Exceptional catalogues: <br>Livres Anciens and Livres Precieux
- by Bruce E. McKinney
Many fine book dealers are located near Librairie Thomas-Scheler.
Those beginning Florida collections will be interested in the Laudonniere's 1586 L'Histoire notable de la Floride situee es Indes Occidentales...[Item no. 23] You might as well start at the top. Of the early Florida books this one comes up very occasionally. Here is what the Servies have to say about this title:
"A compilation of the narratives of four different French expeditions: Ribaut's voyage in 1562, Laudonniere's in 1564, Ribaut's second voyage in 1565, and that of Gourges in 1567. The first three are described by letters of Laudonniere; the last is an anonymous account, perhaps by Basanier, the editor of the collection. The dedication to Sir Walter Raleigh (containing of the earliest mentions of Virginia in any printed book) is dated Paris, March 1st, 1586...." No. 52 in A Bibliography of Florida by James A and Lana D. Servies. Vol. 1. This important, and very rare book, is 100,000 euros.
For those who collect the early circumnavigations of the globe here is the second Dutch success at what was then a very hazardous enterprise: Speculum Oriententalisque Indiae navigationum... by Joris van Spilbergen, Leyde, 1619 [lot 30]. This exploration accomplished the discovery of a passage at the tip of South America that was named Le Maire in honor of another Dutch explorer. This copy is 45,000 euros.
And then there are two copies of Champlain's Les Voyages de la Nouvelle France occidentale,...one printed in 1632 and the other in 1640. These books contain important maps. Collectors of the New World and in particular Canada can count these books as highly important. They are each priced at 280,000 euros.
Of course there is more. There are 60 lots in all.
Such catalogues offer the opportunity to acquire specific examples of important and collectible books that now become forever linked to these exceptional catalogue presentations. Dealer provenance matters. In the years ahead, assuming the dealer history is carefully maintained, these copies will fetch premiums to whatever market pricing then prevails.
Congratulations to both firms and thank you to the Clavreuil family for permitting us to add this catalogue to the AED.
Here is the search box to the entire Chavreuil catalogue.
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.