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Articles - January - 2003 Issue

Paying Tribute to an Honorable Legacy: A Visit to the Firm of H.P. Kraus, Inc.

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would never have asked for this privilege not just here but in any of the environments in which I conduct interviews.

In no time I find myself in a cold, climate controlled room that holds shelves full of material far too superior to put on the open stacks. Considering what I’ve seen from the open stacks, I can’t imagine how truly good this material must be. I do not dare pull anything off of the shelves. I just stare at the two hundred or so books and manuscripts that meet my eye. I feel temptation challenging me to look at something, anything, in more detail, but I know that that is not within the rules. So Mr. Lipton and I make polite conversation about approximately how many books and manuscripts are in there and about how the really special stuff – one can only imagine how special this material must be – is kept in a real bank somewhere nearby.

I sense that this vault visit – a visit, if you will, to the heart of the H.P. Kraus, Inc. empire, if one may call it that, is a good note to leave on. I bid my farewells and thank my generous hosts for their time and cooperation. And then, sadly, I put on my coat and go out of the magic kingdom into the real world, taking the crowded New York City subway home. It – the outside, the real world -- is really quite a let down from the antiquarian world in which I was immersed for some hours that day. But I didn’t regret my transition from the one environment to the other. Just being part of the rich history of H.P. Kraus, Inc., if only for a few hours, was good enough for me. At least for the meantime. It is a visit I urge other bibliophiles to make. Trust me – the last thing you’ll be is disappointed.

H.P. Kraus, Inc. is located at 16 East 46th Street, New York, N.Y., 10017. They are open from 9:30 -5:00 pm weekdays. Appointments are recommended. Their telephone number is (212) 687-4808 and their fax number is (212) 983-4790. They can be reached by email at hpkraus@hpkraus.com. Their website is accessible at http://hpkraus.com. Select items from their stock can also be browsed by visiting the following sites: Bibliopoly.com, worldbookdealers.com, and ilab-lila.com. All images accompanying this article are copywrite H.P. Kraus, Inc., and are used with the firm’s permission. AE subscribers may access the Kraus Catalogue #185 by searching the Bibliographic Database in the Advanced Search mode and entering "Kraus" in the Database Source field. The records are accompanied by images. Again, interested parties might want to investigate H.P. Kraus’s autobiography, A Rare Book Saga, (New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, [1978]) and also Homage to a Bookman: Essays on Manuscripts, Books and Printing Written for Hans P. Kraus on his 60th Birthday, Oct. 12, 1967 (Berlin: Gebr. Mann Verlag, [1967]), both of which are available on abe.com.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Books & Autographs
    Wednesday 25 March
    Koller, Mar. 25: KAFKA, FRANZ, SCHRIFTSTELLER. Eigenh. Brief mit Unterschrift. Prag, 20. Oktober [19]15. CHF 30,000-40,000.
    Koller, Mar. 25: EINSTEIN, ALBERT. Zwei eigenhändige Briefe an Ernst Gabor Straus, unterschrieben "A.E" bzw. "A. Einstein". [Princeton], [19]45. und [1950]. CHF 30,000-40,000.
    Koller, Mar. 25: HORTENSE DE BEAUHARNAIS, MUTTER VON NAPOLEON III. Album aus ihrem Besitz mit 69 Aquarellen und Pinselzeichnungen in Sepia oder Grau… CHF 14,000-18,000.
    Koller, Mar. 25: ZOOLOGIE - ORNITHOLOGIE - Seligmann, Johann Michael. Verzameling van uitlandsche en zeldzaame Vogelen. Teile 1-8 (von 9) in 2 Bänden. Mit 421 prächtig altkolorierten Kupfertafeln. CHF 14,000-20,000
    Koller, Mar. 25: BOTANIK - Berlèse, Lorenzo und Johann Jakob Jung. Iconographie du genre camellia... 3 Bände. Mit 300 Farbstichtafeln "a la poupée.” Paris, [1839-]1841-1843. CHF 12,000-18,000.
  • Forum Auctions
    Natural History: The remaining stock of Antiquariaat Junk, 1899-2026
    25 March 2026
    Forum, Mar. 25: Botany.- Andrews (H.C.) Coloured Engravings of Heaths, 4 vol. in 2, first edition, [1710,--94]-1802-1809-[1830]. £10,000 - £15,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Butterflies.- Cramer (Pierre) and Caspar Stoll. De Uitlandsche Kapellen voorkomende in de drie Waereld-Deelen…,, 5 vol., Amsterdam & Utrecht, 1779-91. £8,000 - £12,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Voyages.- Darwin (Charles) and others. Narrative of the Surveying Voyages of His Majesty's Ships Adventure and Beagle, 3 vol. in 4, including Appendix to vol.2, first edition, 1839. £8,000 - £12,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Butterflies.- de Graaf (Willem Diederik Vincent). [Inlandsche Kapellen in beeld], 170 fine original watercolours, [Enkhuizen], [1800-40]. £8,000 - £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Natural History: The remaining stock of Antiquariaat Junk, 1899-2026
    25 March 2026
    Forum, Mar. 25: Birds.- Dresser (Henry Eeles). A History of the Birds of Europe, 9 vol., including supplement, first edition, by the author, 1871-96. £6,000 - £8,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Zoology.- Felines.- Elliot (Daniel Giraud). A Monograph of the Felidæ or Family of the Cats, first edition, for the Subscribers, by the Author, [1878]-1883. £25,000 - £30,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Birds.- Frisch (Johann Leonard). Vorstellung der Vögel Deutschlandes, 2 vol., first edition, Berlin, Friedr. Wilhelm Birnsteil, [1736]-1763. £40,000 - £60,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Birds.- Gould (John). The Birds of Great Britain, 5 vol., first edition, by the author, 1862-1873. £30,000 - £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Natural History: The remaining stock of Antiquariaat Junk, 1899-2026
    25 March 2026
    Forum, Mar. 25: Pomology.- France.- Poiteau (A.) Pomologie Française. Recueil des Plus Beaux Fruits cultivés en France, 4 vol., Paris, 1846. £30,000 - £40,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Botany.- [Robin (Jean)]. Histoire des Plantes, nouvellement trouvées en l'Isle Virgine…,, 1620; with Geoffrey Linocier L'Histoire des plantes, second edition, 1619-20. £3,000 - £4,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Asia.- Japan.- Siebold (P.F. von). Nippon. Archiv zur Beschreibung von Japan, 7 parts in 6 vol., first edition, Leyden, [1832]-1852. £35,000 - £45,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Asia.- Valentijn (Francois). Oud en Nieuw Oost-Indiën..., 5 vol. in 8, first edition, Dordrecht [&] Amsterdam, 1724-26. £8,000 - £12,000.
    Forum, Mar. 25: Botany.- Australia.- Redouté (P.J.).- Ventenat (Étienne Pierre). Jardin de la Malmaison, 2 vol.,, Paris, 1803-04[-05]. £30,000 - £40,000.

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