The phrase "a pristine copy of" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when referring to an item, document, or version that is in perfect condition or has not been altered in any way.
Example: "I was thrilled to find a pristine copy of the first edition of my favorite book at the antique store."
Alternatives: "an immaculate version of" or "a flawless copy of".
Though there are many poor public-domain copies around, this is a pristine copy of the uncensored, pre-code version.
A pristine copy of Neil Gaiman's Coraline, borrowed 48 times, would have been needlessly re-bought, while Stuart Woods's Swimming to Catalina, still going at 120 loans, would be on its fifth, pointless reincarnation.
A pristine copy of Gore Vidal's "Washington, D.C". had come in; so had a slightly rare copy of James Baldwin's "Just Above My Head"; George Saunders's new "Tenth of December" had sold out.
The "jaw-dropping" collection of 345 comics features some of the world's most sought-after issues, including a pristine copy of Detective Comics No 27, in which Batman made his debut.
I encouraged him (O.K., more or less forced him) to buy "Best of My Love," by the Emotions; stopped him from buying duplicates of several mediocre Janet Jackson records; and found him a pristine copy of "Young Hearts Run Free," by Candi Staton.
Someone, somewhere, may well be longing to own a pristine copy of Ken Albala's magisterial Beans: A History – "When I first proposed a history of beans, little did I suspect what I was getting myself into," goes the gripping first sentence – and I really should deliver it to lucky old Oxfam quite soon.
But in a more pristine copy of the original that he provided HuffPost (and viewable at the top of this story), not only is the rapid motion of the clock hands clearly seen, but people and cars are seen zipping along at tremendous speed at the bottom of the video, all while the motion of the camera on the dolly makes it appear to move at normal speed.
Wikileaks has claimed to have access to the data and says it will publish a "pristine copy" soon.
No wonder, then, that I now have not one but two copies of Simon Hopkinson's "Roast Chicken and Other Stories" on my kitchen counter — the U.K. edition, already dog-eared and grease-and-gravy-stained, and an arguably more pristine copy of the new American edition, which came out in September.
Certainly more than that pristine copy of A Brief History of Time.
