Rivonia – Masker Af! by Lauritz Strydom

Published in the immediate aftermath of the historic Rivonia Trial, Rivonia – Masker Af! by Lauritz Strydom is an important contemporary Afrikaans work examining one of the defining political events in South African history. Issued as a first edition by Voortrekkerpers in September 1964, the book captures the atmosphere and perspectives surrounding the Rivonia arrests and trial while these events were still unfolding in the public consciousness.

Rather than serving as a retrospective historical study, this volume is a valuable primary-era publication that reflects the viewpoints, language and political climate of South Africa during the 1960s. As such, Rivonia – Masker Af! offers historians, researchers and collectors a fascinating insight into Afrikaner political thought and media commentary of the period. Books published so soon after the Rivonia Trial have become increasingly sought after because they document contemporary attitudes rather than later historical interpretations.

This first edition is particularly desirable for collectors of Africana, apartheid-era publications, South African political history and anti-apartheid research collections. Works dealing directly with the Rivonia Trial, Nelson Mandela and the liberation movements remain among the most collected twentieth-century South African political publications. Whether acquired for its historical significance, research value or as an investment in collectible Africana, Rivonia – Masker Af! represents an important piece of South Africa’s documentary heritage.

An increasingly scarce title, Rivonia – Masker Af! belongs in collections focusing on twentieth-century South African politics, Africana, legal history and the complex history surrounding the Rivonia Trial.

Condition – Very Good

1964 Afrikaans hardcover without dust jacket. Internally clean with a previous owner’s signature and the date “11.9.64” neatly written in ink on the title page.