The Dreamtime
Antiquarian & Collectible Young Adult Fiction Picture Book Art & Culture Folklore & Mythology Indigenous Australian Culture Australian Mythology
The Dreamtime: The First Sunrise is a scarce 1971 hardcover picture book that pairs Charles Mountford’s authoritative retellings of Aboriginal creation myths with Ainslie Roberts’ luminous, gallery-quality paintings. Published by Rigby in Adelaide and never reprinted in this deluxe large-format edition, it has become a cornerstone collectible for anyone interested in Indigenous Australian culture, vintage Australian art books, or Folklore & Mythology titles. The 72 pages of full-colour plates capture the stark beauty of the outback while respecting the spiritual significance of every story, making the volume as much an art object as a narrative treasury.
What makes this copy especially appealing is its personal touch: a neat gift inscription on the fly-leaf gives the book provenance without affecting the integrity of Mountford’s text or Roberts’ illustrations. The dust jacket shows only light shelf scuffing, the cloth boards are tight and square, and the pages remain crisp and brightly illustrated—an impressive state for an Australian picture book that spent half a century on the market. Foxing is minimal and confined to the top edge, while the binding is strong enough for continued reading or display.
Collectors prize this ISBN (0727000462) because it preserves stories—such as the great Rainbow Serpent and the birth of the sun—that are still part of living Aboriginal oral tradition, presented through Mountford’s respectful ethnographic lens. Combined with Roberts’ dream-like imagery, the book offers both cultural insight and striking wall-art potential when jacketed copies are increasingly hard to find. For lovers of Indigenous stories, Australiana, or mid-century illustration, this personalised, vintage hardcover is a tangible piece of Australia’s artistic and mythic heritage.
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