Shell Guides
Guidebook | |
Publisher |
|
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Publication date | 1934–1984 |
Sponsored by Royal Dutch Shell |
The Shell Guides were originally a 20th-century series of
History
The series started in June 1934, with
During the early 1960s a series of 48 cheaper Shilling Guides[3] appeared, much to Betjeman's annoyance, especially as they sold in greater numbers. Published by the Shell-Mex and BP joint venture, each had just 20 pages with a full colour card cover, representing highlights of the county covered, and included a two-colour map of the area, preceded by an essay on the history and landscape, and followed by a short gazetteer of main towns and tourist attractions. The original artwork for this series was sold by Shell in 2002 at an auction held by Sotheby's. These images by such artists as Keith Shackleton and David Gentleman also featured in the (now collectable) Shell posters that were published for use in schools. These appeared between 1959 and 1965.
From the late 1950s to the early 1970s, a series of general titles under the Shell Guide banner were produced, covering most of the countries in northwest Europe. Guides to subjects such as rivers, islands, viewpoints, archaeology, gardens, flowers, history, wildlife and museums were also published.
In 1987, Shell issued a final series of New Shell Guides, published by Michael Joseph and generally covering rather larger areas (e.g. Northern Scotland and the Islands) than in the earlier series. Whilst the original Shell County Guides are now highly collectable, the later titles (published by
Selected books
- Of the original pre-war guides, Paul Nash's Dorset (1936) has been described as the most artistically experimental of the series.[4]
- The more collectable post-war guides include Betjeman and Piper's Mid-Wales (1960), W. G. Hoskins' Rutland guide (1963) and James Lees-Milne's Worcestershire (1964).[citation needed] In her biography of John Piper (2009), Frances Spalding highlights Henry Thorold's Derbyshire (1972) as one of the best later titles. Thorold also wrote the last book in the series, Nottinghamshirein 1984, published the same year that Betjeman died.
- Wynford Vaughan-Thomas's South-West and Mid-Wales is an example of the 1987 New Shell Guides series.[citation needed]
- The Shell Guide series featured many photographs. John Piper was an accomplished black and white photographer, as was his son Edward. Peter Burton took many of the photos for the last titles. Paul Nash took hundreds of photos for his pre-war guide and whittled them down to those that made it into the finished product.[citation needed]
References
- ^ "Shell Guides to Britain". The Guardian. 15 May 2008. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018.
- ^ Mawson, Chris (2010). "A History of the Shell County Guides". Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ Byrne, Ian (2002). "Shell and BP Shilling Guides to the counties of Britain". Retrieved 3 April 2020.
- ^ "Mixed Gallery of Shell Art Collection Images". nationalmotormuseum.org.uk. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
External links
- The Shell County Guides website by Chris Mawson (archived, 8 March 2016)
- Shell and BP Shilling Guides to the counties of Britain on Petrol Maps
- David Heathcote's A Shell Eye on England 1934–1984 (book summary)