Rare Book Monthly

Articles - October - 2023 Issue

The 45th Annual Boston Book Fair: October 27-29

Experience Rare Books in person

Experience Rare Books in person

THE BOSTON INTERNATIONAL ANTIQUARIAN BOOK FAIR, RETURNS TO THE HYNES CONVENTION CENTER 

 

This Three-day event features 110+ booksellers offering treasures from around the globe!

 

BOSTON, MA – The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair (BIABF) returns to the Hynes Convention Center in Downtown Boston, October 27-29, 2023. Celebrating its 45th year, this three-day event features fine and rare printed materials from around the globe, including illuminated manuscripts, modern first editions, children’s books, ephemera, photographs, maps and autographs, as well as antiquarian books on a vast array of topics. For more information, visit www.bostonbookfair.com or call 617-938-8879.

 

More than 110 rare book dealers from Denmark, France, Germany, Netherlands, Serbia, the UK, and the US will exhibit an alluring treasure trove for seasoned bibliomaniacs and first-time attendees. Prices range from the millions to the eminently affordable. Each item on view, whether immaculately preserved or intriguingly weathered, tells its own story. Each bookseller holds a seemingly bottomless wealth of knowledge, both artistically and historically, about each item in their collection.

 

“This is one of the most important annual events in the country for rare book enthusiasts,” say Julie Roper CEO of Capricorn Event Management, LLC, who has managed the Boston Book Fair since 2015. “After the height of the pandemic, we are seeing resurgent demand for in-person fairs, where a global community of the top dealers offer the most sought-after collections of books, maps, illustrations, and ephemera on the market.”

 

Whether browsing or buying, the Fair offers something for every taste and budget—books on art, politics, travel, gastronomy, science. sport, natural history, first editions, Americana, fashion, music, children’s books, and much more—appealing to a range of collectors and casual browsers. From the historic and academic to the religious and spiritual, from the exotic to everyday—the Fair represents every conceivable genre and subject. Attendees will have the unique chance to view rare and historic museum-quality items, offered by some of the most prestigious members of the trade.

 

The Boston Book Fair is sanctioned by the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America (ABAA) and the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB).

 

In recent years, BIABF has increasingly captured the attention of novice and young collectors seeking one-of-a-kind offerings at more accessible price points. For attendees wanting to start a collection without breaking the bank, there will be dealers offering “Discovery” items priced at $100 or less. Special events at this year’s fair will include in-person talks, announced in early fall.

 

HOURS & ADMISSION

 

Friday, October 27, Opening Night, 4PM-8PM. Tickets: $25 (available online or at the box office)

Saturday, October 28, 12PM-7PM. Free admission.

Sunday, October 29, 12PM-5PM. Free admission.

 

LOCATION

 

Hynes Convention Center (Hall A), 900 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02115

 

Here is the full list of exhibitors (with booth numbers):

 

Click to View Floor Plan 

503 Archway Books
123 James Arsenault & Company
113 B & B Rare Books
420 Lorne Bair Rare Books
525 John Bale Books LLC
325 Antiquariat Banzhaf
214 Bauman Rare Books
116 Simon Beattie Ltd
505 David Bergman
413 Jeff Bergman Books
226 Bernett Penka Rare Books
121 Between the Covers Rare Books
117 Biblionne
114 Manuel Ripoll Billon
310 Black Swan Books Inc.
404 Blackwell's Rare Books
514 Boston Rare Maps
216 Brattle Book Shop
106 Brenner's Books - Rare & Collectable
314 Bromer Bookseller
506 Bull's Head Rare Books
117 Pablo Butcher
418 Capitol Hill Books
120 Librairie Rodolphe Chamonal
119 Commonwealth Books
320 Justin Croft Antiquarian Books Limited
220 James Cummins Bookseller
527 Wilfrid M. de Freitas - Bookseller
407 Derringer Books
118 DeWolfe & Wood
205 Eclectibles
409 Editio Altera
124 Evening Star Books LLC
403 First Edition Rare Books, LLC
305 First Folio
424 Geographicus Rare Antique Maps
523 George S. MacManus Company
523 Gilann Books
224 Globus Rare Books & Archives
513 Thomas A. Goldwasser Rare Books
204 James Gray Bookseller
406 Grayshelf Books
510 HS Rare Books
207 Adrian Harrington Rare Books
410 Peter Harrington
319 Heartwood Books & Art
328 Jeff Hirsch Books
303 Sandra L. Hoekstra Bookseller
116 Honey & Wax Booksellers
114 Hyraxia Books
417 Imperial Fine Books, Inc.
513 James S. Jaffe Rare Books
423 Jarndyce Antiquarian Booksellers
115 Johnnycake Books
307 johnson rare books & archives
515 Kaaterskill Books
313 Ben Kinmont Bookseller
227 John W. Knott, Jr., Bookseller
408 Knuf Rare Books
108 Konstantinopel Rare & Fine Books
203 Kuenzig Books
104 Michael Laird Rare Books
516 JF Letenneur Livres Rares
225 Lucius Rare Books
304 Lux Mentis, Booksellers
323 Herman H. J. Lynge & Son A/S
223 Maggs Bros. Ltd.
515 Mare Booksellers
215 McBlain Books
507 McBride Rare Books
228 Bruce McKittrick Rare Books
425 Willis Monie
414 Howard S. Mott, Inc.
317 Musinsky Rare Books, Inc.
415 Old Editions Book Shop & Gallery
526 Old New York Bookshop
524 Patrick Olson Rare Books
308 Pazzo Books
219 Bernard Quaritch Ltd.
528 Rabelais Inc.
210 William Reese Company
209 L&T Respess Books
217 Resser-Thorner Americana
506 Riverrun Books & Manuscripts
419 Rootenberg Rare Books & Manuscripts
213 Barry Lawrence Ruderman
126 Rulon-Miller Books
427 Antiquariaat Schierenberg
316 Sophie Schneideman Rare Books
327 Scientia Books
324 Second Story Books
519 Shapero Rare Books
518 Jerry N. Showalter, Bookseller
110 Sokol Books Ltd
428 Original Antique Maps by Carol J. Spack
318 Benjamin Spademan Rare Books
405 Dale Steffey Books
209 Ten Pound Island Book Co.
508 Triolet Rare Books
307 Tschanz Rare Books
326 Type Punch Matrix
517 University Archives
108 Adam Weinberger Books
315 West Side Book Shop
504 White Fox Rare Books and Antiques
416 Whitmore Rare Books, Inc.
208 Yesterday's Gallery

 

Here is a link to the show’s official website:  www.bostonbookfair.com

 

 

 

The Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair is sponsored by the New England Chapter of the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America.

 

WWW.BOSTONBOOKFAIR.COM

FACEBOOK @BOSTONBOOKFAIR

INSTAGRAM @BOSTONBOOKFAIR

 

Rare Book Monthly

  • Forum Auctions
    Online: India
    Ends 19th February 2026
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 40
    Ramasvami (Kavali Venkata). A Digest of the Different Castes of India, 83 charming hand-coloured lithographed plates, Madras, 1837. £5,000-7,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 50
    Watson (John Forbes) & John William Kaye. The People of India: A Series of Photographic Illustrations...of the Races and Tribes of Hindustan, 8 vol., 480 mounted albumen prints, 1868-75. £4,000-6,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 53
    Afghanistan.- Elphinstone (Hon. Mountstuart). An Account of the Kingdom of Caubul, first edition, hand-coloured aquatint plates, a fine copy, 1815. £2,000-3,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 57
    [Album and Treatise on Hinduism], manuscript treatise on Hinduism in French, 31 watercolours of Hindu deities, Pondicherry, 1865. £3,000-4,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 62 Allan (Capt. Alexander). Views in the Mysore Country, [1794]. £2,000-3,000
    Forum Auctions
    Online: India
    Ends 19th February 2026
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 76
    Bird (James). Historical Researches on the Origin and Principles of the Bauddha and Jaina Religions..., first edition, lithographed plates, Bombay, American Mission Press, 1847. £3,000-4,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 100
    Ceylon.- Daniell (Samuel). A Picturesque Illustration of the scenery, animals, and native inhabitants, of the Island of Ceylon: in twelve plates, 1808. £5,000-7,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 123
    D'Oyly (Charles). Behar Amateur Lithographic Scrap Book, lithographed throughout with title and 55 plates mounted on 43 paper leaves, [Patna], [1828]. £3,000-5,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 139
    Gandhi (known as Mahatma Gandhi,) Fine Autograph Letter signed to Jawaharlal Nehru, Sevagram, Wardha, 1942, emphasising the importance of education in rural communities. £10,000-15,000
    Forum Auctions
    Online: India
    Ends 19th February 2026
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 140
    Gantz (John). Indian Microcosm, first edition, Madras, John Gantz & Son, 1827. £10,000-15,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 146
    Grierson (Sir George Abraham). Linguistic Survey of India, 11 vol. in 20, folding maps, original cloth, Calcutta, Superintendent Government Printing, 1903-28. £2,000-3,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 195
    Madras.- Fort St. George Gazette (The), No.276-331, pp.493-936 and Index to all of 1834 at end, modern half calf, Madras, 2nd July - 31st December 1834. £2,000-3,000
    Forum, Feb. 19: Lot 205
    Marshall (Sir John) and Alfred Foucher. The Monuments of Sanchi, 3 vol., first edition, 141 plates, most photogravure, [Calcutta], [1940]. £3,000-4,000
  • Il Ponte, Feb. 25-26: HAMILTON, Sir William (1730-1803) - Campi Phlegraei. Napoli: [Pietro Fabris], 1776, 1779. € 30.000 - 50.000
    Il Ponte, Feb. 25-26: [MORTIER] - BLAEU, Joannes (1596-1673) - Het Nieuw Stede Boek van Italie. Amsterdam: Pieter Mortier, 1704-1705. € 15.000 - 25.000
    Il Ponte, Feb. 25-26: TULLIO D'ALBISOLA (1899-1971) - Bruno MUNARI (1907-1998) - L'Anguria lirica (lungo poema passionale). Roma e Savona: Edizioni Futuriste di Poesia, senza data [ma 1933?]. € 20.000 - 30.000
    Il Ponte, Feb. 25-26: IL MANOSCRITTO RITROVATO DI IPPOLITA MARIA SFORZA. TITO LIVIO - Ab Urbe Condita. Prima Decade. Manoscritto miniato su pergamena, metà XV secolo. € 280.000 - 350.000
  • Sotheby's Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s: Balthus, Emily Brontë. Wuthering Heights, New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1993. 6,600 USD.
    Sotheby’s: Charles Dickens. Complete Works, Philadelphia & London: J.B. Lippincott Company & Chapman & Hall, LD, 1850. Limited Edition set of 30 volumes. 7,500 USD.
    Sotheby’s: John Lennon, Yoko Ono. Handwritten Letter from John Lennon and Yoko Ono to their Chauffer. 1971. 32,500 USD.
    Sotheby’s: Winston Churchill. First edition of War Speeches, Cassell and Company, Ltd., 1941. Set of 7 volumes. 5,500 USD.
    Sotheby’s: Andy Warhol, Julia Warhola. Holy Cats First Edition, Signed by Andy Warhol. 1954. 30,000 USD.
  • Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 11. Blaeu's Superb World Map on a Polar Projection (1695) Est. $5,500 - $7,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 36. Schedel's Ancient World Map with Humanoid Creatures (1493) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 49. One of the First Lunar Globes to Show the Far Side of the Moon (1963) Est. $1,000 - $1,300
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 5. The First World Map with Lavish Allegorical Vignettes of the Continents (1594) Est. $15,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 55. Anti-British Propaganda Map with Churchill as an Octopus (1942) Est. $2,000 - $2,300
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 197. One of the Most Influential Maps of Westward Expansion (1846) Est. $9,500 - $12,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 10. Scarce Pitt Edition of Carte-a-Figures Map of the World (1680) Est. $9,500 - $11,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 220. A Fine, Early Rendering of San Francisco (1874) Est. $2,200 - $2,500
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 707. Hand-Colored Image of the Presentation of Jesus with Gilt Highlights (1450) Est. $1,600 - $1,900
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 80. One of the Most Important Maps Perpetuating the Myth of the Island of California (1680) Est. $3,250 - $4,000
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 725. Homann's Atlas Featuring 26 Folio-Sized Maps in Original Color (1715) Est. $4,500 - $5,500
    Old World Auctions (Feb 11):
    Lot 169. One of the Earliest Maps to Show Philadelphia (1695) Est. $4,750 - $6,000
  • Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: DALVIMART, Octavien ou d’ALVIMAR(T). The Costume of Turkey
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: DALVIMART, Octavien ou d’ALVIMAR(T)]. CLARK. The Military Costume of Turkey
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: HOMMAIRE DE HELL, Ignace-Xavier. LAURENS, Jules. Voyage en Turquie et en Perse
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: POSTEL, Guillaume. De la République des Turc
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: PREZIOSI, Amadeo. Stamboul. Souvenir d’Orient.
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: COSTUMES. EMPIRE OTTOMAN.
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: PRISSE D'AVENNES, Achille Constant T. Emile. L'Art Arabe
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: PRISSE D'AVENNES. Histoire de l'art Egyptie
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: BESANCENOT, Jean. Costumes et types du Maroc.
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: COSTUMES OTTOMANS. Suite de figures ottomanes à l’aquarelle
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: LES MILLE ET UNE NUIT, contes arabes
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: SCHLEGEL, Hermann et A. H. VERSTER van WULVERHORST. Traité de Fauconnerie - Planches
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11: THEVENOT, Melchisédec. Relation de divers voyages curieux
    Gros & Delettrez, Feb. 11:

Article Search

Archived Articles