Pretoria 125 by Hannes Meiring

Pretoria 125 by Hannes Meiring is a fascinating illustrated celebration of Pretoria’s architectural, cultural and historical development, produced to commemorate 125 years of the city. Written and illustrated by respected South African architect and artist Hannes Meiring, the book takes the reader on a visual journey through Pretoria’s streets, suburbs and landmark buildings, recording both celebrated monuments and less familiar pieces of the city’s architectural heritage.

Meiring’s distinctive architectural drawings are central to the appeal of the book. His detailed pen-and-ink sketches capture façades, ornamentation, streetscapes and historic structures with the trained eye of an architect and the sensitivity of an artist. Buildings and areas represented range from Pretoria’s historic centre and Church Square to its forts, suburbs and major civic landmarks. Contemporary commentary accompanies the drawings, providing historical and architectural context. Pretoria 125 has been described as having the character of an architect’s sketchbook and records aspects of Pretoria that have subsequently changed or disappeared.

Presented in both Afrikaans and English, Pretoria 125 is particularly appealing to collectors of Africana, South African architectural history, Transvaal history and books dealing with Pretoria and Gauteng. This is the 1981 second edition, published by Human & Rousseau, following the first edition of 1980.

More than four decades after publication, Pretoria 125 provides an evocative snapshot of Pretoria’s built environment and makes an excellent addition to a collection of South African local history, architecture or illustrated Africana.

Condition – Good

The dust jacket shows noticeable age-related wear, including scattered spotting/marks, surface soiling and staining, particularly along the lower front edge and lower spine/rear corner, with some edge and corner wear. Pages show light age toning but appear clean and well preserved overall; binding appears sound.