Exceptional catalogues: <br>Livres Anciens and Livres Precieux
- by Bruce E. McKinney
Rodolphe Chamonal: A catalogue of collecting ambitions.
I also purchased from the Clavreuils a copy of the Calendrier Francais Pour L'Annee 1781 that has the following imprint:
A Newport
De L'Imprimerie Royale de l'Efcadre, pres le Parc de la Marine
During the American Revolution France came in on the colonists' side. A French fleet was anchored off of Newport, Rhode Island in 1781 and this is an example of a Calendrier Francais printed on board there.
Recently both firms issued catalogues. These are not the kind of catalogues you have often seen. These are hard bound and in color. In the case of Chamonal there is a printer's limitation: "Tire a petit nombre." If you receive this catalogue you are deemed serious about books. There are 164 items from which to choose. For the Chavreuils no expense has been spared to present material of utmost quality and rarity in their catalogue: Livres Precieux. Sixty items are offered for five million five hundred thousand dollars +/- . This is serious material indeed. And yes the paper is thick and tinted, the images are in color, the typography is exceptional and the design is flawless. The Chamonal catalogue, Livres Anciens, can be requested from them by email at chamonal2@wanadoo.fr. The Chavreuil's catalogue is available here in its entirety.
Chamonal is offering an interesting assortment of five centuries of printing. A few have already been sold and are marked Vendu while others are so expensive that the proprietor requires that you directly inquire for the price.
Here are a few examples:
No. 22 There is a copy of Voyage en Californie... by Chappe D'Auteroche [Jean-Baptiste]. It is the very rare first edition described as a "tres agreeable exemplaire, dans une reliure allemande de l'epoque." [a fine German binding of the period] 10,000 euros.
No. 32 For those who collect all things California, west coast or Pacific region here is something to think about. Duflot de Mofras authored the three volume Exploration du Territoire De L'Oregon that was issued in 1844. Here is a grace note to accompany this important set.
[Duflot de Mofras]. Album Amicorum de Emilia de Botella. This elegant volume includes keepsakes from various accomplished men of the period [1843-1848] including an excerpt from Exploration du Territoire in Duflot de Mofras' own hand. 18,500 euros
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
