Dirty Beautiful Life

It might be a sign: my collection of vintage zodiac imagery.

John William Godward (1861 – 1922)

artists: francisco de goya (1746-1828)

With over 450 pages, 11” x 12”, 48 tipped color plates, 364 black-and-white illustrations, and full-cloth gold-embossed binding, this book is great. And it’s nearly 60 years old. Printed on the inside jacket flap, it reads, “Originally published at $60.00”. So when it was first published, it was a bit more expensive, but this edition, published by Reynal, is a bit less. I’m guessing maybe $50.00. My point is that this book in 1966 was expensive. Now if you look up to see how much $50 in 1966 was worth in today’s money, you get some ridiculous number. Realistically, if one were to publish this book today, it would be about $150. But here’s the problem: for several reasons, you couldn’t publish it today as is and hope to make a profit. There are only a handful of publishers who still make books like this and can make it work. It’s too financially risky for most. So, whenever possible, support those publishers that make the kinds of books you like. There’s no guarantee they’ll still be there next year.

Date: 1808 - 1812

Jim des Rivières aka James des Rivières (Canadian, 1953-2019, based Ottawa, Canada) - Winged Tapestries, Hong Kong Moths At Large, Photography

Map of Africa on the year 1880 AD, Before the European “Scramble for Africa”

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Appalachian Subregions as Defined by the Appalachian Regional Commission