It’s the (Book) Antiques Road ShowWith Kenneth Gloss of the Brattle Book Shop
- by Michael Stillman
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The most valuable item he has stumbled upon came when he visited a woman who had some old papers. Among them was a Declaration of Independence. It wasn’t the first issue, but about a week later. At the time it was valued at $100,000. He also had a person show up with a bunch of Jefferson letters from the time of the War of 1812. In one, Jefferson opines on how to handle traitors. His view was that they should receive the full protection of the law, but nothing more.
Gloss also tells a story of meeting with a collector who had reached his 100th birthday. The collector recalled attending a dinner in his youth with Thomas Edison and Henry Ford. Edison, who was quite hard of hearing by then and carried around an ear trumpet, was told by Ford how well he looked. Edison evidently attributed his good health to Carter’s Little Liver Pills. According to the collector, the two yelled back and forth at each other all night about the benefits of this wondrous medication. The young collector never received any of the sage advice he had hoped for.
Some Quick Advice for New Collectors
Ken Gloss offers some quick advice for new collectors, especially those on a budget. The price of books is all based on supply and demand. It’s just basic economics. If you collect what others collect, you will pay more. For example, if you collect rare books by a well-known author, and only in the best shape, you can expect to pay a lot. If you collect books by an obscure author, and are willing to accept something less than mint, you can collect books cheaply. There are major economic advantages to being one of the first to collect a particular topic or author.
The internet can be a useful tool for building a collection. Mr. Gloss points out that you may find twenty-five copies online of a book that used to be hard to find. His advice is that unless there is a clear reason why one copy is priced higher than another to go with the less expensive one. The higher price may only reflect that one seller hopes to get more money, not that his copy is any better.
If you have books to sell or evaluate, particularly if you live in the Boston area or New England, the Brattle Book Shop is located at 9 West Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02111. Their phone number is 800-447-9595 and the web address is www.brattlebookshop.com. The website includes a calendar of when and where Ken Gloss will be speaking and appraising books in the weeks ahead.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
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.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
