A Variety of Books, Manuscripts and Visual Arts from the William Reese Company
- by Michael Stillman
Illustration by Greenland native.
Here's a rare set Rockwell Kent, with his attraction to Greenland, might have appreciated: Kaladlit Okalluktualliait... (Legends from Greenland). It is a four-volume set (1858-1863) edited by Hinrich Rink, Danish Inspector for Southern Greenland. This is a collection of native folk tales, printed on the first real, permanent press in Greenland. These tales are part of the native oral history, and while some are clearly myths, others are at least partly actual history passed down through generations. What is most notable are the illustrations, created by a native sealer and walrus hunter, Aron of Kangeq, who was no longer able to ply his trade as a result of tuberculosis. This set includes two maps that were not regularly distributed with the set and are quite rare. Item 236. $32,000.
