The homepage of Old World Auctions' brand new website
Many of you have been members of Rare Book Hub for years now, and over that time, you have surely witnessed the site change and evolve. But we are certainly not the only business in the industry innovating and undergoing redesigns! Old World Auctions, the online-only auction house specializing in maps and cartography and run by Eliane and Jon Dotson, has just released a brand new iteration of their website and auction platform. I had a chance to catch up with Eliane on the phone this past month, and she walked me through some of the biggest changes they’ve made.
Old World Auctions’ previous website was built in the 1990s, so to say it was due for an overhaul is a major understatement. For Eliane, the age of the site was felt most in its lack of flexibility to add features or to fix things when inevitable bugs cropped up, but her customers had different issues with the original site. So, two years ago, the Dotsons surveyed their members asking for feedback, and with the new site’s deployment, buyers and sellers at Old World have been heard. Before I go into detail about what’s changed though, I should mention that some things remain the same. Their auctions still operate in the same manner, with an online catalog open for bidding for one to two weeks before auctions close at 10pm eastern time. Browsing and searching auctions, adding items to a Watch List, and a Bid Status List have all been carried over as well (though they’ve also been updated and overhauled). Existing login details have also not changed.
The most striking difference you’ll immediately notice when going to oldworldauctions.com is the aesthetic change. The site is modern, with a large and eye-catching slideshow of highlight lots from the current or most recently past auction. This works particularly well because of Old World’s map-centric offerings that are inherently visual. Going past the initial impression, the site has been vastly decluttered. Clear links for the company’s newsletter, registering to bid, and consigning material present themselves on the homepage, while links related to auctions and the user’s account are kept in dropdown menus accessible in the top right corner.
A wealth of new features has been added to the site, and this is a direct response to member feedback. Global keyword and advanced searches of both the current auction and past auction archive are now available. Eliane told me that the motivation for this, especially in providing a transparent and searchable auction archive, stems from the fact that “our goal is always to be as open and honest as possible to build trust with our customers.” Over sixty thousand previously auctioned lots are searchable going back to 1998, with estimates, prices, and images included for each. As an employee of a service that prides itself on providing transparency to all elements of the rare book field, I believe this is a great move for the industry.
The Bid Status List that existed on the old site remains, but it has been updated to provide real-time data and a live count-down clock for individual lots is now present. Color coding has also been added as clear indicators of status, whether above or below the reserve, or simply outbid. Members’ invoice histories are also now easily accessible back to 1999. And finally, the site is mobile friendly!
As someone who periodically handles tech support requests for Rare Book Hub, I am keenly aware that when websites undergo major change, there can be a bit of a learning curve. Old World Auctions knows this too, and they’ve created a YouTube channel with several information videos on important subjects: How to Bid, Managing a Watch List, and Bidding the During the 10-Minute Rule. If you have bid on their auctions in the past, or plan to in the future, I recommend watching their videos here. They total less than 15 minutes combined.
Website development and evolution is a process, and Old World Auctions is not done. In the coming months, more features will be added to the new site:
Additional search functionality, including searching within a price range, condition range, or date range (for the past auction archive)
Additional browse functionality to allow you to select how many lots are visible on a page at one time (currently the maximum is 50 per page)
Adding over 80,000 high-resolution images to the past auction archive
Old World Auctions’ next auction is scheduled to begin May 23rd and end June 6th. Their most recent sale ended March 28th, but they are currently conducting a post-auction sale of unsold items for reserve prices through April 4th.
Sotheby’s Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone 25 June – July 7
Sotheby’s, July 7: Ludwig van Beethoven. Autograph sketches for the overture "Die Weihe des Hauses", op.124, [1822], UNPUBLISHED. £150,000 to £200,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice, 1813, first edition, 3 volumes, contemporary half calf. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Walt Whitman. Leaves of Grass, Brooklyn, 1855, first edition, first issue, original green cloth, the Doheny copy. £50,000 to £70,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: Binding—Sangorski & Sutcliffe—Omar Khayyam. Rubaiyat, London, 1872, third edition, in a magnificent jewelled Peacock binding. £15,000 to £20,000.
Sotheby’s, July 7: George Eliot. Middlemarch, Edinburgh and London, 1871, first edition in the original parts. £20,000 to £30,000.
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Hassall (Joan) A large collection of over 300 original woodblocks of engravings for various books, v.d., with Hassall's engraver's glass water-globe (Qty) - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Eragny Press.- [Bradley (Katherine Harris) & Edith Emma Cooper], "Michael Field." Whym Chow, Flame of Love, one of only 27 copies, inscribed by Bradley, the rarest book from the press, 1914. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: [Moore (Thomas Sturge)] [Wood Engravings], 71 wood-engravings printed by David Chambers from the original blocks, the only set on Japanese Hosho paper, from an edition of 5 sets, [1970]. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: La Fontaine (Jean de) Contes et Nouvelles en vers, 2 vol., engraved plates after Eisen, fine early 19th century blue morocco, gilt, by Bradel l'ainé, Amsterdam [Paris], 1762. - Est. £2,000-3,000
Forum, July 9: Erotica.- Prostitution.- Pretty Women of Paris (The); Their Names and Addresses, Qualities and Faults..., [Paris], privately printed at the Press of the Prefecture de Police, 1883. - Est. £3,000-4,000
Forum, July 9: Vale Press.- Ricketts (Charles) & Lucien Pissarro. De la Typographie et de l'Harmonie de la Page Imprimée…, [one of 216 copies], bound in dark blue morocco tooled in gilt, by Sarah T.Prideaux, 1898. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Martin (John) Illustrations of the Bible, complete set of 20 mezzotints, good impressions, rarely found in early states, [c.1831-1835]. - Est. £1,000-1,500
Forum, July 9: Golden Cockerel Press.- Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ (The), one of 500 copies, Mary Gill's copy, Waltham St. Lawrence, 1931 with a signed proof of engraving on japon numbered 10/10 (2) - Est. £5,000-7,000
Forum, July 9: Boccaccio (Giovanni) The Decameron, 3 vol., vol.1 extra-illustrated by John Buckland Wright with c.150 erotic original drawings in pen & ink and pencil, 1886 [extra-illustrated c.1940]. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum Auctions The Private Library: Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers July 9, 2026
Forum, July 9: Cox (Morris) Collection of Gogmagog Press Books, 35 vol., rare complete collection of printed books issued by the press, limited editions, most signed by Cox, 1957-83. - Est. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 9: Wynkyn de Worde.- [Terentius Afer (Publius)] [Comedie...], [Paris, Josse Badius: sold in London by Wynkyn de Worde, & others], [15 July 1504]. - Est. £4,000-6,000
Forum, July 9: Mosley (James) Ornamented Types. Twenty-Three Alphabets from the Foundry of Louis John Pouchée, 2 vol., one of 10 copies for presentation, from an edition of 210, 1992-93. - Est. £1,000-2,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Inundation papyrus. P.Michael 4, the ‘Inundation papyrus’, a geographical account of the Nile near Canopus, in Greek, remains of two columns from a manuscript scroll on papyrus, Egypt, second century CE. £12,000-18,000
Forum, July 16: Book of Hours, use of Sarum, manuscript on vellum, 6 full-page miniatures, with famous Middle English inscriptions, Southern Netherlands for the English market, [c.1430]. £30,000-50,000
Forum, July 16: Qu'ran, Arabic manuscript on burnished, stencilled, and gold-flecked paper, 447ff., Sultanate Gujarat, Ahmadabad, [after 1411 but no later than 1442]. £15,000-20,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Turner (William). A New boke of the natures and properties of all wines that are commonly vsed here in England, rare first edition of the first English book on wine, By William Seres, 1568. £20,000-£30,000
Forum, July 16: Spenser (Edmund). The Faerie Queene. first edition, Printed [by John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, 1590. £30,000-40,000
Forum, July 16: Shakespeare (William). The Comedie of Errors, extracted from the first folio, Isaac Jaggard and Edward Blount, 1623. £15,000-20,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Fleming (Ian). Casino Royale, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1953. £40,000-60,000
Forum, July 16: d'Agoty (Jacques-Fabien Gautier). Anatomie de la Tête, first edition, Paris, chez le Sieur Gautier, 1748. £10,000-15,000
Forum, July 16: Martial Arts.- Lee (Bruce). 'Praying Mantis style' Kung Fu book, containing numerous annotations, diagrams and graphs in Bruce Lee's hand, c. 1960. £50,000-70,000
Forum Auctions The 10th Anniversary Sale Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper July 16, 2026
Forum, July 16: Warre (Capt. Henry James). Sketches in North America and the Oregon Territory, first edition, rare hand-coloured issue, 1848. £30,000-40,000
Forum, July 16: Norie (John William). The Marine Atlas, or Seaman's Complete Pilot for all the principal places in the known world..., 1826. £30,000-50,000
Forum, July 16: Mao Tse-tung.- Kim Il-sung.-[Note book for visitors from China to Korea], signed by Mao and Kim, [Beijing, 1954]. £10,000-15,000
