Rare Book Monthly

Articles - May - 2019 Issue

AbeBooks Top 20 Highest Prices Paid for Books in the First Quarter of 2019

Abe Lincoln's log cabin (AbeBooks photo).

AbeBooks has released their list of the 20 most expensive books purchased on their website in the first quarter of 2019. The books are too diverse to describe succinctly, with the common thread being that collectors are still willing to spend serious money for what they want. Here is their latest list.

 

20. Anatomia Uteri Humani Gravidi Tabulis Illustrata by William Hunter, published in 1774. Focused on the anatomy of the human uterus, this book is not for everyone. Fun fact: According to AbeBooks, "It took 30 years to write as Hunter had trouble obtaining the cadavers of pregnant women for dissection." $8,485.

 

19. The Black Mountain Review edited by Robert Creeley, published from 1954-1957. Contributors included Jack Kerouac and Hubert Selby, Jr. $8,500.

 

18. Les Travaux et les Jours by Hesiod, illustrated by Paul-Émile Colin, published in 1912. Hesiod was a Greek poet who wrote this some 2,500 years before this first French edition appeared. Colin was a French engraver and painter who illustrated many books, including those of Zola and Kipling. $9,036.

 

17. A single illuminated manuscript leaf circa 1400. It features musical notations and a large letter "E" with an image of an apostle within. $9,500.

 

16. Complete Set of the Sharpe Series by Bernard Cornwell, all signed first editions, circa 1980s. These are historical novels featuring English soldier Richard Sharpe. $9,948.

 

15. Post Office Reform; its Importance and Practicability by Rowland Hill, privately printed in 1837. AbeBooks describes Hill as "the father of the modern postal system." Now you know who to blame. $10,000.

 

14. The First Booke of Architecture by Sebastian Serli, published in 1611. Probably not literally the first book about architecture, but very early, having originally been published in French and Italian in 1545. $11,770.

 

13. The Godfather by Mario Puzo, published in 1969. First U.S. edition inscribed to Joe Collins, probably the Hollywood agent and father of actress Joan Collins and writer Jackie Collins. $11,805.

 

12. Two English Poems by Jorge Luis Borges. This is a handwritten manuscript by the Argentine short story writer and poet. $12,000.

 

9-11. The Birds of America by John James Audubon. Obviously not a first edition at this price, but this 1985 Abbeville facsimile edition published in conjunction with the National Audubon Society is still quite spectacular. $12,500.

 

9-11. Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne, published in 1926. Copy #262 of 350 large paper first editions printed on handmade paper and signed by Milne and illustrator E.H. Shepard. $12,500.

 

9-11. A New Discovery of a Vast Country in America by Louis Hennepin, first English edition circa 1698. Father Hennepin did not take a vow of honesty. Some of this was made up or borrowed from others' adventures unattributed, and yet Hennepin provided us with some of the earliest accounts of life in the then American frontier. $12,500.

 

8. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. All of this was made up. This is a complete set of seven U.K. first editions, first printings, published 1950-1956. $13,500.

 

7. Lost Horizon by James Hilton, published in 1933. A signed first edition of the book that popularized the fictional Utopian Shangri-La. $14,000.

 

6. The Works of Virgil. Another ancient Greek, though not quite so ancient as Hesiod, this is the first illustrated Virgil, published in 1517. Features 207 woodcuts. $14,515.

 

5. Sierra Nevada: The John Muir Trail by Ansel Adams, published in 1938. Letter "K" of 26 lettered of 500 total copies, these signed lettered copies were given away by Adams. This photobook includes 50 tipped-in illustrations from Adams' photographs. $15,000.

 

4. The Novels and Tales of Henry James, published 1907-1917. Twenty-six volumes, bound by Sangorski and Sutcliffe. $15,922.

 

2-3. The Writings of Mark Twain, published 1899-1907. This is letter "B" of just 12 lettered copies of a total of 512. Twenty-five volumes, the first signed "S.L. Clemens." Came with a short, signed letter. $25,000.

 

2-3. The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, published in 1930. This is a first edition of Sam Spade in an unrestored first issue dust jacket. $25,000.

 

1. The Complete Works of Abraham Lincoln, published in 1905. Twelve volumes bound in 23, this is the Presidential edition, limited to 50 copies. Features portraits, views, maps, photographs, and facsimile letters. $40,000.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: [Langland (William)]. The vision of Pierce Plowman, nowe the seconde time imprinted..., Roberte Crowley, 1550. £8,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: [Shakespeare (William)]. [Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies], second folio edition, [by Tho.Cotes, for Robert Allot], [1632]. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Bible, Czech Biblia Bohemica, first complete Bible printed in the Czech vernacular, Prague, August 1488. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Shabthai Tzvi.- Collection of four printed and illustrated broadsides detailing the appearance, rise and fall of the false messiah, Shabthai Tzvi, Augsburg, 1666-67. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Leaf from the Beauvais Missal, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment, [Northern France (perhaps Beauvais or Amiens)], [fourteenth century (c.1310)]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Aubrey (John). [Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme], manuscript in English, Latin and Greek, [c. 1693]. £30,000 to £50,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Poems on Various Occasions, first edition, Harriet Maltby's copy, Newark, Printed by S. & J. Ridge, 1807. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, second impression with dust-jacket, 1937 [but 1938]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Blake (William).- Thornton (Robert John). The Pastorals of Virgil, 2 vol., engraved plates by William Blake, 1821. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: America.- Mount (William J.) & Thomas Page. The English Pilot…, [bound with] The Fourth Book, describing The West Indies Navigation from Hudson's-Bay to the River Amazones, 1721. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Oldfield (Henry Ambrose), Rajman Singh Chitrakar & others. An album of 160 photographs and 13 original artworks, (1833-1919), [c. 1850s-1880s]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Audubon (John James) [and William MacGillivray]. Ornithological Biography…, 5 vol., first edition, presentation copy inscribed by Audubon, Edinburgh, 1831-49 [i.e. 1831-39]. £10,000 to £15,000.
  • Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Winston Churchill. The Second World War. Set of First-Edition Volumes. 6,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: A.A. Milne, Ernest H. Shepard. A Collection of The Pooh Books. Set of First-Editions. 18,600 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Salvador Dalí, Lewis Carroll. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Finely Bound and Signed Limited Edition. 15,000 USD
    Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ian Fleming. Live and Let Die. First Edition. 9,500 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter Series. Finely Bound First Printing Set of Complete Series. 5,650 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell to Arms. First Edition, First Printing. 4,200 USD
  • Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG BEADED JUDICIAL COLLAR. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: ONLY KNOWN COPY OF THE ONLY BOOK BY THE REMARKABLE EVE ADAMS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A COMPLETE RUN OF VISIONAIRE MAGAZINE THROUGH 2010. $6,000 - $9,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: LAW REVIEW OFFPRINT SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY RUTH BADER GINSBURG. $3,000 - $5,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: META REBNER'S WORKING SCRIPT OF THE LOVED ONE. $1,500 - $2,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A KATHY GROVE PORTRAIT OF CYNDI LAUPER FOR THE FEBRUARY 1989 DETAILS COVER. $800 - $1,200
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A PLASTIC COAT BY MILLIE DAVID FEATURED IN SOHO NEWS STYLE SECTION, FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANNIE FLANDERS. $500 - $700
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG JEWELRY BOX. $600 - $900
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A SET OF JONI MITCHELL LYRICS FOR "IF I HAD A HEART." $2,000 - $3,000
  • 19th Century Shop
    Catalogue 198 just published
    19th Century Shop. Darwin and Wallace, first printing of the first paper on natural selection
    19th Century Shop. Shakespeare’s Poems, first collected edition
    19th Century Shop. Walt Whitman portrait inscribed with a Leaves of Grass poem
    19th Century Shop. Major Elizabeth Barrett Browning manuscript notebook
    19th Century Shop. Spock's Baby Book, original MS
    19th Century Shop. Cellarius, Harmonia Macrocosmica, the great celestial atlas
  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [RUTH, George Herman “Babe” (1895-1948)]. Signed photograph. Circa 1930s. 191 x 248 mm. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HARRISON, Benjamin. Document signed (“Benj Harrison”) as governor of Virginia, certifying the service of Daniel Cumbo, a Black Revolutionary soldier. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: ONE OF THE FIRST PRINTED ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: FIRST PRINTING OF LINCOLN’S IMMORTAL GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HIGHLY IMPORTANT MORMON ARCHIVE. ALLEY, George. Archive of 23 Autograph Letters Signed by Mormon Convert George Alley to His Brother Joseph Alley. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [AVIATION]. [ARMSTRONG, Neil A.] Aviation Hall of Fame Gold Medal MS64 NGC, Awarded to Neil Armstrong in 1979. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: NEWLY DISCOVERED FIRST PRINTING OF "WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE... " FROM THE ONLY NEWSPAPER ACTUALLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN LINCOLN’S SECOND INAUGURAL PROCESSION. $4,000 to $8,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: THE MOST IMPORTANT GEORGE WASHINGTON DOCUMENT IN PRIVATE HANDS; GEORGE WASHINGTON’S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 1775, ONE OF ONLY TWO ORIGINALS. $150,000 to $250,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: A VERY RARE ACCOUNT OF BLACKBEARD’S DEATH AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIRATE ITEMS EXTANT. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: EDISON, Thomas. Patent for Edison’s Improvements on the Electric-Light, No. 219,628. [Washington, D.C.: U.S. Patent Office], 16 September 1879. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [VIETNAM WAR]. The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, Paris, 27 January 1973. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: SONS OF LIBERTY FOUNDER COLONEL BARRÉ ANNOTATED TITLE-PAGE, “WHICH OUGHT TO ROUSE UP BRITISH ATTENTION”. $4,000 to $6,000.

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