Sands and Coral is the historic student literary annual of Silliman University, located in Dumaguete City, Philippines. Established as a critical proving ground for the university's vibrant writing community, this 1961 edition captures a transformative period in Philippine literary history. It highlights the profound academic influence of National Artist for Literature Edith L. Tiempo, who served as the publication's adviser , alongside prominent figures like Edilberto K. Tiempo. The volume reflects mid-20th-century intellectual movements within the region, bridging Western literary theories—such as New Criticism, referenced via John Crowe Ransom and Edgar Allan Poe —with localized Filipino cultural sensibilities. Through pieces exploring local working-class realities, such as Edilberto K. Tiempo’s grim play The Grave Diggers, the publication stands as an irreplaceable institutional repository of early post-war Philippine creative writing in English. It documents the evolution of the regional artistic identity that would eventually solidify Dumaguete as a national center for the literary arts.
Sands and Coral, 1961