Rare Book Monthly

Articles - June - 2007 Issue

A Serious Book Auction in Chicago

Lot 143 Eau & Gaz

Lot 143 Eau & Gaz


For book buyers in Chicago and the Midwest evidence of resurgence in the book auction market is apparent in the upcoming sale at Leslie Hindman in downtown Chicago. The sale will take place on June 14th and begins at noon. Material is currently available for viewing both online and at the auction house. There are in fact two sales. The other is a Vintage Couture and Accessories sale on June 13th.

Book auctions were once a staple of Chicago life and the Hindman firm is now working to restore them as a regular midwest event. The city itself has a storied history and complex relationship to the printed word. Book stores, book auctions and collecting organizations have been ever present on the Chicago skyline.

The 388 lot book sale includes the property of many consignors but is primarily material consigned by Rockford College to raise funds for endowment. Many of the Rockford items have been the property of their rare book department for generations. The material is eclectic, the common denominator value. Some of it is quite rare.

Befitting an auction department that is building a base the presentations are thorough and the estimates appealing. Here is a representative group of what should be an interesting sale:

Lot 49 shows us what is more valuable than gold. It's ink of course. An actress collected the signatures of many of America's famous and prominent people in the first half of the 20th century. Two volumes of over 100 examples are offered here. Autograph highlights include Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Lou Gehrig, Willie Mays (signed photo), Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Amelia Earhart, Herbert Hoover, Calvin Coolidge, Michael Collins, Carrie Chapman Catt, John Philip Sousa, William Wrigley, Prince William of Sweden, Prince Ferdinand of Russia, Jane Addams, Al Jolson, Jack Dempsey, and Mel Blanc. The estimate is $3,000 to $5,000.

Lot 71 is a first edition of The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell. This is a celebrated biography that was a premier collectible before the depression, suffered a decline through the end of the Second World War and has slowly found its footing. It suffers from visibility but is an important work. It is estimated at $4,000 to $6,000. Lot 72 is a rebound set and is estimated at $1,000 to $2,000.

Lot 84 is Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There. It's the 1872 first edition, first issue with 50 illustrations. It's estimated $800 to $1,200.

Lots 97 and 98 are stereo views of Chicago pre and post the great Chicago fire. No other city in has quite the fascination with its destruction as does Chicago. These lots are both estimated $200 to $400.

Lot 103 is an early Confederate imprint, Regulations For The Army Of The Confederate States. Richmond: Ritchie & Dunnavant, 1861 8vo., blue cloth. With the signature of Brig. Gen. Sterling Price to f.f.e.p. Light wear and soiling to binding; otherwise fine. This would have been printed in the opening months of the war, just a carriage ride from Washington. It is estimated $1,000 to $2,000.

Lot 143 will be of interest both to the French and to those appreciate the French style. It is [Duchamp, Marcel] Lebel Robert, Sur Marcel DuChamp. Paris: Trianon, 1959 4to., in wrappers, in brown cloth clamshell case with plate reading "Eau & Gaz a Tous Les Étages". 1 of 110 copies of the deluxe edition signed by Marcel DuChamp and Robert Lebel. A biography and catalog of DuChamp and his work. Fine in a lightly soiled and worn case. It is estimated $6,000 to $8,000.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: ANDERSEN'S EXTREMELY RARE FIRST APPEARANCE IN PRINT. "Scene af: Røverne i Vissenberg i Fyen." in Harpen, 1822.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: FIRST ISSUE OF THE FIRST THREE FAIRY TALE PAMPHLETS, WITH ALL INDICES AND TITLE PAGES. Eventyr, fortalte for Børn. 1835-1837.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: THE FIRST FAIRY TALES WITH A SIGNED CARTE DE VISITE OF ANDERSEN AS FRONTIS. Eventyr, fortalte for Børn. 1835-1837.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: KARL LAGERFELD. Original pastel and ink drawing in gold, red and black for Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes (1992), "La cassette de l'Empereur."
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY OF THE SIXTH PAMPHLET FOR PETER KOCH. Eventyr, Fortalte For Børn, Second Series, Third Pamphlet. 1841. Publisher's wrappers, complete with all pre- and post-matter.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN RARE AUTOGRAPH QUOTATION SIGNED IN ENGLISH from "The Ugly Duckling," c.1860s.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: HEINRICH LEFLER, ORIGINAL WATERCOLOR FOR ANDERSEN'S SNOW QUEEN, "Die Schneekönigin," 1910.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: FIRST EDITION OF ANDERSEN'S FAIRY TALES IN ENGLISH. Wonderful Stories for Children. London, 1846.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: ANDERSEN ON MEETING CHARLES DICKENS. Autograph Letter Signed ("H.C. Andersen") in English to William Jerdan, July 20, 1847.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY FOR EDGAR COLLIN. Nye Eventyr og Historier. Anden Raekke. 1861.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: DOLL HOUSE FURNITURE BY HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON, DECORATED WITH FANTASTICAL CUT-OUTS, for the children of Jonna Stampe (née Drewsen), his godchildren.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY FOR GEORG BRANDES. Dryaden. Et Eventyr fra Udstillingstiden i Paris 1867. 1868.
  • Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: William Blake | Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Sold: 4,320,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR
  • Fonsie Mealy’s
    Rare Books & Collectors’ Sale
    April 30th & May 1st
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Taylor (Geo.) & Skinner (A.) Maps of the Roads of Ireland, Surveyed 1777. Lond. & Dublin 1778. €500 to €750.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Messingham (Thos.) Florilegium Insulae Sanctorum seu Vitae et Acta Sanctorum Hibernia, Paris 1624. €350 to €500.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus). The Haw Lantern, L. (Faber & Faber) 1987, First Edn., Signed and dated. €225 to €350.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Valencey (Lt. Col. Chas.) Collectanea de Rebus Hibernicis, Vols. I-IV, 4 vols. Dublin 1786. €400 to €600.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Powerscourt (Viscount). A Description and History of Powerscourt, Lond. 1903. €350 to €500.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Moryson (Fynes). An Itinerary ... Containing His Ten Yeeres Travel Through the Twelve Dominions of Germany, Bohermerland, Sweitzerland…, Lond. (John Beale) 1617. €700 to €1,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: After Buffon, Birds of Europe, c. 1820. Approx. 120 fine hd. cold. plts., mor. backed boards. €125 to €250.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Dunlevy (Andrew). An Teagasg Criosduidhe De Reir Ceasda agus Freagartha... The Catechism or Christian Doctrine by Way of Question and Answer, Paris (James Guerin) 1742. €400 to €700.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: The Georgian Society Records of Eighteen-Century Domestic Architecture in Dublin, 5 vols. Complete, Dublin 1909-1913. €500 to €750.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Scale (Bernard). An Hibernian Atlas or General Description of the Kingdom of Ireland, L. (Robert Sayer & John Bennet) 1776. €625 to €850.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: [Johnson (Rev. Samuel)]. Julian the Apostate Being a Short Account of his Life, together with a Comparison of Popery and Paganism,L. (Langley Curtis) 1682. €300 to €400.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Nichlson (Wm.) Illustrator. An Almanac of Twelve Sports, Lond. 1898. €300 to €400.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus) trans. The Light of the Leaves, 2 vols., Mexico (Imprenta de los Tropicos/Bunholt) 1999. €1,500 to €2,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Fleming (Ian). Moonraker, L. (Jonathan Cape) 1955. €1,500 to €2,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus) & Egan (Felim) artist. Squarings, Twelve Poems, D. (Hieroglyph Editions Ltd.) 1991. €1,750 to €2,250.

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