Gilding the Lilly Revisited: <i>New book a market-maker for US decorative bindings</i>
- by Susan Halas
Richard Minsky (photo by Richard Grosbard).
By Susan Halas
One of the oldest wisdoms of the antiquarian trade is: "If it was considered beautiful once, it will be considered beautiful again." The problem is how long do you have to wait?
Some older folks remember the 1950s when the public cleared out Arts & Crafts or Mission style objects by the truckload as taste shifted to bolder modern looks and colors. That cycle held true for books too: many of the limp leather bindings and ornately foiled boards of the late 19th century languished in obscurity or were unceremoniously shoveled off to the Goodwill. As the 20th century passed the decorative binding was replaced by the more pedestrian dust jacket as the outside face of the book. Though some antiquarian specialists saved these earlier volumes for their distinctive style and decorative appeal, for nearly a hundred years they were mostly ignored.
Comes now Richard Minsky
And all that's about to change.
AE Monthly readers may know Minsky for his affiliation with the non-profit NYC based Center for Book Arts, or they have heard of him as Minsky the book artist extraordinaire whose papers were recently acquired by Yale. Then there's Minsky the writer, designer, curator, scholar, lecturer, or developer of book related exhibits, leading to Minsky the bookseller who recently hosted three important and distinctive shows of decorative bindings at his own gallery in Stockport, NY. The three shows together displayed of about 1,100 volumes. Portions of the first two exhibits are still on view at his web site www.minsky.com, and the third is up through May 15 in Stockport by appointment, and can also be seen in part on the web.
However, with the publication of his new book, THE ART OF AMERICAN BOOK COVERS 1875-1930, (Braziller 2010 ISBN 978-0-8076-1602-4 - Link),
it wouldn't be surprising if "Minsky the market-maker" can soon be added to the list.
You can buy this new book in a variety of formats, some of them with hefty price tags. But for most readers the first trade edition, which sells for $35 and has a press run of 2,000, is a winner. This lovely volume with bright gold cover illustrates 150 superb examples of decorative bindings of the period. It includes a bibliography, as well as an illustrated check list of notable designers and their marks/monograms. The text is brief but instructive and covers some of the people, companies, artistic points and distinctions that may have escaped popular notice till now.
It's highly unlikely that these niceties will be considered obscure much longer. That's because Minsky puts the era into a new context and makes it much easier for the average non-specialist to understand the creative high points.
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…
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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. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
![<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.")
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
