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SAWYER, REX: : Little Imber on the Down - Salisbury Plain's Ghost Village. [Author SIGNED copy.]

UK.EAST kNOYLE,SALISBURY,WILTSHIRE.THE HOBNOB PRESS,2001.

ISBN 0946418063.

UK,slim Qrto HB+dw/dj,author SIGNED,1st edn. NFINE/NFINE.No owner inscrptn,but author's neat,compact,handwritten ink inscrptn: 'To Gordon,Freda & Richard With very best wishes Hope you enjoy it! Rex (forward slash with date written below that) October 2001. ' to front free endpaper,and no price-clip to dw/dj.Bright, crisp,clean,matt,wrap-around very pale taupe background with b/w scenic sketch of village environs to the front panel of dw/dj and with black lettering,spine/backstrip and the rear panel; front panel with yellow lettered author name and black lettered title,repeated colour lettering to spine/backstrip with black lettering+publisher's colophon,rear panel of dw/dj with b/w scenic photographic view of village church.Negligible shelf-wear,bumping,or creasing to edges and corners – no nicks,tears or splits present.Top+fore-edges bright and clean without foxing/spotting; contents bright, tight,clean,solid and sound – no dog-ear reading creases to any pages' corners – near pristine, possibly unread,apart from my own collation. Publisher's bright,crisp,unblemished,sharp-cornered,original plain dark green cloth boards with bright,crisp,blocked gilt lettering and colophon to foot of same,and immaculate/clean plain bright green endpapers - author inscrptn excepted.UK,slim Qrto HB+dw/dj,author SIGNED,1st edn,v-viiipp+1-168pp [paginated] includes author's introduction which also includes a potted biography of him and a list of his other topographical pubblished works,8 chapters and an Epilogue,profuse contemporary b/w local scenic and biographical photographs throughout the text and the book,a couple of b/w local maps,a bibliography,picture credits and an Index; plus [unpaginated] title page,contents list/table with a dedication to foot of same and a b/w Salisbury Plain map to its verso. Visually the exterior appearance is exceptional,and even internally ,the book is also in an exceptional condition/state of preservation and presentation.It really is an exceptional copy for its cleanliness and brightness. 'Little Imber on the Down' by Rex Sawyer,is the first book to be devoted to the history of this Salisbury Plain community,a remote village which until sixty years ago (then 2001),carried on its life to a large extent untouched by the outside world.In 1943 the villagers were all required to leave,so that Imber could be handed over to the army for military training.Everyone believed that after the war those evicted would be allowed to return,and a long campaign against officialdom was waged by their supporters,but to no avail.Imber,except for soldiers,is now deserted and largely destroyed,and most of its former inhabitants have died.But the community and its history live on in memories and photographs,and Rex has had full cooperation of the surviving villagers and their descendants while writing this moving and poignant book.With an engaging text and over 100 evocative illustrations,mostly b/w photographs,the unique village of Imber is brought to life again. Imber's history dates back over one thousand years and was recorded in ther Domesday Book as Imemerie when the land was divided between the Abbess of Romsey and the Earl of HerefordAs the Black Death devastated England's population in the 14thC, residents of Imber were mainly spaered due to their isolated location, and the village population actually rose. The army began to use Salisbury Plain for training in 1898.Right up to WW2 it bought up increasing areas of land,buildings and farms.By then Imber had also been bought up.With an influx of American soldiers training for D-Day, it became impossible to guarantee the safety of Imber which was surrounded by live firing excercises; the village was also needed for the soldiers to practise house-to-house fighting. So,in November 1943 the residents were given just 47 days' notice to evacuate.The people of Imber claim they were given verbal assurances that they could return after the war.To their consternation the village became a permanent part of the defence estate.The M.O.D. did agree to allow access for up to 50 days a year,and keep the chuch out-of-bounds to army training, and only that building remains as it was before the war.Most of the buildings were demolished,a few houses gutted to augment the mock houses built for urban warfare training. Please contact seller,for correct shipping/P+p quotes - particularly ALL overseas customers - BEFORE ordering through the order page! ** N.B. ALL buyers please note,stocks' actual shipping/P+p costs are adjusted and any difference is refunded,after order's receipt and before the order's despatch,especially if the item(s) are offered either P+p included/FREE. ** This item offered P+p included.Offer available UK only,unless indicated otherwise. ** ** N.B. US/Canada customers please be aware: Standard AIRMAIL postage from UK to these destinations can now cost more than the price of the book! If speed is not of the essence,then Economy rate is recommended - at approx. anything from a 1/3rd to 1/2 of the standard AIR quote/rate - sometimes arriving sooner than the 42 days - but not always.

UK,slim Qrto HB+dw/dj,author SIGNED,1st edn.
Author SIGNED,dedicated+dated.

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