Sherlockiana
The word "Sherlockiana" encompasses memorabilia, ephemera and collectibles
associated with the fictional character Sherlock Holmes and, by extension, the
fictional Dr. Watson and the very real Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. With
Sherlock Holmes having so many devoted fans for many decades, it is perhaps not
surprising that there is a great deal of Sherlockiana to tempt the would-be
collector, and it would be a daunting and impractical task to list every
Holmes-related item in existence. Nor would the exercise be to much
purpose, since the collector of Sherlockiana needs guidance more than he (and,
sometimes, she) needs a laundry list of souvenirs.
Let us propose that you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes, and that you wish to
establish a collection, however modest, of Sherlockiana. Where should you
begin? My suggestion would be that the obvious place would be with the
books and magazines themselves. First editions of Sherlock Holmes stories
are, of course, both rare and expensive, but one could build a fascinating
library of Sherlock Holmes material on a relatively modest budget with some
careful shopping. Sherlock Holmes on film would also be an interesting
collection.
Then there are the directly-related items: deerstalker cap (which I think
might be better displayed than worn), calabash pipe (which, for health reasons,
might be better displayed than smoked), and so on. I once owned a Sherlock
Holmes cookbook; it had recipes for all the meals mentioned in the stories, and
was quite intriguing, although it did make me wonder what Holmes' and Watson's
cholesterol levels must have been.
Last are the pure souvenirs: playing cards and mugs with pictures of Sherlock
Holmes, and the like. Of course, it takes some work to find the best items
to add to your collection of Sherlockiana; but if you're a fan of Sherlock
Holmes, then you should be glad of the opportunity to do a bit of sleuthing!
Sherlock Holmes stories on this website:
Visit the Mystery
Fiction Book Store.
Of related interest:
You can search our site: