Auction Update Review

41 Auctions Archived, 21 Upcoming

For the week ending Saturday June 22nd 41 auctions were archived to the AED; 20 in US dollars, 1 in Mexican pesos, 6 in British pounds, and 14 in euros.  Turnover was $25,773,487 as 11,872 lots were offered and 8,711 sold for a 73% success rate.

 

Six sales reached the million-dollar level:

 

Sothebys.  Collection Raoul Simonsen on June 19th:  $5,169,957

Christies.  Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts on June 21st:  $4,103,750

Christies.  The Collection of Arthur & Charlotte Vershbow Part Three:  The Baroque and Rococo on June 20th:  $3,452,439

Bonhams.  Books on June 19th:  $2,641,263

John Innis Auctioneers.  Presidential Auction on February 17th:  $1,203,388

Christies.  Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts on June 18th:  $1,094,700

 

Thirteen sales saw their total proceeds exceed 100% of the total of the high estimates of all lots offered:

 

RR Auction.  Marvels of Modern Music, online bidding ended February 21st:  589%

Dorotheum.  Books and Decorative Prints on June 20th:  211%

Audap & Mirabuad.  Autographs and Manuscripts, Ancient and Modern Books on June 17th:  185%

Sothebys.  Collection Raoul Simonsen on June 19th:  183%

Stair Auctioneers.  The Photograph Collection of Jan Cowles on February 16th:  181%

John McInnis Auctioneers on February 17th:  176%

Bonhams.  Books on June 19th:  158%

Henri Godts Books & Prints Auctions on June 18th:  148%

Aguttes.  Books, Posters, Ancient Paper on June 12th:  119%

Northeast Auctions.  Historical Americana on May 25th:  118%

Christies.  Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts on June 18th:  116%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Printed  Books, Maps and Documents on June 19th:  113%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Children’s Illustrated Books, etc. on June 20th:  102%

 

Twenty-two auctions saw at least 80% of their lots sell:

 

Clars Auction Gallery.  Books on June 16th:  100%

National Book Auctions.  Books and Ephemera – Circus, Maps, Hunting and Fishing, West, etc.  on May 12th:  100%

National Book Auctions.  Books and Ephemera – Earhart, Antique, History, etc. on June 2nd:  100%

Stair Auctioneers & Appraisers.  The Photograph Collection of Jan Cowles:  100%

Stair Auctioneers & Appraisers.  Works on Paper on February 2nd:  98%

Aspire Auctions.  Works on Paper – internet bidding ended February 14th:  97%

Heritage Auctions [HA.com].  Rare Books internet bidding ended June 20th:  96%

Sothebys.  Collection Raoul Simonsen on June 19th:  93%

Heritage Auctions [HA.com].  Rare Books internet bidding ended June 13th:  92%

Robert A. Siegel Galleries.  The Alyeska Collection of Pony Express Mail on March 20th:  91%

Clars Auction Gallery.  Prints, Photographs on June 15th:  89%

Dorotheum.  Books and Decorative Prints on June 20th:  88% 

Rupert Toovey and Co..  Prints on June 12th:  87%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Children’s Illustrated Books on June 20th:  86%

Dominic Winter Book Auctions.  Printed Books, Maps and Documents on June 19th:  84%

Bruun Rasmussen.  Modern Prints on June 18th:  84%

Northeast Auctions.  Historical Americana on May 25th:  83%

Christies.  Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts including Americana on June 21st:  82%

Bloomsbury Auctions.  Bibliophile Sale on June 19th:  81%

Henri Godts Books & Prints Auctions.  Books on June 18th:  81%

Bonhams.  Books on June 19th:  81%

PBA Galleries.  Fine Literature – Illustrated & Children’s Books – Oz:  The Collection of Robert A. Massey on June 13th:  80%

 

For the week ahead 21 sales are scheduled:

Mon. June 24th Alde.  Ancient and of the 19th Century Books [21426].  251 lots

Tues.  June 25th Alde.  Modern Illustrated Books [21425].  352 lots
Artcurial Briest-Le Fur-Poulain-F. Tajan.  Prints [21844].  135 lots
Bonhams.  Books [20698].  395 lots
Bonhams.  Fine Books and Manuscripts [20981].
Bonhams.  Northwest America and the Arctic [21309]

Wed.  June 26th Gary's Auctioneers.  Prints [68].
Waverly Auctions.  Prints [33864]
Bonhams.  Fine  Books and Manuscripts [20981].  427 lots
Bonhams.  Russian Literature and Works on Paper [21421].  294 lots.

Thurs. June 27th Adams Amsterdam.  Modern Art and Literature:  Jan Cremer [62713].  743 lots
Bloomsbury Auctions.  Modern and Contemporary Prints [36059].  254 lots
Eldred's.  Prints [779].  43 lots
Heritage Auctions [HA.com].  Rare Books internet bidding ending today [201326].  206 lots
PBA Galleries.  Fine & Rare Books [509].  252 lots
Swann Galleries.  Discovery [2320].  514 lots
Tajan.  Ancient and Modern Prints [22207].  329 lots

Fri. June 28th Aguttes.  Books [21541].  10 lots
Rossini.  Prints [22287].

Sat. June 29th Alain & Evelyne Morel de Westgaver.  Books [38].  594 lots

Sun.  June 30th Bonhams.  Prints, Books [20985].  154 lots

The auction field has been so busy that a mere 21 sales for the week upcoming almost seems slow.  But think again.  Twenty-one times 52 is well over a thousand, that is a thousand book, manuscript, map and ephemera auctions in a single year.  It remains busy, even as we head into summer.

Bruce McKinney
AE

 

  • 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.
  • 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