2014 Rare Book - Long Ago in Bangalore, One Lovely Poem by Charles van Sandwyk
Author: Charles van Sandwyk.
Title: Long Ago in Bangalore: Six Bookplates, Four Bookmarks, and One Lovely Poem by Charles van Sandwyk.
Language: Text in English.
Publisher: North Vancouver, CVS Fine Arts, 2014.
Size: 9 x 6.5 inches.
Pages: 2 pages.
Binding: Attractive and near fine original gold paper portfolio-style cover with mounted pictorial label to the front cover, hand-stitched at the spine, with inner pocket containing the separate bookplates and bookmarks. A very fresh and well-preserved example under a protective removable mylar cover.
Content: Fine condition. Bright, clean, and beautifully preserved internally.
Illustrations: Complete with the fantastical dragon illustration printed on the title page of the poem, with the text beautifully rendered in delicate calligraphy. Includes six separate finely decorated colour bookplates and five individual colour bookmarks housed in the front inner pocket, all illustrated by Charles van Sandwyk.
Estimate: (USD 200 – 250)
The book: Long Ago in Bangalore is a delightful production by Charles van Sandwyk, combining a whimsical two-page poem with a suite of separate illustrated bookplates and bookmarks. The poem tells of an “outlandish creature” arriving in Bangalore and advising the townsfolk to read books, a typically playful van Sandwyk conceit in which fantasy, bibliophilia, and gentle humour meet.
This edition is a beautiful expansion of the earlier Alcuin keepsake edition, presented in a gold paper portfolio with a mounted pictorial label. It contains the two-page poem, an illustrated title page with a dragon sailing upon an open book, six colour bookplates, and five colour bookmarks, including owls, mice, dragons, trees, and other beloved van Sandwyk motifs. The title mentions four bookmarks, but this example, like the similar copy previously sold, includes five separate bookmarks.
The author and illustrator: Charles van Sandwyk is a Canadian artist, author, and illustrator known for his whimsical, finely detailed books and prints. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1966, he moved to Vancouver, Canada at a young age. His work is deeply influenced by the classic illustrators of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, yet remains immediately recognizable for its delicate line, humour, and tenderness.
Van Sandwyk’s books often feature animals, fairies, dragons, birds, and other fantastical beings, brought to life through exquisite lettering, hand-crafted presentation, and a strong sense of old-world charm. His work is widely collected internationally, and he is also known for his illustrations for the Folio Society. Long Ago in Bangalore is a particularly lovely example of his bibliophilic imagination, celebrating books themselves as objects of wonder, companionship, and enchantment.