Rare Book Monthly Articles - October - 2014 Issue

Book Fairs, vital to the future of collecting, need to open they doors to exhibitors a bit wider

Book Fairs, for decades have been an integral part of the rare and collectible book business but their role has been changing and their importance declining as the structure of the business has been recast by the internet, by the development of online listing sites and the emergence of the online access to auctions.  This has been difficult and probably inevitable but it is disturbing and worth whatever efforts can be made to maintain the frequency, prominence and importance of rare book fairs.   The loss of the main street shop has happened so quickly and ended with such finality that ba...

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In the Cathedral of the Shawangunks

Back when the world was small, when the trip from Ohioville to New Paltz in rural New York State was a one mile school bus ride the edges of my world ran from New Jersey far to the south, Pleasant ...

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Bolerium Books – LGBT Books & Ephemera Come Out of the Closet

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) books and ephemera are experiencing a growing popularity as contemporary events bring gender studies to wider public notice.   Positioned to tap the ...

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Another Major Library Fraud - $1.5 Million Allegedly Gone

A major fraud case emanating from the Metropolitan Library of Bucharest, Romania, is a reversal of the typical library theft case we see all too often. Nonetheless, the amount of money involved is ...

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How to Search the Auctions All from One Place

As summer comes to a close, and the temperatures begin to cool, the auction season starts to heat up. Fall is always the busiest time for auctions, and with the number of lots in the books, manuscr...

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Brantôme & the Art of Duels - Wan’ my picture?

I had an idiotic argument in the street the other day, with a guy who considered I had stared at him. Wan’ my picture? he said. Push never came to shove, and we wisely went our separate ways. I cou...

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Auction Preview: Bonhams' History of Science

It's rare for AE to feature an auction preview where the headlining item isn't considered part of books, maps, or ephemera, but Bonhams New York's History of Science on October 22nd is one such sal...

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170-Year-Old Mystery Solved as Franklin Arctic Expedition Ship Found

There are few subjects of greater popularity among book collectors than travel and exploration. Perhaps the dawning of the Age of Discovery being contemporary with the invention of the printing pre...

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Major Renovations at the “Other” Houghton Library

A major renovation of the Houghton Library is scheduled to be completed by the beginning of next year. Perhaps many at Harvard University's rare book library will react with puzzlement, as in, I di...

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Auction Preview: Two Sales by Swann Auction Galleries

The fall is historically a busy time for the auction industry, and October finds Swann Auction Galleries in the heat of it. With five auctions upcoming this month for them, we’ll be taking a look a...

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Wellcome Library Digitizing 15 million pages of 19th Century Medical and Related Material

Britain's Wellcome Library recently announced a major expansion of its digitization project, the UK Medical Heritage Library. This is a major step forward in the preservation of history and knowled...

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Auctions in October: one hundred and eight reasons to look carefully

October is, as it always is, a busy month.  One hundred and eight events are scheduled.  The numbers seem to always increase but within the numbers the material and categories are also always chang...

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Eleven Catalogues Reviewed This Month

This month we have 11 new bookseller catalogues to review. They are a varied lot. Ken Lopez, Bookseller offers selections in modern literature. Aleph-Bet Books has children's and illustrated books....

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Rare Book Monthly

  • Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Winston Churchill. The Second World War. Set of First-Edition Volumes. 6,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: A.A. Milne, Ernest H. Shepard. A Collection of The Pooh Books. Set of First-Editions. 18,600 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Salvador Dalí, Lewis Carroll. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Finely Bound and Signed Limited Edition. 15,000 USD
    Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ian Fleming. Live and Let Die. First Edition. 9,500 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter Series. Finely Bound First Printing Set of Complete Series. 5,650 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell to Arms. First Edition, First Printing. 4,200 USD
  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    Starting 10AM CST
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [RUTH, George Herman “Babe” (1895-1948)]. Signed photograph. Circa 1930s. 191 x 248 mm. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HARRISON, Benjamin. Document signed (“Benj Harrison”) as governor of Virginia, certifying the service of Daniel Cumbo, a Black Revolutionary soldier. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: ONE OF THE FIRST PRINTED ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    Starting 10AM CST
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: FIRST PRINTING OF LINCOLN’S IMMORTAL GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HIGHLY IMPORTANT MORMON ARCHIVE. ALLEY, George. Archive of 23 Autograph Letters Signed by Mormon Convert George Alley to His Brother Joseph Alley. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [AVIATION]. [ARMSTRONG, Neil A.] Aviation Hall of Fame Gold Medal MS64 NGC, Awarded to Neil Armstrong in 1979. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    Starting 10AM CST
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: NEWLY DISCOVERED FIRST PRINTING OF "WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE... " FROM THE ONLY NEWSPAPER ACTUALLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN LINCOLN’S SECOND INAUGURAL PROCESSION. $4,000 to $8,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: THE MOST IMPORTANT GEORGE WASHINGTON DOCUMENT IN PRIVATE HANDS; GEORGE WASHINGTON’S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 1775, ONE OF ONLY TWO ORIGINALS. $150,000 to $250,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: A VERY RARE ACCOUNT OF BLACKBEARD’S DEATH AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIRATE ITEMS EXTANT. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    Starting 10AM CST
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: EDISON, Thomas. Patent for Edison’s Improvements on the Electric-Light, No. 219,628. [Washington, D.C.: U.S. Patent Office], 16 September 1879. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [VIETNAM WAR]. The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, Paris, 27 January 1973. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: SONS OF LIBERTY FOUNDER COLONEL BARRÉ ANNOTATED TITLE-PAGE, “WHICH OUGHT TO ROUSE UP BRITISH ATTENTION”. $4,000 to $6,000.

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