Times," art by Robert Volckens, & the first episode of a story that's appeared serially in many subsequent issues of Mineshaft, called The Green Star. First printing. 44 pages. 600 copies printed in April, 2002. ($7.00)
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Mineshaft #7: R. Crumb said about this one: "The cover of #7 looks very classy, I think." The front and back cover art are by Crumb (there’s a classic “Moron” comic strip on the back and a different portrait of "Carol Vinson" on both the front cover and first page). The front cover was reproduced in a small article in L.A. Magazine, a glossy fashion mag, beneath a picture of Halle Berry... Inside there are 4 more funny & beautiful pages of artwork by Crumb (including "The Seven Chakras of R. Crumb") and a new title page logo! Three poems by British poet Jeremy Reed ("Jumping Jack Flash", "Street Fighting Man", & "Neronian"!), Tommy Trantino's "Vroom Building Readjustment Unit For Incorrigibles Another Death House (1974)", an editorial essay “Reflections on the Death Penalty,” Greek poet Maria Kardatou, Gioia Palmieri, Mark Terrill, Jorin Ostroska, British regular Chris Hill, & Christopher Sawyer-Laucanno’s short story “Mektoub”... First printing. 40 pages. 600 copies printed in October, 2001. VF++ ($7.00)
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Mineshaft #6: “I’m long gone like a turkey through the corn...” This Lightin’ Hopkins drawing makes a very beautiful front cover by R. Crumb! On the back are covers from old pulp magazines all in blue ink! Inside are 5 MORE PAGES OF PORTRAITS by CRUMB (including Carol Vinson & "Carol Vinson's left leg") & this is the FIRST ISSUE THAT CRUMB drew the LOGOS for (both the front cover & a funky zig-zag title page logo we've used on our stationery ever since)! This issue also features photos of the New Orleans Jazz Fest by Gioia Palmieri, photos of the San Francisco Leather Day Event by A.D. Winans, & poetry by Jorin Ostroska. There’s an editorial essay about Krishnamurti titled, “Truth is a pathless land.” Two exotic travel photos by French photographer Olivier Berthe, & another great travel photo, “Records for sale in Lima, Peru” by Gioia! First printing. 32 pages. 550 copies printed in May, 2001. ($10.00)
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Mineshaft #5: This is the FIRST ISSUE featuring the artwork of regular contributor ROBERT CRUMB! It's a fantastic front cover, though my lettering is very questionable, and in fact served as an inspiration for Crumb to design logos for Mineshaft which started appearing in the next issue ... Inside are 6 MORE AMAZING PAGES OF SKETCHBOOK DRAWINGS by R. CRUMB! There’s also a Special Section devoted to the life and art of Tommy Trantino (Trantino spent 38 years in prison, including 8 years of solitary confinement on Death Row in New Jersey), “Freedom in the Death House,” along with some original art by Tommy... Greek poet George Pavlopoulos (both the original Greek & English translations by Darlene Fife), poems by A.D. Winans including the classic "Eulogy for Jack Micheline" & his photo of Wavy Gravy, poet Mark Terrill, Bangkok artist Charlee Sodprasert, New Orleans poet & Second Line dancer with the "Revolution" Jorin Ostroska, & more! First printing. 40 pages. 500 copies printed in December, 2000. ($10.00)
Mineshaft #4: Features the classic poem by Charles Bukowski, “the tragedy of the leaves” to go along with an editorial tribute, “The Day Bukowski Died.” The front & back cover is a collage I put together when I was living in Taiwan. Also in #4 are stories from Tommy Trantino and Karl Orend (Orend wrote an essay about his boyhood growing up in Transylvania), plus poetry by Jeremy Reed, Catherine Aldington, Mark Terrill, Robert Head, Irving Stettner, A.D. Winans & more!. First printing. 36 pages. 400 copies printed in July, 2000. ($25.00)
Mineshaft #3: This is Tommy Trantino's first appearance in Mineshaft featuring a terrific ink drawing on the front cover, "An empty mind is an open mind" and a letter Trantino wrote to Gioia & I from South Woods State Prison. This one also features a chapter from Darlene Fife’s memoir, Portraits from Memory: New Orleans in the 60’s (including an illustration from Bukowski's "The Fuck Machine" by the late great Francisco McBride!), an Irving Stettner centerfold, and contributions by Chris Hill, Gioia Palmieri, Justin Murphy, John Fanning, Jeremy Reed, Jorin Ostroska & more... First printing. 48 pages. 400 copies printed in January, 2000. FN+/VF ($5.00)
Mineshaft #2: The front cover of #2 is a Bangkok alleyway photo I took of my neighborhood in Bangkok where Gioia & I used to hang out... Inside is a short story by Irish writer John Fanning called, “The Killing Floor,” that takes the reader inside a slaughterhouse in Ireland. Other contributors to this early issue are New Orleans poet Jorin Ostroska, Irving Stettner, Howard S. Levy, & Gioia Palmieri, plus an editorial tribute, “Who is Blaise Cendrars?” First printing. 48 pages. 400 copies printed in the Summer, 1999. ($10.00)
Mineshaft #1: The front cover of #1 features a drawing by Irving Stettner and inside is a chapter from his book, Adventures of a 2nd Avenue Patroller (continued in #2). Stettner was a cafe sketch artist in Paris in the 1950s and later a writer and poet who's own little mag, Stroker, was a big inspiration for Mineshaft. The other contributions to this rare first issue are “Just Another Night In Mexico” a story by Justin Murphy, “Letter from Krishnamurti’s House” from Gioia Palmieri, a couple of New Orleans poems & a sketch by Jorin Ostroska, and an editorial essay titled, “The Dance of Death,” about Bolivian film director Jorge Sanjines & French-Egyptian writer Albert Cossery. First printing. 28 pages. 350 copies printed in the Winter, 1999. ($15.00)
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In the U.S.A. and Canada we normally ship Priority Mail (or Air-mail in Canada) 1st Class. In Europe & Around the World a set is sent Air-mail and postage is included. We ship in a sturdy box and take care in packaging the magazine.
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A four card set signed by three legendary underground comix artists (two are numbered and signed)! Frank Stack alias Foolbert Sturgeon, author of Amazon Comix, Feel Good Funnies, and Jesus Comix; Robert Armstrong creator of Mickey Rat and founding member of R. Crumb's Cheap Suit Serenaders; and Jay Lynch creator of Nard 'n Pat and founder of Bijou Funnies, plus the Circus Strong Woman postcard by Orrin J. Heller! Click on the image to see examples of the signed postcards. ($15.00)
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U.S.A. postage add $3.00 for orders up to $20.00. For orders above $20.00 postage is $5.00. International airmail postage charges are below. If you would like to send your payment by mail, we take a personal check, money order, well concealed U.S. dollars or Euros. MAKE CHECK OR MONEY ORDER OUT TO: GIOIA PALMIERI and send to Mineshaft, P.O. Box 1226, Durham, N.C. 27702 U.S.A. We take care in packaging the magazine. Email Gioia with any questions at holagioia@yahoo.com. Thanks for shopping with us!
International postage prices are listed below. For orders of more than 15 issues, contact Gioia at holagioia@yahoo.com. Subscriptions and full sets already have postage included in their prices.
Canadian postage prices are listed below. For questions contact Gioia at holagioia@yahoo.com. Subscriptions have postage included in their prices.