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clues for dating red guides
If you
have looked at an older Ward Lock red guide, you may
have found it difficult to detect the publication date.
Don't worry, you aren't alone! Quite often, books for
sale are described as "undated". That is why we have put
together this set of clues to help pinpoint the date of
your books or prospective purchases. If you click on the following underlined
links some illustrated examples will pop-up.
Some guides, specifically London, have the date explicitly on the
cover
and
spine.
The cover design changed (as left) but this is more a
clue to the decade rather than year of publication. Later guides (1950's and on), having red and
yellow paper
dust wrappers, typically have a
copyright date in the first few pages of the guide.
Many more of the earlier guides have the date at the
foot of the first or an early page of the
advertisements at the rear of the book, after the index,
and sometimes in the front advert section, if there is
one.
Failing
that, you may find general date clues inside the
advertisements themselves, or in references in the
text of the guide, or
from some of the
photographs,
which may have datable subjects such as period motor
vehicles.
Sometimes an
original owner may have made a dated
inscription
inside the cover,
which may help to confirm other indicating clues but cannot be
relied upon as the actual publication date,
since it could have been inscribed at any time.
For the financially astute, prices given
in the advertisements give some clue to confirm the
period, if not the exact year. At some point in
the future we may try to catalogue some of these
revealing prices
and their corresponding dates. Meantime, you
may find it useful in dating your guides to review the
summary checklist below and the
covers
and spines
page.
Summary of Red Guide publication date clues
·
Printed on the cover or spine? (unlikely, but the spine and cover
give a general clue to the publication era - see
chart).
·
At the foot of one of the first pages of
advertisements at
the back of the book
·
At the foot of one of the advertisement pages at the front of the
book, if any
·
If it has a dust jacket, is there a
copyright date at
foot of one of the front pages
·
Explicitly within the text of some
advertisements
themselves
·
Within the text of the book explicitly, by referring to
recent dates
·
An owner's dated
inscription
·
The context of
advertisement or
guide text - e.g..
reference to places or events that exist in a given time
frame - e.g.. during World-War II
·
Other general
dating clues, such as vehicles, costume and fashion ,
etc. in illustrations and advertisements
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