Eighteenth Century Furniture in South Africa" by G.E. Pearse.1960. Signed.

This copy of "Eighteenth Century Furniture in South Africa" by G.E. Pearse (published by J. L. Van Schaik in Pretoria, 1960) holds several points of historical and architectural significance:

1. Author’s Personal Association & Signature

 Signed by the Author: This copy carries an original ink signature and date (⁠G.E. Pearse 17.11.66⁠) on the title page. Given that Pearse passed away in 1968, signed copies from his final years are exceptionally scarce.

 Father of South African Architectural Education: Geoffrey Eastcott Pearse (1885–1968) was the foundational pioneer of formal architectural education in South Africa. He served as the first Professor of Architecture at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), shaping generations of South African architects and architectural historians.

2. A Landmark Study in Cape Dutch Material Culture

 Companion to his 1933 Magnum Opus: Pearse’s seminal 1933 work, Eighteenth Century Architecture in South Africa, established the systematic recording of Cape Dutch structures. This 1960 monograph served as its definitive companion, turning his architectural lens onto the interior crafts, timber selection (stinkwood, yellowwood, teak), and furniture design of the same period.

 Comprehensive Documentation: The frontispiece illustration of the pulpit in the Lutheran Church on Strand Street, Cape Town, reflects Pearse’s methodology: combining historical context with precise measurement and photographic record of 18th-century Cape craftsmanship, much of which has since been altered, moved, or damaged.

3. Designer of Wits Icons & Heraldry

 Beyond his scholarly writing, Pearse was a key designer of Johannesburg's built environment. He designed the iconic Tower of Light at the Rand Easter Showgrounds (now Wits West Campus) in 1936 and designed the official Coat of Arms of the University of the Witwatersrand.

260mm x 350mm x 40mm

Dust jacket torn in many places; sellotape residue on DJ and end papers; red stain on fore-edge; some thumbing.mm

R1,750

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