Rare Book Monthly
A Facelift For Biblio
Biblio, the old (left) and the new.
By Michael Stillman
Biblio recently put its website through a facelift. The third largest, and youngest of the major bookselling sites has regularly made a point of pushing forward aggressively to make up for lost time. This latest change is designed to move them somewhat away from the industry standard, Amazon inspired highly functional, but cluttered, not artistic, and somewhat confusing home page. To see the changes in Biblio, click the thumbnail image to the left.
The new home page features an image taken from an antiquarian or other significant book, a larger search box with a dark background so as to stand out more, and links that are only seen by scroll over to reduce the visible clutter. Biblio describes the design as "simple and uncluttered," and appropriate for their customers who "know what they want and prefer an experience which helps them in their search, rather than distracts or presents obstacles."
What Biblio is confronting is an issue that most websites offering numerous products or services face -- how do you make everything visible without creating such a jumbled mess that nothing is visible? Amazon is a wonderful site, but I will admit that there are times when I have no idea where to find things I know are there. Fortunately, Biblio's target is more focused -- books. This recent change may not be earth shattering, but it does make the site cleaner and a little easier to understand, and anything that makes life easier is an improvement.
At the same time, Biblio announced some technological improvements in site function, and we will have to take them at their word since there is no way for us to comparison test it with the older version. Biblio has gone with open source search software from the Apache Software Foundation. The particular program is called Lucene, and Biblio reports that it provides faster searches and better matches than they were able to offer before. This too is a major challenge as Biblio has grown to list 50 million books, yet customers still expect to see their matches within no more than few seconds.
Rare Book Monthly
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Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 11. Blaeu's Superb World Map on a Polar Projection (1695) Est. $5,500 - $7,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 702. Munster's Largest 16th Century Edition, with Over 220 Woodcut Maps (1598) Est. $18,000 - $20,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 101. Rare Jo Mora "Carte" Showing a NYC-to-Seattle Route through Panama Canal (1933) Est. $900 - $1,100Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 65. The Waldseemuller/Fries "Admiral's Map" (1541) Est. $8,000 - $9,500Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 46. Contains all 30 Plates from Atlas Coelestis in Full Original Color (1742) Est. $16,000 - $18,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 129. The First Map to Name New Scotland and Cape Cod (1625) Est. $8,000 - $9,500Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 663. The First Printed Map Devoted to the Pacific in Full Contemporary Color (1589) Est. $7,500 - $9,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 629. De Jode's Rare Map of Eastern Asia (1593) Est. $7,500 - $9,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 171. De Bry's Influential Map of Colonial North America (1591) Est. $11,000 - $13,000Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 691. Superb Hand-Colored Image of the Holy Trinity (1502) Est. $800 - $950Old World Auctions (Sept 16):
Lot 606. Important, Early Atlas of Japan with 75 Woodcut Maps in Printed Color (1837) Est. $2,000 - $2,300 -
Koller, Sep. 16: FRANZÖSISCHE REVOLUTION - ASSEMBLÉE NATIONALE - Extrait des Procès-Verbaux de L'Assemblée Nationale, Des 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26 Août & premier Octobre 1789.Koller, Sep. 16: MOURADJA D'OHSSON, IGNACE. Tableau général de l'Empire Othoman, divisé en deux parties dont l'une comprend la Législation Mahométane, l'autre l'histoire de l'Empire Othoman [... ]Koller, Sep. 16: BOTANIK - Blackwell, Elisabeth. A curious herbal, containig five hundred cuts, of the most useful plants, which are now used in the practice of physick.Koller, Sep. 16: SCHEUCHZER, JOHANN JAKOB. Physica Sacra. Iconibus Aeneis illustrata procurante & sumtus suppeditante.Koller, Sep. 16: HAIMONSKINDER – Eyn schön lustig Geschicht, wie Keyser Carle der groß, vier gebrüder, Hertzog Aymont von Dordons Süne [...]Koller, Sep. 16: KRÄUTERBÜCHER - HORTUS SANITATIS - [H]ortus Sanitatis. De herbis et plantis. De animalibus et reptilibus. De avibus et volatilibus. De piscibus et natalibus…Koller, Sep. 16: GAUGUIN, PAUL, MALER (1848-1903). Eigenhändiger Brief mit Unterschrift und Couvert. An den Künstler und Freund Daniel de Monfreid in Paris. -
Forum Auctions
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
24th September 2026Forum, Sep. 24: A Plan of the Cities of London and Westminster and Borough of Southwark, 1746 [bound with] A Plan of the Cities of London and Westminster, [c.1755]. £30,000 - £50,000Forum, Sep. 24: Gafurius (Franchinus). De Harmonia Musicorum Instrumentorum Opus, first edition, Milan, Gotarto da Ponte, 1518. £20,000 - £30,000Forum, Sep. 24: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, first impression, 1937. £10,000 - £15,000Forum Auctions
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
24th September 2026Forum, Sep. 24: Stackelberg (Otto Magnus v). Costumes et Usages des Peuples de la Grece Moderne, first edition, Rome, 1825. £15,000 - £20,000Forum, Sep. 24: Piranesi (Giovanni Battista). Le Antichita Romane, 4 vol., Rome, Bouchard and Gravier, 1756. £10,000 - £15,000Forum, Sep. 24: Henry VIII's Primer.- Church of England.- The Primer, set foorth by the Kynges maiestie and his clergie…,, first edition, by Richard Grafton printer to the Princes grace, 1545; bound with 2 others, similar. £10,000 - £15,000Forum Auctions
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
24th September 2026Forum, Sep. 24: Darwin (Charles). On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, fifth edition, ink inscription in the author's hand laid down to half-title, 1869. £6,000 - £8,000Forum, Sep. 24: Siebold (P.F. von) J.G. Zuccarini and F.A.W. Miquel. Flora Japonica, 2 vol., first edition, Leiden, for the author, 1835-70. £6,000 - £8,000Forum, Sep. 24: Illuminated manuscript facsimile.- Constitution Of India (The), Dehra Dun, Survey of India Offices, [c. 1950]. £3,500 - £5,000Forum Auctions
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
24th September 2026Forum, Sep. 24: Mao Tse-tung. Quotations of Chairman Mao, prototype edition, Shenyang, compiled and printed by the Political Department, Air Force Division of Shenyang Military Region, 1963. £3,000 - £4,000Forum, Sep. 24: Richardson (John). Fauna Boreali-Americana; or the Zoology of the Northern Parts of British America, 4 vol., first edition, Norwich, Josiah Fletcher, 1829-37. £4,000 - £6,000Forum, Sep. 24: Mite (The), the printer/publisher's own copy with the original type and printing blocks for all three of its editions (1891, 1893 & 1896), Grimsby, Ernest A. Robinson, 1891. £3,000 - £4,000. -
Leland Little, September 11: Kenneth Claiborne Royall (1894-1971), Large Archive with Letters from Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower.Leland Little, September 11: Harry S. Truman, Scarce Autograph Letter Signed as 33rd U.S. President.Leland Little, September 11: Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) (1835-1910), Autograph Quotation Signed.Leland Little, September 11: The History of North America, the Extremely Scarce Deluxe "Edition of the Presidents."Leland Little, September 11: Scarce First Edition of Krafft's The American Distiller.Leland Little, September 11: Inscribed First Edition of James Baldwin's Giovanni's Room.Leland Little, September 11: A Signed Limited Edition of Love in the Time of Cholera.Leland Little, September 11: The Extremely Scarce Limited and Extra-Illustrated Edition of The Works of Charles Dickens.Leland Little, September 11: A Beautifully Bound Limited Edition of Émile Zola's The Rougon-Macquart.Leland Little, September 11: The Elaborately Bound and Extremely Scarce The Shakespeare Gallery.Leland Little, September 11: Hunting, Hawking, Shooting, A Signed Limited Edition Four Volume Set.Leland Little, September 11: Signed Limited Edition of Salmon-Salmon with a Chapter on Iceland. -
Sotheby’s
Original Film Posters
10 September 2026Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: The Invisible Man (1933). Extremely Rare US Leader Press One Sheet. £20,000 to £26,000.Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: You Only Live Twice (1967). Italian Advance Quattro Fogli. £10,000 to £15,000.Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: A Dog's Life (1918). Extremely Rare US One Sheet. £50,000 to £70,000.Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: La Belle et la Bête/Beauty and the Beast (1946). French Style A Grande. £12,000 to £18,000.Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004). US Lenticular Prototype One Sheet. £10,000 to £15,000.Sotheby’s, Sep. 10: Théâtre d’Ombres (1897). Exceptionally Rare French Poster. £8,000 to £12,000.