• Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Alken (Henry). Sporting Notions, first edition, T.McLean, 1832-33. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Bardi (Lorenzo). Nuova Raccolta delle piu interessanti Vedute della Citta di Firenze…, Florence, Lorenzo Bardi, [c.1840]. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Crawfurd (John). Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava..., first edition, 1829. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Dawe (George, engraver). The Life of a Nobleman, first edition, Geo. Henderson, [c.1825]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: [Doyle (John)], "H.B.". Political Sketches &c., 10 vol. including The Descriptive Key to H.B., Thomas McLean, [1829-51]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Eben (Adolphus Christian Frederick, Baron von) and Nicolaus Heideloff. Modèles de l'Uniforme Militaire Adopté dans l'Armée Royale de Suède, Rudolph Ackerman, 1808. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Geissler (J.G.G.) and Friedrich Hempel. Mahlerische Darstellungen der Sitten, Gebrauche und Lustbarkeiten bey den Russischen, Tartarischen…, 4 parts in 1, Leipzig and Paris, [1804]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Hunt (Charles). Portraits of Winning Horses...of the Derby, Oaks, & St. Leger, from the Year 1842 to 1849…, Rock Brothers & Payne, 1849. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Kunike (Adolf Friedrich). Zwey hundert und sechzig Donau-Ansichten nach dem Laufe des Donaustromes…, Vienna, Leopold Grund, 1826. £3,000 to £5,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Lasinio (Carlo). [Matrimony], Florence, 1790. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Reinhardt (Joseph). A Collection of Swiss Costumes, in Miniature, second English edition, James Goodwin, [1828]. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Wengen (Gottfried Durst von). Die Öffentliche Maskerade Bamberg am Fastnachts-Montage 1833…, Bamberg, [1833]. £2,000 to £3,000.
  • Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Winston Churchill. The Second World War. Set of First-Edition Volumes. 6,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: A.A. Milne, Ernest H. Shepard. A Collection of The Pooh Books. Set of First-Editions. 18,600 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Salvador Dalí, Lewis Carroll. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Finely Bound and Signed Limited Edition. 15,000 USD
    Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ian Fleming. Live and Let Die. First Edition. 9,500 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter Series. Finely Bound First Printing Set of Complete Series. 5,650 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell to Arms. First Edition, First Printing. 4,200 USD
  • Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG BEADED JUDICIAL COLLAR. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: ONLY KNOWN COPY OF THE ONLY BOOK BY THE REMARKABLE EVE ADAMS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A COMPLETE RUN OF VISIONAIRE MAGAZINE THROUGH 2010. $6,000 - $9,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: LAW REVIEW OFFPRINT SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY RUTH BADER GINSBURG. $3,000 - $5,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: META REBNER'S WORKING SCRIPT OF THE LOVED ONE. $1,500 - $2,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A KATHY GROVE PORTRAIT OF CYNDI LAUPER FOR THE FEBRUARY 1989 DETAILS COVER. $800 - $1,200
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A PLASTIC COAT BY MILLIE DAVID FEATURED IN SOHO NEWS STYLE SECTION, FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANNIE FLANDERS. $500 - $700
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG JEWELRY BOX. $600 - $900
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A SET OF JONI MITCHELL LYRICS FOR "IF I HAD A HEART." $2,000 - $3,000
  • 19th Century Shop
    Catalogue 198 just published
    19th Century Shop. Darwin and Wallace, first printing of the first paper on natural selection
    19th Century Shop. Shakespeare’s Poems, first collected edition
    19th Century Shop. Walt Whitman portrait inscribed with a Leaves of Grass poem
    19th Century Shop. Major Elizabeth Barrett Browning manuscript notebook
    19th Century Shop. Spock's Baby Book, original MS
    19th Century Shop. Cellarius, Harmonia Macrocosmica, the great celestial atlas

Rare Book Monthly

Articles - December - 2015 Issue

Collecting these days: my own experience

Two thousand fifteen seems a different kind of year in the rare book business.  The long-term trend toward better and unique copies continues to intensify both in the auction rooms and in dealer catalogues.  This suggests a thinner, and inevitably weaker market for very good if not absolutely spectacular copies – the very thing that collectors and dealers most have.  This is disappointing but not crushing.  For the collector who has yet to buy, it simply means that auction realizations may go lower and in time dealer asking prices follow. The auction outcomes are the bright spot because they confirm liquidity, a necessary feature in a healthy market.  The public market, as reflected by auction outcomes, is today huge.  This means that for those who buy there are also well-defined exits.

 

At the same time the quality of material continues to improve.  Both dealers and auction houses, confronted by increasingly selective buyers, are focusing on the best material while bringing asking prices and estimates on good to very good material down to maintain cash and transaction flow.  Many, and I count myself among them, believe the current market is the best we have seen in decades.  It’s efficient, simply reflecting market interest.  As a buyer this is all that you can ask.

 

On the collecting side I continue to pursue interesting material, and am agnostic to the source.  In past years eBay has been a steady source of appealing if generally inexpensive material but this past year not so much.   I’m not sure where such material now shows up but it’s not in the eBay searches.  Their decision to emphasize static listings over auctions is turning them into another Abebooks, in my opinion a dumb idea.  Abe is already doing a very good job.

 

My single most important purchase this year was from a retiring dealer from whom I bought the O’Shaughnessy Archive of Auction Catalogues issued during the period 1865 to 1940.  Such material is all but impossible to find as a substantially complete run.  A dealer bought these records at a public warehouse sale in New Jersey in 1948 and they have remained untouched since.  They cover twenty houses and, at a guess, 2.5 million auction records that will, over the next year or so, bring the RBH Transaction Database well past eight million records.   My goal has always been to have a complete auction record in the RBH/AE database.  With this purchase and a full year of work we’ll make significant progress.

 

I have also bought at auction.  At the Carlsen Gallery near Albany, on a Sunday in early April, I bid by phone on a wonderful group of prints, most of which are by Currier and Ives.  Currier is out of fashion today and the number of unduplicated items that come up is limited.  At this sale a very complete set of Hudson Valley and Adirondack prints was offered.  I bought about 30 prints, the cost all in about $10,000.

 

Over the summer I bid at JMW Auctions in Kingston, New York.  The lots are sometimes not well documented and the realized prices difficult to obtain.  Consequently we don’t cover their sales.  But I bid there myself and bought both books and paintings there this year.  The paintings are special.  Altogether I spent about $9,000.

 

 

On November 11th at Bonham's London I purchased an archive of material from Hodgson & Co. Book Auctioneers.  This English auction house was a major player in the books and manuscript auction trade from the later 19th into the mid 20th century.

 

Lot 29

 

HODGSON & CO. BOOK AUCTIONEERS An extensive archive of business papers, printed matter, photographs and correspondence relating to the book auctioneering firm of Hodgson & Co. (1807-1981), largely dating from the period after the firm's move to Chancery Lane in 1863 comprising; a group of over 100 items of correspondence with vendors and booksellers such as Lord Wardington, The Earl of Halifax, Captain Massingberd of Ormsby Hall, Earl Beauchamp of Madresfield Court, Arthur Symonds, Leonard Huxley, EV Lucas, Sir John Lubbock, Hatchards, A.P. Watt & Son, Henry Sotheran, Quaritch, Maggs & Co. etc., documents concerning the discovery and sale in 1948 of a volume of nine Shakespeare Quartos dating from 1619, a number of letters and documents concerned with possible suspension of book auctions during the First World War (signed by Chatto, Maggs, Karslake and others, with Quaritch removing his signature on the grounds that auctioneers know their business best, and Hodgson's reply giving reasons to continue with sales), various financial papers including a sales book of 1901-8, list of monies owed by booksellers, an auctioneer's folder with 'no bid' list attached, lists of clients and their collections, lists of 'books viewed', typed instructions for cataloguing and work sheets, examples of printed stationery and printing blocks, manuscript plans and documents relating to the premises at Chancery Lane, a series of photographs showing the staff, the building, a sale in progress (with inscription "Reynolds in the pound, J.E.H. Thornton & Milward") and the centenary dinner of 1907, commemorative publications and menus produced for said centenary celebrations, some 50 sale catalogues, many annotated, dating from 1861 to 1981 (the majority 1930-60 but including some noteable sales such as the Strawberry Hill Press collection, 1902, Four Folio Shakespeares, 1948, and Early Books on Surgery and Medicine from Sion College, 1938), receipts and general household accounts, together with various legal and personal papers relating to the family, various sizes and bindings etc., 1860's to 1980's

 

The firm was in business between 1807 and 1967 and then absorbed by Sotheby’s.  The lot was estimated 1,000 to 1,500 British pounds and brought 8,125 all in.  Robert Frew, the London antiquarian, represented me.

 

Book auction history is a subject unto itself.  The houses, the characters and circumstances seen through the prism of time yield a stunning perspective.  In time, some, perhaps most of this lot will become searchable on RBH.

 

At another sale Bill Reese represented me at a recent Doyle New York auction to purchase lot 30 a Miscellany of New York Assembly and Senate Journals, 1785-1800:

 

[NEW YORK - FEDERAL] Miscellany of Assembly and Senate Journals, 1785-1800, 11 volumes all but two in 20th century cloth (one in worn half leather and boxed, one in leather backed boards). Folio printings, sizes vary, largest 14 x 8 1/2 inches (36 x 22 cm). The Assembly Journals include those for the years 1785, 1792, 1795, 1796 and 1799, printed by Francis Childs, Childs & Swain, Samuel Loudon, and Loring Andrews; The Senate Journals, each with separate title pages, includes those for the years 1785-92 (bound together), 1792, 1794, 1798, 1800, and an 1814 volume of indexes for the years 1777-1795, each variously printed in New York, Albany, Poughkeepsie, etc. The entirety with stamps and ink markings to titles and intermittently within, generally clean but with some stains, foxing, etc., the whole not fully collated and sold as is.   Eleven volumes.

 

The lot was estimated $200 to $300 and brought $3,438.

 

I purchased two related lots at Doyle earlier this year.  The bindings, such as they are, will now be reworked to turn these miscellaneous volumes into a somewhat complete set.  All such items are rare if not necessarily desired.  Deciding how to rebind and box them will be next year’s challenge.  However the rebinding works these three Doyle New York purchases will turn out to be a great prize.  They are beyond rare.

 

From dealers I bought a large group of Hudson Valley ephemera.   Peter Luke of New Baltimore, New York offers me archive-sized lots every year or so.   I also recently bought from Will Monie [ABAA].  I learned of one item and then more thoroughly searched his inventory and found a dozen more.  Will is very strong on New York State and that is my primary collecting interest.

 

Also as I have for years, I bought this year twice more from a retired Albany dealer.  He is letting go of his collection book by book and can count on me to be interested.

 

My experience is anecdotal but the market in what interests me seems to be solid if not particularly pricey while the opportunities are frequent and appealing.

 

For collectors this is a remarkable moment.


Posted On: 2015-12-20 19:51
User Name: myworthybooks

Very nicely written.

Dan Yardeni


Rare Book Monthly

  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [RUTH, George Herman “Babe” (1895-1948)]. Signed photograph. Circa 1930s. 191 x 248 mm. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HARRISON, Benjamin. Document signed (“Benj Harrison”) as governor of Virginia, certifying the service of Daniel Cumbo, a Black Revolutionary soldier. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: ONE OF THE FIRST PRINTED ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: FIRST PRINTING OF LINCOLN’S IMMORTAL GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HIGHLY IMPORTANT MORMON ARCHIVE. ALLEY, George. Archive of 23 Autograph Letters Signed by Mormon Convert George Alley to His Brother Joseph Alley. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [AVIATION]. [ARMSTRONG, Neil A.] Aviation Hall of Fame Gold Medal MS64 NGC, Awarded to Neil Armstrong in 1979. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: NEWLY DISCOVERED FIRST PRINTING OF "WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE... " FROM THE ONLY NEWSPAPER ACTUALLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN LINCOLN’S SECOND INAUGURAL PROCESSION. $4,000 to $8,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: THE MOST IMPORTANT GEORGE WASHINGTON DOCUMENT IN PRIVATE HANDS; GEORGE WASHINGTON’S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 1775, ONE OF ONLY TWO ORIGINALS. $150,000 to $250,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: A VERY RARE ACCOUNT OF BLACKBEARD’S DEATH AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIRATE ITEMS EXTANT. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: EDISON, Thomas. Patent for Edison’s Improvements on the Electric-Light, No. 219,628. [Washington, D.C.: U.S. Patent Office], 16 September 1879. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [VIETNAM WAR]. The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, Paris, 27 January 1973. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: SONS OF LIBERTY FOUNDER COLONEL BARRÉ ANNOTATED TITLE-PAGE, “WHICH OUGHT TO ROUSE UP BRITISH ATTENTION”. $4,000 to $6,000.
  • Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: [Langland (William)]. The vision of Pierce Plowman, nowe the seconde time imprinted..., Roberte Crowley, 1550. £8,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: [Shakespeare (William)]. [Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies], second folio edition, [by Tho.Cotes, for Robert Allot], [1632]. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Bible, Czech Biblia Bohemica, first complete Bible printed in the Czech vernacular, Prague, August 1488. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Shabthai Tzvi.- Collection of four printed and illustrated broadsides detailing the appearance, rise and fall of the false messiah, Shabthai Tzvi, Augsburg, 1666-67. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Leaf from the Beauvais Missal, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment, [Northern France (perhaps Beauvais or Amiens)], [fourteenth century (c.1310)]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Aubrey (John). [Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme], manuscript in English, Latin and Greek, [c. 1693]. £30,000 to £50,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Poems on Various Occasions, first edition, Harriet Maltby's copy, Newark, Printed by S. & J. Ridge, 1807. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, second impression with dust-jacket, 1937 [but 1938]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Blake (William).- Thornton (Robert John). The Pastorals of Virgil, 2 vol., engraved plates by William Blake, 1821. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: America.- Mount (William J.) & Thomas Page. The English Pilot…, [bound with] The Fourth Book, describing The West Indies Navigation from Hudson's-Bay to the River Amazones, 1721. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Oldfield (Henry Ambrose), Rajman Singh Chitrakar & others. An album of 160 photographs and 13 original artworks, (1833-1919), [c. 1850s-1880s]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Audubon (John James) [and William MacGillivray]. Ornithological Biography…, 5 vol., first edition, presentation copy inscribed by Audubon, Edinburgh, 1831-49 [i.e. 1831-39]. £10,000 to £15,000.

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