Raga Mala: The Autobiography of Ravi Shankar

George Harrrison and Oliver Craske, Raga Mala: The Autobiography of Ravi Shankar, Guildford: Genesis Publications Limited, 1997, first edition

The lot comes along with a book with an orange Bangalore raw silk cover with gilt hand-tooling and all edges gilt, containing 352 pages with 120000 words and 200 images with a paper size of 24 x 16.8 cm; two CDs in an orange Bangalore raw silk-topped box showcasing 80 minutes of exclusive and rare material by Ravi Shankar, including a 34-minute performance of Raga Tilak Kamod, specially recorded for this book at EMI's famous No.2 Studio, Abbey Road; and an unopened packet of Special Durbar Agarbathi incense sticks (a personal favourite of Ravi Shankar and the book's guest editor, George Harrison) in an orange silk-topped box. All these items are housed in a custom-crafted deluxe presentation silk-screened clamshell box with a blocked-in gold leaf measuring 12.25 x 9.25 x 3 in (31 x 23.5 x 8 cm)

This is a limited editon copy of 333 from a total of 2000 copies. Hand-signed by Ravi Shankar on the half title page bearing presentation inscription "(Om)"

Raga Mala features a remarkable collection of photographs and documents drawn almost entirely from the personal archives of Ravi Shankar and George Harrison. A large number of these had never been published before. Classically elegant in design and presented to the very highest of standards, it is a beautiful record of an extraordinary life.

Ravi Shankar was the world's foremost sitar-virtuoso and composer, the man christened by George Harrison as the 'Godfather of World Music', who spearheaded the international spread of Indian culture. He had a remarkable story to tell, and he brings to the task the same contrasting qualities that make him as uncommon a man as a musician: that mixture of charm and candour, of dignity and humility, of deep spirituality and wide-eyed, impish fun.

This lot is offered at NO RESERVE

This lot will be shipped in "as is" condition. For further details, please refer to the images of individual lots as reference for the condition of each book.