The story of human existence in the Sussex landscape

The Book of Sussex Revelations contains a long epic poem by John May illustrated with 12 paintings by Peter Messer. The book was designed by Andy Gammon with text pages silk-screened by Ian Brown. These were bound by Rachel Ward-Sale and housed in a lectern/carrying case made by Colin Sullivan with metal fastenings by Simeon Smythe.

It was commissioned in 1999 by Mark Hewitt for the Sussex Literature Development Network as the core element of its Millennium Festival project, Revelations, which had funding from the National Lottery through the Arts Council of England with additional financial support from East Sussex County Council and West Sussex Libraries.

What makes the book unusual is that its 29 pages, each measuring 34.5cm x 50.8cm, are held together in a concertina binding. When fully extended, the book forms a 26ft-long frieze which enables all the text and pictures to be seen at once.

Because the book was so large and heavy, Rachel Ward-Sale decided to house it in a drop-back box secured by two hinge fastenings to give it added stability and strength. The front cover is bound with green Nigerian goatskin with twelve square recesses, each containing a small square of sky taken from the twelve illustrations in the book.

A pocket-size facsimile edition of The Book of Sussex Revelations, with full colour illustrations was also published.

Mark said: “It combines a historical poetic voyage, by writer and journalist John May – the originator of The Rodin Project which brought The Kiss to Lewes – and the paintings of Sussex artist Peter Messer who studied fine art at the University of Brighton..

“Telling the story of human existence in the Sussex landscape from Neolithic times to the 21st Century, John May's text takes the form of a long narrative poem, weaving disparate strands of historical and archaeological research, myth and folklore into an accessible popular ballad form, revealing and giving voice to the teeming ancestral ghosts and spirits of the county whilst paying homage to its multifarious social, cultural and geographic icons.”

Peter Messer's twelve paintings in the book are unique originals, individually executed on stretched Fabriano paper.

“The medium used was mainly gum tempera. The sequence of images reflect particular times and locations, from the People of the Dawn to the Roman and Norman Invasions, the Black Death, the Ironmasters, Martyrs and Civil war, Landscapes and Follies, Fashionable Brighton, Riots and Unrest, The Industrial Revolution and The Great Wars, ending in the present day with a view from the train depicting The Vanishing Countryside and the final View from the Air. There was a tight three-month deadline to produce it all which meant Peter Messer had to complete one painting a week while John May wrestled with the form and nature of the poem.”

The Book of Susssex Revelations was first exhibited in the Corn Exchange of Lewes Town Hall on July 14 where the launch was heralded with folk songs sung by the Copper Family.