MASONIC MEMORABILIA FOR COLLECTORS Bill Jackman. Edited by George Perrott. Gemini Publications, 2002. Paperback, 120 pages, £17.95. ISBN 0-9530637-2-0. Available from 30a Monmouth Street, Bath, BA1 2AN

There has been a surge of interest in masonic collectables in recent years promoted by advanced technology. The hobby has been opened up to an enthusiastic international community well beyond Freemasonry. Every collector, and most dealers, welcome new publications in order to be guided through the hobby thus every author has a responsibility when he decides to publish his work, to make an effort not to mislead his readers.
    Bill Jackman would have done well to limit the content of his book to just illustrations and captions. In trying the guide the collector through chapters speedily written and overconfidently titled ("How it all began"), he has done a disservice to his readership. In poor English and amidst an array of errors and misquotes, he uses legends as facts, long discarded theories as history and continually, and erroneously, refers to a Grand Lodge of England. His enthusiasm is admirable but his faulty research surfaces far too often.
    The illustrations adequately serve the purpose of identification. The emphasis is on jewels: 103 illustrations of the 210 printed. The captions serve as an effective price list for each item and, with a few exceptions, the prices appear reasonable, if high.
    The author has taken guidelines from a selection of listed auction houses and dealers but the perennial problem persists: how is an item to be priced? Dealers may have a tendency to overprice their goods and collectors are often guided by their hearts. The maxim that an item is worth what someone will pay for it does not always work. I totally agree with Bill Jackman that there is no substitute for quality. At the worst of times a good quality item – from the point of view of condition alone – has always maintained its price.
    The problem with publishing prices as an integral part of a book is that either the book will be redundant very quickly or new editions are planned. In the latter case I fear it would be too great a demand on Bill Jackman’s talents to ask that the various chapters be corrected. I trust the editor may consider omitting them entirely.
    Yasha Beresiner