CONDENSED EDITION OF THE FIRST EIGHTEEN NUMBERS OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMERCIAL ADVERTISER From January 4 to May 5 1824

140 pages – last page is printed 401 – half leather with matching marbled boards, corners bumped, starting to wear at the hinges, Library book plates and stamps on the front end papers and title page, a good copy.

The South African Commercial Advertiser was South Africa's first independent English-language newspaper. Often simply referred to as The Commercial Advertiser, it was founded in Cape Town and edited by Thomas Pringle and John Fairbairn, printed by George Greig.

The first issue appeared on 7 January 1824 and it was to become a valuable source on 19th century Cape Town politics, life and culture, also publishing regular theatre reviews and advertisements for theatre productions, invaluable sources for theatre historians.

The newspaper twice banned by order of the Governor at the Cape, Lord Charles Somerset (5 May 1824 to 31 August 1825, and 10 March 1827 to 3 October 1828), but continued under the editorship of Fairbairn.http://esat.sun.ac.za/index.php/The_South_African_Commercial_Advertiser