Rare and Antiquarian Books
There are many rare and valuable books in the various subject-focused sub-collections in Special Collections.
Rare Books and Fore Edge Paintings [B]
There are many rare and valuable books in the various subject-focused sub-collections in Special Collections. However, UCT Libraries also boasts a specific collection of Rare Books, initiated by R. F. M. Immelman, UCT’s University Librarian from 1940 to 1970, and a noted scholar in his own right. This collection consists of books and journals about, and representative of, humankind's intellectual and cultural development in the broadest sense, emphasising the book arts and the history, development and future of the book.
This collection contains a copy of a 1535 Dutch Bible, believed to be the oldest in South Africa and extremely rare. This particular edition was suppressed and all copies were burned. Indeed, the publisher was condemned to death for publishing it. The oldest book in the collection is by the Roman historian and moralist of the first century C.E., Valerius Maximus, entitled Facta et dicta memorabilium, published in Mainz by Peter Schöffer in 1471. Schöffer, together with Joachim Fust, apparently took over Gutenberg’s press. The collection also includes a copy of the first book to contain photographic illustrations, William Henry Fox Talbot's Pencil of Nature, published in 1844.
Rare Books has an impressive collection of the specialised art form of fore-edge painting, most of which were bequeathed to UCT by Clifford Hall (1905-1975). These paintings only become visible when the edges of the pages are fanned out. Hall’s collection included limited and private presses editions as well as the books with fore-edge paintings. There are over 180 examples of this art form in the collection, including 14 books with double fore-edge paintings and one with decorations on the top and bottom edges.
Items from the Rare Books sub-collection are identified in the libraries’ online catalogue by the prefix B.
Bleek and Lloyd Collection [BBL]
Dr Wilhelm Heinrich Immanuel Bleek (1827–1875) was a German linguist who played a foundational role in documenting African languages, particularly those of the San people.
In 1857, Bleek began studying the San languages after meeting San prisoners on Robben Island. From 1870 to 1881, he and his sister-in-law and collaborator Lucy Lloyd interviewed ǀXam-speaking San people, including //Kabbo, compiling extensive records of their language, stories, beliefs, and customs. This work formed the Bleek and Lloyd Collection, now preserved in the University of Cape Town Libraries’ Special Collections.
The collection includes translated notebooks, drawings, photographs, and maps. Much of it has been digitised and is internationally recognised, listed in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register. Additional related materials are held by the National Library of South Africa and the Iziko South African Museum.
Books by and about Bleek and Lloyd are housed in UCT's Rare Books collection, and their works can be identified by the prefix BBL in the shelf number.
Antarctica Collection [BDA]
Raymond Danowski, an American bibliophile and philanthropist, has long been a benefactor of libraries in South Africa, not least at the University of Cape Town. Some years ago he donated (and has continued to add to) his collection of materials on all aspects of Antarctica to the Diocesan College (also known as Bishops School), here in Cape Town. When the collection became so specialised that it outgrew its usefulness in a secondary educational environment, arrangements were made to transfer it Special Collections, at UCT Libraries.
This collection may be of interest to political scientists, international and environmental legal scholars and researchers, natural scientists and geologists, as well as historians and environmentalists. The collection is an active one, with new items being acquired and gaps identified and filled. It consists of about 350 titles, and works may be identified in the online catalogue by the prefix BDA in front of the shelf number.
Caving and Speleology Collection [BDE]
Speleology is the scientific study of caves and similar features, including their structure, physics and history. It is also concerned with how caves are formed and how they evolve. Recreational exploration, better known as caving or potholing, is part of speleology, since the study of caves requires the physical ability to climb into them. Speleology is cross-disciplinary, needing some knowledge of chemistry, biology, geology, physics, meteorology and cartography.
There are hundreds of caves in South Africa, and especially the Western Cape, varying from the tiny to large caverns. Access may be through easy horizontal systems or vast, complicated and dangerous mixed systems, some with deep pits and one with close to 5 kilometres of measured passageway.
In 1980, through the good offices of the secretary of the Cape Peninsula Speleological Society, Dr. Stephen Craven, the South African Speleological Association’s Collection of books and journals about speleology, caving, and cave diving was deposited on long loan with UCT Libraries.
Journals, received on exchange from similar societies around the world, make up the bulk of the collection, which includes over 350 titles, indicated in the catalogue by the shelf-mark prefix BDE.
Jack Maclean Memorial Collection [BDJ]
Works within this collection are identified by the prefix BDJ.
Kipling Collection [BDK]
The Kipling Collection at UCT Libraries originated from a donation by John Scott Ivan McGregor, a retired teacher and avid collector of Rudyard Kipling’s works. His collection, now exceeding 2,000 volumes, includes books by and about Kipling, rare items, scrapbooks, magazine cuttings, musical settings of Kipling’s poems, and annotated materials.
McGregor was meticulous, creating indexes and cross-referencing materials. Notable items include autographed books, early reviews, family recipe books, and rare editions like Quartette and The Jungle Book illustrations. The collection continues to grow with the support of library funding.
South African Children's Literature [BJ]
The South African Children’s Literature Collection highlights folktales, stories that creatively address contemporary issues, narratives that celebrate diversity, inclusiveness and imaginative adventures – available in all South Africa’s languages. This collection was developed by annual donations from the Children’s Book Forum of the Western Cape and a traveling exhibition.
Historical Children's Literature [BJA]
This collection contains examples of (mostly, but not exclusively) English literature written for children (including periodical literature) between the 17th century and the mid 20th century, as well as some works of critical relevance. Most of the texts in the collection have been acquired by donation.
Satgar Williams Collection [BSW]
Associate Professor Vishwas Satgar and Professor Michelle Williams donated a significant portion of their personal collection to Special Collections. This collection reflects their extensive research and intellectual engagement across a wide range of themes, including national liberation and anti-colonial struggles, regionalisation, the political economy of globalisation, critical theory, Marxism, democracy, and Pan-Africanism.
Highlights of the donation include a complete 18-volume set of Antonio Gramsci’s handwritten Prison Notebooks, a full collection of publications from the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and The African Communist (theoretical journal of the SACP), as well as volumes of the Democratic Marxism series edited by Professor Satgar. The collection also features works on worker cooperatives researched in various countries.
Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection [BSF]
The Tolkien Society donated this collection originally, and the library has continued to add to it over the years. Works in this collection are identified by the prefix BSF.