Copy of Images of Kimberley: A postcard collection (Kimberley Africana Library series) by Oliver, Richard
Images of Kimberley: A postcard collection (Numbered Limited First Edition)
A Captivating Visual Retrospective of the Diamond Capital’s Pioneer Era Through Rare Commemorative Postcards
Bibliographic Specifications
- Title: Images of Kimberley: A postcard collection
- Author: Richard Oliver (Compiler & Text)
- Publisher: Kimberley Africana Library, Kimberley
- Publication Date: 1997
- Series Entry: Kimberley Africana Library Series, No. 2
- ISBN-13: 9780620209908
- ISBN-10: 0620209904
- Edition Details: First Edition, Numbered Limited Print Run. Copy number 462 of only 500 copies ever printed.
- Binding: Original publisher's premium dark blue cloth boards with bright, crisp gilt-stamped title typography to the front cover and spine.
- Physical Format: Oblong Quarto (4to), 143 pages. Lavishly illustrated with high-quality, full-colour and monochrome reproductions of rare historical postcards, augmented by archival documentation from the Kimberley Africana Library's master collections.
- Language: English
Official Condition Report
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The Book: Very Good (VG)
- Exterior / Boards: The original dark blue cloth-covered boards are exceptionally bright, flat, and true. The gilt-stamped lettering to the front cover and spine remains brilliant and free of oxidation. Minimal, microscopic shelf friction at the corner tips, completely consistent with careful preservation.
- Interior: The text block is robustly bound, perfectly square, and immaculately tight. Internal pages and postcard reproduction plate arrays are clean, crisp, and completely free of any text underlining, owner signatures, dealer pencil annotations, or library markings.
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The Dust Jacket: Good Plus (G+)
- Condition Details: The original paper dust jacket features a striking historical visual layout. It exhibits a tear on the front top face that has been carefully, beautifully repaired to preserve the jacket's structural integrity. Now housed and fully stabilized within a brand-new, high-grade removable archival cellophane protective sleeve to halt any further edge-wear.
Synopsis & Historical Value
Published in a highly restricted run of only 500 copies, Images of Kimberley: A postcard collection offers a magnificent pictorial glimpse into the early, tumultuous history of South Africa's world-famous diamond metropolis. This unique anthology showcases a premier collection of vintage postcards painstakingly garnered by collector Richard Oliver over a considerable period of time, seamlessly augmented by the rare visual treasures preserved in the vaults of the Kimberley Africana Library.
Set against the arid, unforgiving landscape of the Northern Cape, early Kimberley was rapidly transformed from a dusty, chaotic diamond rush encampment into a permanent, structurally remarkable corporate city. This book uses the popular turn-of-the-century medium of the postcard to track that dramatic evolution. The accompanying historical text brings these rare images to life, charting the daily lives, civic achievements, social gatherings, and foundational events—such as the Siege of Kimberley during the Anglo-Boer War—that shaped the diverse communities who made this diamond capital their permanent home. For sports historians, mining bibliophiles, and deltiologists (postcard collectors), this scarce, numbered first edition is an essential reference volume.
Author Profile: Richard Oliver
Richard Oliver is a highly respected South African historical researcher, archivist, and premier deltiologist specializing in Northern Cape mining history. Over decades of dedicated search, Oliver assembled one of the most comprehensive private postcard archives relating to the diamond fields of Griqualand West. Recognizing the immense cultural and historical value of these ephemera, he collaborated closely with the expert curatorial team at the Kimberley Africana Library to publish this volume. His precise annotations and deep contextual text ensure that the book stands as an authoritative reference work, celebrated by researchers for preserving the early social fabric and urban landscape of the region.
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