These eleven books averaged over a 1,000% return in 14-17 years.
The books would be held in the investor's portfolio. "Should a collector want an item currently in an investor's portfolio the investor would be informed of the fact and the proposed price." It is not stated how collectors would be made aware of what books were held in the Edwards portfolio, though presumably this was addressed. Edwards' commission is not stated, but we can also presume there was one of these. These were questions the prudent investor would undoubtedly ask before turning over a sum of money.
Ultimately, the "scheme" failed. In an email response, Greg Coombes, the current Chief Executive of Francis Edwards, said the portfolio scheme led to a great furor in the book world, including an article in a trade publication. There are undoubtedly some readers out there, longer involved in the book trade than I, who remember this incident. Coombes explained that the firm believed some of the comments were actionable, and took the matter to court. Between what was likely disappointing results in gaining investors and costs of litigation, which proved unsuccessful, the company failed. Present ownership purchased the venerable firm out of receivership in the fall of 1982, and restored it to its traditional bookselling role.
Our point is not to stir up old controversies. Whatever the issues were then, we do not care. However, it can be interesting to look back at this proposal with the benefit of hindsight. Why might this scheme have looked appealing at the time, and were the expectations on which it was based realized in the years ahead, or did the scheme fall short? Those are the interesting questions, as undoubtedly it is just a matter of time before conditions bring about a new plan based on similar assumptions.
It is not surprising that a plan like this would be offered in 1980. Investors were searching for ways to achieve returns which would outpace rising inflation. The stock market had been dead for years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 1980 virtually the same as it closed 1965. So what better time to show investors what books had done over the same period? Edwards produced a chart of 11 items, purchased in the early 1960s and sold in the late 1970s. There was a 1791 Boswell's Life of Johnson, a 1690 first edition of Locke's Essay Concerning Humane Understanding, D.H. Lawrence's 1915 The Rainbow, and eight others. Returns ranged from a low of 271% to a high of 1,946%. That's a low of 271%. Compare that to a flat stock market. The average return was over 1,000%. Not bad for around 15 years.
Swann Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books December 9, 2025
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 156: Cornelis de Jode, Americae pars Borealis, double-page engraved map of North America, Antwerp, 1593.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 206: John and Alexander Walker, Map of the United States, London and Liverpool, 1827.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 223: Abraham Ortelius, Typus Orbis Terrarum, hand-colored double-page engraved world map, Antwerp, 1575.
Swann Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books December 9, 2025
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 233: Aaron Arrowsmith, Chart of the World, oversize engraved map on 8 sheets, London, 1790 (circa 1800).
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 239: Fielding Lucas, A General Atlas, 81 engraved maps and diagrams, Baltimore, 1823.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 240: Anthony Finley, A New American Atlas, 15 maps engraved by james hamilton young on 14 double-page sheets, Philadelphia, 1826.
Swann Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books December 9, 2025
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 263: John Bachmann, Panorama of the Seat of War, portfolio of 4 double-page chromolithographed panoramic maps, New York, 1861.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 265: Sebastian Münster, Cosmographei, Basel: Sebastian Henricpetri, 1558.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 271: Abraham Ortelius, Epitome Theatri Orteliani, Antwerp: Johann Baptist Vrients, 1601.
Swann Maps & Atlases, Natural History & Color Plate Books December 9, 2025
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 283: Joris van Spilbergen, Speculum Orientalis Occidentalisque Indiae, Leiden: Nicolaus van Geelkercken for Jodocus Hondius, 1619.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 285: Levinus Hulsius, Achtzehender Theil der Newen Welt, 14 engraved folding maps, Frankfurt: Johann Frederick Weiss, 1623.
Swann, Dec. 9: Lot 341: John James Audubon, Carolina Parrot, Plate 26, London, 1827.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 11: Darwin and Wallace. On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties..., [in:] Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society, Vol. III, No. 9., 1858, Darwin announces the theory of natural selection. £100,000 to £150,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 11: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 1997, first edition, hardback issue, inscribed by the author pre-publication. £100,000 to £150,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 11: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Autograph sketchleaf including a probable draft for the E flat Piano Quartet, K.493, 1786. £150,000 to £200,000.
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>Sotheby’s, Dec. 11:</b> Darwin and Wallace. On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties..., [in:] <i>Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society,</i> Vol. III, No. 9., 1858, Darwin announces the theory of natural selection. £100,000 to £150,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/00d5fd41-2542-4a80-b119-4886d4b9925f.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 11:</b> Darwin and Wallace. On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties..., [in:] <i>Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society,</i> Vol. III, No. 9., 1858, Darwin announces the theory of natural selection. £100,000 to £150,000.")
