When last month began, with much of the world under lock down, we didn't know what to expect. With storefronts closed, and people shut in their homes all day, would booksellers issue more catalogues to reach customers where they were and with time on their hands? Would they, instead, cut back on the expense of printing catalogues as their own income declined, and many people lost their jobs? We now have our answer. They cut back, drastically. This month we have but two new catalogues. In reality, only one is new. The one from Shapero was actually published a couple of months ago, but was received with some other of their catalogues reviewed earlier. The printed catalogue has seemingly disappeared. Will it come back as the pandemic drags on? Will it come back once the crisis is over? We don't know. Time will tell. Meanwhile, electronic catalogues are still alive and well.
The one newly published catalogue comes from The Veatchs Arts of the Book. Its title is New Acquisitions, Books Printed in Greek, Leaf Books, Typographic Treasures, Etc. The Veatchs' catalogues are filled with material pertaining to the book arts. The other newly reviewed catalogue comes from Shapero Rare Books. It has a much shorter title – Ottomania. It pertains to lands of the old Ottoman Empire, or as the subtitle explains, Travels through the Levant and the Middle East.
You will find both of these reviews if you click here now.
Sotheby’s Fine Manuscript and Printed Americana 27 January 2026
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: An extraordinary pair of books from George Washington’s field library, marking the conjunction of Robert Rogers, George Washington, and Henry Knox. $1,200,000 to $1,800,000.
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: An extraordinary letter marking the conjunction of George Washington, the Marquis de Lafayette, and Benjamin Franklin. $1,000,000 to $1,500,000.
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: Virginia House of Delegates. The genesis of the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. $350,000 to $500,000.
Sotheby’s Fine Manuscript and Printed Americana 27 January 2026
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: (Gettysburg). “Genl. Doubleday has taken charge of the battle”: Autograph witness to the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, illustrated by fourteen maps and plans. $200,000 to $300,000.
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: President Lincoln thanks a schoolboy on behalf of "all the children of the nation for his efforts to ensure "that this war shall be successful, and the Union be maintained and perpetuated." $200,000 to $300,000.
Sotheby’s, Jan. 27: [World War II]. An archive of maps and files documenting the allied campaign in Europe, from the early stages of planning for D-Day and Operation Overlord, to Germany’s surrender. $200,000 to $300,000.