• 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
  • 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.

Auction Update Review

39 Auctions Archived, 23 Upcoming This Week

 For the week ended Saturday May 2nd 39 sales were archived to the RBH database; 17 denominated in euros, 4 in British pounds, 1 in Mexican pesos, and 17 in US dollars.  Turnover was $14,336,800 as 13,814 lots were offered and 9,531 sold for a 69% success rate.  To paraphrase Mae West, it was an up and down week.

4 auctions saw their total proceeds reach a million dollars: 

Sothebys. Travel, Atlases, Maps and Natural History on April 30th: $3,197,299
Swann Galleries. Old Master Through Modern Prints on April 29th: $3,168,880
Christies. Books and Manuscripts on April 27th: $1,298,784
Doyle New York. Prints and Multiples on April 28th: $1,008,116

The Arader Galleries Top 25 Lots Reported This Past Week.
  1. Sothebys MANUSCRIPT FLORILEGIUM. on April 30th Actual price: USD $636,020.
  2. Bonhams Winter Sunrise, Sierra Nevada from Lone Pine, California on April 28th Actual price: USD $179,000.
  3. Sothebys SNOWY OWL, STRIX NYCTIA (PLATE CXXI) on April 30th Actual price: USD $163,625.
  4. Sothebys A MONOGRAPH OF TROCHILIDAE OR FAMILY OF HUMMING BIRDS. on April 30th Actual price: USD $144,375.
  5. Swann Galleries Yellow House, Lannion on April 29th Actual price: USD $125,000. ARader Auction Galleries
  6. Swann Galleries Ross Winans on April 29th Actual price: USD $118,750.
  7. Galerie Bassenge Widmungsexemplar für Malwida von Meysenbug Nietzsche, Friedrich. on April 17th Actual price: USD $117,720.
  8. Bonhams Maroon Bells, near Aspen Colorado on April 28th Actual price: USD $112,500.
  9. Sothebys THREE WATERCOLOURS OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE. on April 30th Actual price: USD $105,875.
  10. Swann Galleries Nocturne: Palaces on April 29th Actual price: USD $100,000.
  11. Sothebys MONUMENTI DELL'EGITTO E DELLA NUBIA. on April 30th Actual price: USD $96,250.
  12. Galerie Bassenge HANDSCHRIFTEN UND EINZELBLÄTTER Biblia latina vulgata. on April 16th Actual price: USD $94,176.
  13. Christies Astronomique discours, par Jaques Bassantin Escossois. on April 27th Actual price: USD $94,050.
  14. Christies In quattuor Aristotilis Metheororum libros Expositio. on April 27th Actual price: USD $94,050.
  15. Swann Galleries Christ Carrying the Cross: the Large Plate on April 29th Actual price: USD $93,750.
  16. Sothebys THE GRETE HERBALL THE GRETE HERBALL WHICH GEVETH PARFYT KNOWLEGE AND UNDERSTANDYNG OF ALL MANER OF HERBES... on April 30th Actual price: USD $86,625.
  17. Sothebys PROPERTY OF A EUROPEAN PRIVATE COLLECTOR EDWARDS, ST JULIAN HUGH (ATTRIBUTED TO), AND OTHERS? ALBUM OF 60 PHOTOGRAPHS OF AMOY AND VICINITY. on April 30th Actual price: USD $77,000.
  18. Sothebys A COLLECTION OF OVER 600 WATERCOLOUR DRAWINGS AND SKETCHES OF KENT CHURCHES, CASTLES, AND MONUMENTS, TOGETHER WITH 5 POCKET SKETCHBOOKS. on April 30th Actual price: USD $77,000.
  19. Sothebys THE BIRDS OF GREAT BRITAIN. on April 30th Actual price: USD $77,000.
  20. Sothebys CHINA. on April 30th Actual price: USD $73,150.
  21. Sothebys CORRECTED MANUSCRIPT OF "LES MEMOIRES DU GENERAL COMTE DE HARRSCH...COMMANDANT EN CHEF POUR LA MAJESTÉ IMPLE ET CATHOLE A FRIBOURG EN BRISGAU & C, ESCRITS DEPUIS SA NAISSANCE, IUSQU'EN M.DCC.XIII". on April 30th Actual price: USD $73,150.
  22. Bloomsbury Auctions Map of Singapore Town, shewing building allotments & registered numbers of crown leases on April 30th Actual price: USD $72,565.
  23. Christies Les Jeux de la poupée. Illustrés de textes par Paul Éluard. on April 27th Actual price: USD $63,690.
  24. Swann Galleries Woolworth Building (The Dance) on April 29th Actual price: USD $62,500.
  25. Sothebys A DESCRIPTIVE ALBUM OF PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE COUNTRY AND PEOPLE OF SARAWAK. on April 30th Actual price: USD $61,600.


5 auctions saw total sales exceed 100% of the high estimates of all lots offered in the sale:

Neret Minet and Tessier. Prints on April 22nd: 158.35%
Galerie Bassenge. Literature of the 17th - 19th Century on April 17th: 122.15%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 6) on April 21st: 121.87%
Doyle New York. Prints and Multiples on April 28th: 118.32%
Bloomsbury Auctions. Books and Works on Paper on April 30th: 102.29%

11 sales saw at least 80% of their lots sell:

Bloomsbury Auctions. Interiors: Day 1 - Prints on April 28th: 100.00%
Heritage Auctions. Comics - Internet bidstart 4/19 on April 26th: 99.35%
Heritage Auctions. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 4/19 on April 26th: 97.25%
Neret Minet and Tessier. Prints on April 22nd: 94.74%
Clars Auction Gallery. Prints and Multiples on April 26th: 91.67%
Doyle New York. Prints and Multiples on April 28th: 90.29%
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Property from the Oprah Winfrey Collection on April 25th: 90.00%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 2) on April 11th: 89.86%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 6) on April 21st: 86.62%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 4) on April 18th: 82.18%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 1) on April 10th: 80.67%

39 total sales reported this week:

Sothebys. Travel, Atlases, Maps and Natural History on April 30th: 69.77%
PIASA. Limited Editions on April 29th: 40.33%
ALDE. Binders, Books on April 29th: 70.03%
Artcurial. Sailing - Posters, ephemera on April 29th: 33.33%
Heritage Auctions. Rare Books - Internet bidstart 4/23 on April 30th: 77.67%
Kolbe and Fanning Numismatic Booksellers. Numismatic Books on April 25th: 31.12%
Doyle New York. Prints and Multiples on April 28th: 90.29%
Bloomsbury Auctions. Books and Works on Paper on April 30th: 70.88%
Bloomsbury Auctions. Interiors: Day 1 - Prints on April 28th: 100.00%
Swann Galleries. Old Master Through Modern Prints on April 29th: 71.74%
Bonhams. The World War II 70th Anniversary Sale on April 29th: 33.71%
Bonhams. Photographs on April 28th: 59.81%
Bruun Rasmussen. Prints on April 28th: 68.18%
Clars Auction Gallery. Prints and Multiples on April 26th: 91.67%
AntiquarianAuctions.com. Books - Internet Bidstart 4/16 on April 23rd: 45.22%
Romantic Agony Book and Print Auctions. Books and Prints on April 25th: 66.19%
Christies. Around the World on April 28th: 46.88%
Christies. Books and Manuscripts on April 27th: 59.70%
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Property from the Oprah Winfrey Collection on April 25th: 90.00%
Neret Minet and Tessier. Militaria on April 24th: 65.43%
Neret Minet and Tessier. Prints on April 22nd: 94.74%
Auctionata. Prints and Editions on April 24th: 38.36%
Auctionata. Photography and Prints on April 24th: 36.88%
Heritage Auctions. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 4/19 on April 26th: 97.25%
Heritage Auctions. Comics - Internet bidstart 4/19 on April 26th: 99.35%
OSENAT. The Empire at Fontainebleau on April 12th: 62.77%
Morton Casa de Subastas. Books and Antiquarian Documents on April 23rd: 47.22%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 6) on April 21st: 86.62%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 5) on April 20th: 75.55%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 4) on April 18th: 82.18%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 3) on April 17th: 77.03%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 1) on April 10th: 80.67%
Holabird Kagin Americana. Western Prospects: Discovering Americana & Numismatics (session 2) on April 11th: 89.86%
Galerie Bassenge. Modern Literature on April 18th: 61.62%
Galerie Bassenge. Autographs on April 17th: 65.50%
Galerie Bassenge. Literature of the 17th - 19th Century on April 17th: 58.10%
Galerie Bassenge. Rare Prints on April 16th: 61.26%
Galerie Bassenge. Valuable Books on April 16th: 46.78%
ALDE. LIBRARY OF AMADEO DELAUNET Y ESNAOLA II on April 18th: 65.39%

For the week ahead 23 sales are scheduled:

Mon. May. 4th
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Doodle for Hunger Illustration Art Auction Benefiting St. Francis Food Pantries and Shelter. 43 lots
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Old Master Prints. 13 lots

Tue. May. 5th
Tajan. Paris. Photographs. 170 lots
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Books. 206 lots
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Modern and Contemporary Prints. 90 lots

Wed. May. 6th
Heritage Auctions. Beverly Hills. Illustration Art. 519 lots
Aguttes. Neuilly-sur-Seine . Old Books and Paper. 437 lots
Tajan. Paris. Rive Gauche. 27 lots
Lyon and Turnbull. Edinburgh. Rare Books, Manuscripts, Maps and Photographs. 357 lots

Thu. May. 7th
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Chicago. Fine Books and Manuscripts. 396 lots
Swann Galleries. New York. Modernist Posters. 309 lots
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Rare Books - Internet bidstart 4/30. 267 lots
Rago Arts and Auctions. Lambertville. Fine Art and Post War Contemporary. 244 lots

Fri. May. 8th
Lancaster Mennonite Historical Society. Lancaster. Rare and Used Books. 502 lots
Keys Fine Arts Auctioneers. Norwich. Pictures and Prints. 109 lots

Sat. May. 9th
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Americana, Political. 444 lots
Jeschke van vliet Buch und Kunstauktionen GmbH. Berlin-Schoneberg. Rare Books, Prints and Photographs. 630 lots
Mid Hudson Auction Galleries. Cornwall-on-Hudson, . Seymour Stein Antique Advertisements. 899 lots
Michaans Auctions. Alameda, CA . Estate Sale - Books and Prints. 62 lots

Sun. May. 10th
Mid Hudson Auction Galleries. Cornwall-on-Hudson, . Seymour Stein Collection: Part 3.
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Comics - Internet bidstart 1/115/3.
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 5/3.

Bruce McKinney

RBH and AE

  • 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