Rare Book Monthly

Articles - August - 2011 Issue

A Whale of a Sale

- by Bruce E. McKinney

Whaling Journal [lower right] sold in 40 seconds

The C. H. Booth Library Fair has done it again. A great spirit, plenty of volunteers, an energetic audience and voila you have a success. The mystery is in the elbow grease and good thinking.

In the run-up to the fair the promotional committee put out the word that a great book would be available for a great price to the first person coming through the door who called out “I’ll take it.” So how long did it take to sell this book? Forty seconds or thereabouts.

The Book? A whaling journal – dating to 1833-1836 kept by Second Mate William E. Percival offered for $3,500.

To be first in you had to be first in line. To be first in line you needed to line up the night before. Congratulations to the buyer and congratulations to the C. H. Booth Library Fair Committee.

The future of books is debated but so long as imagination is employed they who love books will materialize, even at 1:00 am to be first in line to buy books and manuscripts. For millions of people books are magic.

Rare Book Monthly

<center>Ketterer Rare Books Auction on May 30

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: Initial A on vellum, Cologne around 1300. Est: €25,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: J. Androuet du Cerceau, Bastiments de France, 1607. Est: €12,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: E. Cerillo, Dipinti murali di Pompei, 1886. Est: €2,500

<center>Ketterer Rare Books Auction on May 30

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: L. de Austria, Compilatio de astrorum scientia, 1489. Est: €9,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: B. Besler, Hortus Eystettensis, around 1750. Est: €50,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: PAN, 1895-1900. Est: €15,000

<center>Ketterer Rare Books Auction on May 30

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: F. Colonna, Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, 1545. Est: €40,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: F. Schiller, Die Räuber, 1781. Est: €12,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: J. Albers, Formulation : Articulation, 1972. Est: €18,000

<center>Ketterer Rare Books Auction on May 30

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: G. B. Ramusio, Delle navigationi e viaggi, 1556-1613. Est: €14,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: M. Wied Neuwied, Reise in das Innere Nord-America, 1839-41. Est: €12,000

Ketterer Rare Books, May 30: E. Paolozzi, Bunk, 1972. Est: €25,000
<center>Sotheby’s The Library of Henry Rogers Broughton, 2nd Baron Fairhaven Part I 18 May 2022

Sotheby’s, May 18: John James Audubon and James Bachman. The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America. New York: J.J. Audubon, 1845-1848. £150,000 to £250,000.

Sotheby’s, May 18: Thomas and William Daniell. Oriental Scenery, London, 1795-1807 [but 1841], 6 parts in 3 volumes, folio. £150,000 to £200,000.

Sotheby’s, May 18: Mark Catesby. The natural history of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands... London, 1731-1743, 2 volumes. £100,000 to £150,000.

Sotheby’s, May 18: Gould and Lear. A monograph of the Ramphastidae, 1854; Illustrations of the family of Psittacidae, 1832. £60,000 to £90,000.
<center>Swann Auction Galleries Graphic Design May 19, 2022

Swann May 19: Adolphe Mouron Cassandre, Triplex, pencil maquette, 1930. $25,000 to $35,000.

Swann May 19: Claude Fayette Brandon, The Chap Book, circa 1895. $3,000 to $4,000.

Swann May 19: Various Artists, a complete set of Das Plakat, set of 10 hardcover volumes, 1912-21. $25,000 to $35,000.

Swann May 19: Javier Gómez Acebo & Máximo Viejo Santamarta, San Sebastian / XI Circuitto Automovilista, 1935. $10,000 to $15,000.

Swann May 19: Ephraim Moses Lilien, Berliner Tageblatt, circa 1899. $12,000 to $18,000.
<center>Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 26th May 2022

Forum, May 26: Birds.- Gould (John). The Birds of Great Britain, 5 vol., first edition, [1862-]1873. £40,000 to £60,000.

Forum, May 26: Canadiana.- Cockburn (Maj. Gen. James Pattison, 1779-1847), After. [Six Landscape of Quebec City and Six Views of Niagara Falls], 2 suites in 1 vol., comprising 12 aquatints, 1833. £30,000 to £40,000.

Forum, May 26: Joyce (James). Ulysses, number 218 of 150 copies on verge d'arches, Paris, Shakespeare & Company, 1922. £15,000 to £20,000.

<center>Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 26th May 2022

Forum, May 26: Rowling (J.K.) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, first paperback edition, signed by the author, 1997. £15,000 to £20,000.

Forum, May 26: Du Maurier (Daphne). Rebecca, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author to her governess, 1938. £12,000 to £18,000.

Forum, May 26: Magna Carta.- An exact copy of King John's Great Charter of 1215, transcribed from the fire damaged but legible manuscript in the Cottonian Library, British Library, J. Pine, 1733. £10,000 to £15,000.

<center>Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 26th May 2022

Forum, May 26: Woolf (Virginia). Mrs Dalloway, first edition, Hogarth Press, 1925. £10,000 to £15,000.

Forum, May 26: Tudor exiles opposed to the Marian regime.- Mary I (Queen of England) Letter signed "Marye the Quene" to Lord Paget, signed at head, titled at head "By the King and Quene", 1556. £8,000 to £10,000.

Forum, May 26: America.- Newfoundland.- Whitbourne (Sir Richard). A discourse and discouery of Nevv-found-land…, second edition, By Felix Kingston, 1622. £6,000 to £8,000.

<center>Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 26th May 2022

Forum, May 26: Cervantès Saavedra (Miguel de). El Ingenioso Hidalgo Do Quixote de la Mancha, 4 vol., Madrid, Por Don Joaquin Ibarra, 1780. £5,000 to £7,000.

Forum, May 26: Stubbs (George). The Anatomy of the Horse, first edition, first issue, Printed by J. Purser, for the Author, 1766. £6,000 to £8,000.

Forum, May 26: Cardiology.- Lower (Richard). Tractatus de Corde item De Motu & Colore Sanguinus et Chyli in cum Transitu, first edition, 1669. £5,000 to £7,000.

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