Olden Times in Zululand and Natal (1929)

Containing earlier political history of the Eastern-Nguni clans

This is an excellent copy of a Zululand and Natal classic. It is the fruit of the author's 45 years in the field.

Bryant had great difficulty in getting the book published. As he relates in the very generous first part of his preface, his appoinment as lecturer and research fellow at the University of the Witwatersrand helped forward the work. However, it was only under the government of "General Hertzog, in union with his able counsellors and administrators in Native Affairs, Major Herbst, Charles Wheelwright and Dr Logan" that he found a sponsor, the government itself.

He wasn't altogether happy, however. This was only Part 1 of what he envisaged as a two-part work; only a few of his "more than 100 phogoraphs supplied for illustrating the book" were used; and the government appointed "a reviser to reduce the great bulk of our manuscript", resulting in inconsistencisz of style, for which he disclaimed responsibility. It remains, nevertheless, one of the standard books on the subject.

Dark blue cloth-boards, gilt lettered to the spine; plain endpapers; xxii + 780 pp of text and index + full-page map at the front + folding map at the back + frontispiece and 15 other inserted pp the author's b/w photographs on art paper.

The book is near-fine: the covers are barely rubbed, there are the stamp and signature of the noted ethnologist and author W D Hammond-Tooke on the front free endpaper as well as very occasional pencil markings by this owner: nothing more: all present and correct, no damage, complete, very collectable.