This month Leslie Hindman Auctioneers is pleased to present a sale of Fine Books and Manuscripts. Taking place in Chicago on August 5th, the auction includes 276 lots of books, maps, manuscripts, and ephemera from a wide range of locales on numerous topics. Americana is a particular strength, and several very significant items are on offer. The following is a brief rundown of said lots.
First editions of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark’s History of the Expedition… do not come to auction every day, and the copy included as lot 3 of Fine Books and Manuscripts also includes the folding map. Wagner-Camp describes the narrative as “the definitive account of the most important exploration of the North American Continent.” Estimated at $50,000 – 70,000, this item would be the centerpiece of many an Americana collection, and is certain to draw worthy attention.
John James Audubon is not a rare appearance at auction in this day and age, but he is most often sold as single engravings. Lot 90 is the first edition octavo edition of The Birds of America… printed in 1839, which added 65 new plates to the double-elephant folio edition making a total of 500 plates. Audubon’s prints, as always, are considered the gold standard of natural history engravings, and this copy is estimated $30,000 – 50,000.
For collectors of American maps, lot 19 may be of interest, being Thomas Hutchins and George Louis Le Rouge’s Partie Occidentale de la Virginie, Pensylvanie, Maryland et Caroline, a proof state double-page engraved map with later hand-coloring depicting the American Midwest between the Great Lakes and the Ohio River, west to the Mississippi. At the time of its publication (1781), this map was the largest and most accurate of the Midwest. It is estimated $8,000 – 12,000.
Coming forward quite a bit from the previous three items, lot 88 is a signed Presidential Proclamation from Harry S. Truman announcing the surrender of Germany at the end of World War II. The document states in part, “"The Allied Armies, through sacrifice and devotion and with God's help have wrung from Germany a final and unconditional surrender. The Western World has been freed of the evil forces which for five years and longer have imprisoned the bodies and broken the lives of millions upon millions of free-born men [...] Now, therefore, I, Harry S. Truman, President of the United States of America, do hereby appoint Sunday, May 13, 1945, to be a day of prayer. I call upon the people of the United States, whatever their faith, to unite in offering joyful thanks to God for the victory we have won and to pray that he will support us to the end of our present struggle and guide us into the ways of peace." This piece of 20th century history is estimated $6,000 – 8,000.
Other items in the sale include autograph items signed by various important historical figures, a large amount of maps and atlases, significant contemporary literature, and books by well-known artists. The sale is well-worth your consideration and the online catalog can be viewed here. The process of bidding can be started here at the Leslie Hindman Auctioneers website user registration, whether it be to bid in-person, over the phone, or online on their website.
The lots included in the slideshow are as follows:
- Lot 3. LEWIS, MERIWETHER AND WILLIAM CLARK. History of the Expedition under the Command of Captains Lewis and Clark, to the Sources of the Missouri .... Philadelphia, 1814. 2 vols. First edition, with original folding map. $50,000-$70,000
- Lot 90. AUDUBON, JOHN JAMES. The Birds of America, from Drawings Made in the United States and Their Territories. NY & Philadelphia, [1839], 1840-1844. 7 vols. First octavo edition. Complete. $30,000-$50,000
- Lot 19. HUTCHINS, THOMAS AND GEORGE LOUIS LE ROUGE. Partie Occidentale de la Virginie, Pensylvanie, Maryland et Caroline.. Paris, 1781. Proof state $8,000-$12,000
- Lot 88. TRUMAN, HARRY S. Signed Presidential Proclamation issued upon the Unconditional Surrender of Germany. Washington, D.C., May 8, 1945. $6,000-$8,000
- Lot 15. The American Military Pocket Atlas; Being an approved Collection of Correct Maps, both General and Particular, of The British Colonies... London, [1776] First edition, complete with six maps. $4,000-$6,000
- Lot 124. BRACCIOLINI, POGGIO. Poggii Florentini Oratoris Clarissimi ... Argentinae, 1513. 2 parts in one. $3,000-$5,000
- Lot 85. HOOVER, HERBERT. Autographed book signed by Hoover and over 190 members of his administration, 1929-1933. 48pp. $3,000-$5,000
- Lot 252. (BAYNTUN) CARROLL, LEWIS. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking-Glass. London, 1872. 2 vols. Mixed issues, bound by Bayntun.$3,000-$5,000
- Lot 78. CURRIER AND IVES. A Midnight Race on the Mississippi. New York, 1860. Large folio lithograph, hand-colored. $3,000-$5,000
- Lot 268. (THE BEATLES) Autographed note card signed in pen by all four members. Framed and matted with repro photo. $3,000-$5,000
