• Bonhams: FREDERICK DOUGLASS RETURNS TO AMERICA A FREE MAN. Sold for $353,175.
    Bonhams: TORTILLA FLAT INSCRIBED TO STEINBECK'S LITTLE SISTER, MARY. Sold for $57,600.
    Bonhams: A FRAGMENT OF THE ORIGINAL DRAFT OF OF MICE AND MEN, EATEN BY THE DOG. Sold for $12,800.
    Bonhams: KEPLER INVESTIGATES PLANETARY MOTION. Sold for $1,008,375.
    Bonhams: AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT DRAFT LEAF FROM DARWIN'S DESCENT OF MAN, SIGNED BY DARWIN AT THE FOOT. Sold for $239,775.
    Bonhams: AUDOBON, JOHN JAMES. 1785-1851. THE BIRDS OF AMERICA. Sold for $32,000.
    Bonhams: FRANKLIN, BENJAMIN (1706-1790). AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED. Sold for $38,175.
    Bonhams: MILNE, A.A. (1882-1956). BOXED SET OF 4 CHILDREN'S BOOKS. Sold for $20,480.
  • Sotheby’s
    Important Modern Literature from the Library of an American Filmmaker
    8 December 2023
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 8: Kerouac, Jack. Typescript scroll of The Dharma Bums. Typed by Kerouac in Orlando, Florida, 1957, published by Viking in 1958. 300,000 - 500,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 8: Hemingway, Ernest. The autograph manuscript of "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber." [Key West, finished April 1936]. 300,000 - 500,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 8: Miller, Henry. Typescript of The Last Book, a working title for Tropic of Cancer, written circa 1931–1932. 100,000 - 150,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 8: Ruscha, Ed. Twentysix Gasoline Stations, with a lengthy inscription to Joe Goode. 40,000 - 60,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Dec. 8: Hemingway, Ernest. in our time, first edition of Hemingway’s second book. 30,000 - 50,000 USD
  • Forum Auctions
    Online Sale
    Books and Works on Paper
    Ending 13th December 2023
    Forum, Dec. 13: Ackermann (Rudolph) [Views of Country Seats...], 146 hand-coloured aquatints from 'Repository of Arts’. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum, Dec. 13: Campbell (Colen) & others. Vitruvius Britannicus, or The British Architect..., 5 vol., [1751-1819]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum, Dec. 13: Austen (Jane). The Novels, 12 vol., Edinburgh, John Grant, 1911. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum, Dec. 13: Murder broadside.- Horrid and barbarous murder of a female by cutting off her head, arms, and legs,… £200 to £300.
  • Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 2:
    John Ford Clymer, U.S. Troops' Triumphant Return to New York Harbor, oil on canvas, circa 1944.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 44:
    Edward Gorey, Illustration of cover and spine for Fonthill, a Comedy by Aubrey Menen, pen and ink, 1973.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 50:
    Harrison Cady, frontispiece for Buster Bear's Twins by Thornton W. Burgess, watercolor and ink, 1921.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 54:
    Ludwig Bemelmans, Pepito, portrait of Pepito from the Madeline book series, mixed media.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 79:
    Gluyas Williams, Fellow Citizens Observation Platform, pen and ink, cartoon published in The New Yorker, March 11, 1933.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 86:
    Thomas Nast, Victory, – for the moment, political cartoon, pen and ink, 1884.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 91:
    Mischa Richter, Lot of 10 cartoons for Field Publications, ink and pencil, circa 1940.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 111:
    Arthur Getz, Sledding In Central Park, casein tempera on canvas, cover of The New Yorker, February 26, 1955.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 124:
    Richard Erdoes, Map of Boston, illustration for unknown children's magazine, gouache on board, circa 1960.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 155:
    Robert Fawcett, The old man looked him over carefully, gouache on board, published in The Saturday Evening Post, June 9, 1945.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 170:
    Violet Oakley, Portrait of Woodrow Wilson, charcoal and pastel, circa 1918.
    Swannm Dec. 14: Lot 188:
    Robert J. Wildhack, Scribner's for March, 1907, mixed media.

Rare Book Monthly

Articles - March - 2004 Issue

Abe Increases Rates;<br>Alibris is Going Public.<br>What&#146;s Next for the Book Sites?

Making sense? Abe will be collecting three more cents per dollar on sales for a total of eight.


By Michael Stillman

Two significant announcements were made this past month concerning the online bookselling sites. The one which garnered the most attention came from Abebooks, which announced it was raising the commissions it charges on sales by 3%. Formerly at 5%, the new charge is 8% (plus a monthly listing fee based on the number of books the seller posts).

The reaction from booksellers was fast and predictable. No one likes their costs to rise. While Abe may be a bargain compared to Alibris or Amazon, with commissions of 20% and 15% (but without posting fees), booksellers were quick to point out that this represents a 60% increase. After all, it was not that long ago that Abe charged no commissions at all, only the flat, not very expensive monthly listing fees.

The message boards quickly lit up with complaints, anger, and threats to leave Abe. Probably few will follow through. Unless they have an alternative, anyone doing a substantial business on Abe will only hurt themselves by leaving. Those not doing a substantial business don’t make much difference to Abe anyway. The short-term effect will probably be minimal. The more interesting question is what will the long-term effect be. The internet turned the staid old business of bookselling on its head a few years ago. Now the internet bookselling business is in the throws of major changes itself. Who will emerge as winners and losers is as yet unknown. Abe is in a pitched battle with some powerful foes. It is the leader, the biggest fish in its pond, but it is swimming with sharks. Some of those sharks are very large, and a few are killer sharks. They will have to be very good in the years ahead to retain their leadership. This is just one step in preparing for the future. Only time will tell whether it was the right step or a misstep.

This is a point booksellers need to remember. Abe is a business in a very competitive world. They need to do what is best for themselves. Booksellers may not like increased costs. The book collecting community may not like it either. Eventually, costs get passed on, and increased commissions for middlemen ultimately hurt both those who buy and those who sell. Nevertheless, Abe must act in its own self-interest. The only question is whether this move is in its best interests. Only from hindsight will we be able to answer this question.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Roberts (David) & Croly (George). The Holy Land, Syria, Idumae, Arabia, Egypt and Nubia. Lond. 1842 - 1843 [-49]. First Edn. €10,000 to €15,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Incunabula: O'Fihily (Maurice). Duns Scotus Joannes: O'Fihely, Maurice Abp… Venice, 20th November 1497. €8,000 to €12,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: An important file of documents with provenance to G.A. Newsom, manager of the Jacob’s Factory in Dublin, occupied by insurgents during Easter Week 1916. €6,000 to €9,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: WILDE (Oscar), 1854-1900, playwright, aesthete and wit. A lock of Wilde’s Hair, presented by his son to the distinguished Irish actor Mícheál MacLiammóir. €6,000 to €8,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Heaney (Seamus). Bog Poems, London, 1975. Special Limited Edition, No. 33 of 150 Copies, Signed by Author. Illus. by Barrie Cooke. €4,000 to €6,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Binding: Burke, Thomas O.P. (de Burgo). Hibernia Dominicana, Sive Historia Provinciae Hiberniae Ordinis Praedicatorum, ... 1762. First Edition. €4,000 to €6,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: COLLINS, Michael. An important TL, 29 July 1922, addressed to GOVERNMENT on ‘suggested Proclamation warning all concerned that troops have orders to shoot prisoners found sniping, ambushing etc.’. €3,000 to €4,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Scott Fitzgerald (F.) The Great Gatsby, New York (Charles Scribner's Sons) 1925, First Edn. €2,000 to €3,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Yeats (W.B.) The Poems of W.B. Yeats, 2 vols. Lond. (MacMillan & Co.) 1949. Limited Edition, No. 46 of 375 Copies Only, Signed by W.B. Yeats. €1,500 to €2,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Miller (William) Publisher. The Costume of the Russian Empire, Description in English and French, Lg. folio London (S. Gosnell) 1803. First Edn. €1,000 to €1,500.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Miller (William) Publisher. The Costume of Turkey, Illustrated by a Series of Engravings. Lg. folio Lond.(T. Bensley) 1802. First Edn. €800 to €1,200.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Dec. 12-13: Mason (Geo. Henry). The Costume of China, Illustrated with Sixty Engravings. Lg. folio London (for W. Miller) 1800. First Edn. €1,400 to €1,800
  • Dominic Winter Auctioneers
    December 13/14
    Printed Books, Maps & Original Art, Modern First Editions & Illustrated Books
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Fleming (Ian). Dr. No, 1958; You Only Live Twice, 1964, 1st editions, presentation copies. £20,000-30,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Doyle (Arthur Conan). The Sign of Four, 1st edition, 1890. £5,000-8,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Huxley (Aldous). Brave New World, 1st edition, London: Chatto & Windus, 1932. £3,000-5,000
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers
    December 13/14
    Printed Books, Maps & Original Art, Modern First Editions & Illustrated Books
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Stenbock (Eric Stanislaus). The Shadow of Death, 1st edition, 1893. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Tolkien (J. R. R.). The Lord of the Rings, 1st one volume edition, signed, 1968. £3,000-5,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Orwell (George). Animal Farm, 1st edition, London: Secker & Warburg, 1945. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers
    December 13/14
    Printed Books, Maps & Original Art, Modern First Editions & Illustrated Books
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Cunard (Nancy, editor). Negro, Anthology made by Nancy Cunard, 1st edition, 1934. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Table Game. [The Little Artist Magic Painter, Austria], circa 1775. £1,000-1,500
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Kirnig (Paul, 1891-1955). Austria, Vienna: Christophe Reisser's Söhne, c. 1930. £700-1,000
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers
    December 13/14
    Printed Books, Maps & Original Art, Modern First Editions & Illustrated Books
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: A collection of letters including from T. S. Eliot, Siegfried Sassoon, Bertrand Russell, Aldous Huxley et al, from the Lady Ottoline Morrell collection. £700-1,000.
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: The Gentleman's Magazine, or Monthly Intelligencer. 175 volumes, 1731-1844. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter, Dec. 13/14: Mont Blanc peepshow. Mr Albert Smith's Ascent of Mont Blanc in Miniature, 1854. £1,500-2,000
  • CHRISTIE’S
    Valuable Books and Manuscripts
    London auction
    13 December
    Find out more
    Christie’s, Explore now
    TREW, Christoph Jacob (1695–1769). Plantae Selectae quarum imagines ad exemplaria naturalia Londini in hortus curiosorum. [Nuremberg: 1750–1773]. £30,000–40,000
    Christie’s, Explore now
    VERBIEST, Ferdinand (1623–88). Liber Organicus Astronomiae Europaeae apud Sinas restituate. [Beijing: Board of Astronomy, 1674]. £250,000–350,000
    Christie’s, Explore now
    PROPERTY FROM THE COLLECTION OF ALICE & NIKOLAUS HARNONCOURT. Master of Jean Rolin (active 1445–65). Book of Hours, use of Paris, in Latin and French, [Paris, c.1450–1460]. £120,000–180,000
    Christie’s, Explore now
    A SILVER MICROSCOPE. Probably by Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723), c.1700. £150,000–250,000
    Christie’s, Explore now
    AN ENGLISH HORARY QUADRANT
    C.1311. £100,000–150,000

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