The first widely published edition of Bernard Sleigh’s iconic map of Fairyland, preceded by an exceptionally rare issue known in only two examples, here printed in Peckham by W. Griggs & Sons Ltd. Originally designed to unfurl from wooden batons like a scroll, and hang in the nursery, the map is now a shimmering panoramic bird’s-eye view of Fairyland – an immensely detailed megalopolis, teaming with familiar scenes and characters from myths, legends, fairy tale, chronicles, sagas, and the new wave of Romantic literature of the previous 20 years. The elaborate border and the map itself are captioned throughout by Sleigh’s collaborator, the mysterious “W.H.D.”

The panorama, a mobile mural, was an immediate means of escape from the horrors of WWI, for Sleigh and for his audience. Sleigh believed in Faeries: “it is very natural and not a bit foolish; for in these days we are quickly learning how little we know of any other world than our own” (‘Preface’ to ‘The faery calendar’, 1920). In the ten years since Sleigh’s fantasy world first took shape “one wet holiday” (Barbara Sleigh), ‘Fairyland’ grew exponentially in size and complexity from his first, exceptionally scarce, map of the realm, ‘An Anciente Map of Faerie-Land’, printed in 1909, to become all-consuming in Sleigh’s life and career. This new version was accompanied by a 16 page booklet ‘Of the Land of Faerie and of the way thereto’, in which Sleigh outlines how “in the heart of every child is hidden a little golden key which unlocks the door of a silent, clean swept room full of changing lights and mystic shadows. There, every child that is born into the world enters at times to gaze eagerly upon the one great window, pictured with ancient legends…”

The pamphlet also provides a comprehensive key to the works of literature, places, and characters depicted in Fairyland, which include: ‘Asgard and the Norse Heroes’, ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’, ‘Annals of Fairyland’, ‘Morte d’Arthur’, the publications of William Morris, ‘The Mabinogion’, the works of Maurice Maeterlinck, George Maconald, George Meredith, the ‘Arabian Nights’, the works of Baring Gould, and ‘Mother Goose’, the works of Laurence Housman, Charles Kingsley, Edith Nesbit, Hans Anderson, the Brothers Grimm, and J.M. Barrie.

The Mapmaker
Bernard Sleigh (1872-1954) was influenced by the work of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. He trained at the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, and lived and worked in Birmingham for most of his life. He was a prolific illustrator of books of fairy tales, myths and legends, poetry and prose. He taught at the Birmingham School of Art, wrote and illustrated several works on wood-engraving, and created designs for murals and stained-glass windows. However, he is best remembered for his ‘An anciente mappe of Fairyland: newly discovered and set forth’ (1917).