Rare Book Monthly Articles - May - 2015 Issue

In New York: A Rare Book Week

For those lucky enough to visit New York City during rare book fair week the city was transformed [in a small but very good way] into the center of book collecting in the western hemisphere for seven straight days.  I was there and it was a terrific experience. There were three fairs, the largest the New York Antiquarian Book Fair, the American Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association’s event that invites their counterpart ILAB, the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers members to participate.  One of the other events was actually two, the Manhattan Vintage Book Ephemera Fair and th...

New York Public Library and Private Party Battle Over Million Dollar Books

One of those tricky ownership cases has arisen in New York over eight books that once were in a library, but ended up in private hands. The library claims the books are theirs, the private party sa...

An Interview with Ed Maggs of Maggs Bros. Ltd. - London

Maggs Bros. Ltd is one of the oldest continuously operating dealers in rare books and manuscripts in the English speaking world. It also has the distinction of holding a Royal Warrant as purveyor o...

White Elephants and Seaside Sales

There are two major book sales in the San Francisco Bay Area that feature really affordable books. Both are in the early spring and we hit them running, or in the case of our advanced ages, walking...

Second Battle of the Alamo Begins at the Alamo Library

Remember the Alamo? Of course. Everyone remembers the Alamo. It was the site of the Texas rebels last defeat in their fight for independence from Mexico. It was a slaughter – no Texian survivors, b...

The difference between being anti-dealer and pro-collector

I recently heard that an ABAA commentator, Greg Gibson, mentioned [actually I think reiterated] that the Americana Exchange and its successor, the Rare Book Hub, are anti-dealer.  This is not the c...

Arader Galleries Helping Colleges Merge Art with Science

Art and science are about as different as two fields could be. Or are they? New York art, map and book dealer Graham Arader thinks not, and he has bet part of his own collection of fine artwork on ...

20,000 Books Are Seized from Italian Politician Now in Prison for Mafia Ties

Italian authorities have seized 20,000 books from a private library, charging many had been stolen over an extended number of years. The books themselves were published from the 15th through the 19...

Cayenne, The Dry Guillotine. Part 2: Adjudant Ramel, By the River of Synamary

We saw in the previous article dedicated to Louis-Ange Pitou, that it had become fashionable in the aftermath of the French Revolution (1789) to deport the political prisoners to Cayenne (French Gu...

Leslie Hindman: Fine Books and Manuscripts - An appealing sale on the 7th in Chicago

To be collectible is sometimes to be historical, sometimes to be part of the popular culture, and sometimes both.  The upcoming Fine Books and Manuscripts Sale at Leslie Hindman on May 7th incorpor...

Ketterer-Kunst: a Rare Book Sale on May 18-19

On May 18th and 19th, Ketterer-Kunst will conduct an appealing sale of books in all categories but most with an emphasis on illustrations.  Their illustrated online catalogue was recently posted an...

Is This Why We Learn?

This story may not be about books. Then again, it may be totally about books. While some people may buy “books by-the-foot” to display with no intention of ever reading a word within, books were in...

In May 90 Auctions are Scheduled

The month's roll by and fresh auctions are announced, promoted and then sold.  This month there are initially 90.  By the end of the month there may be a dozen more.  As June then approaches some 2...

Seven New Catalogues Up for Review

This month we review seven new bookseller catalogues. The William Reese Company has issued a selection of manuscripts and archives. Peter Harrington offers some classic children's books. Oak Knoll ...

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
  • Jeschke Jadi
    Auction 151
    Saturday, April 27, 2024
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 546. Christoph Jacob Trew. Plantae selectae, 1750-1773.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 70. Thomas Murner. Die Narren beschwerung. 1558.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 621. Michael Bernhard Valentini. Museum Museorum, 1714.
    Jeschke Jadi
    Auction 151
    Saturday, April 27, 2024
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 545. Sander Reichenbachia. Orchids illustrated and described, 1888-1894.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 1018. Marinetti, Boccioni, Pratella Futurism - Comprehensive collection of 35 Futurist manifestos, some of them exceptionally rare. 1909-1933.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 634. August Johann Rösel von Rosenhof. 3 Original Drawings, around 1740.
    Jeschke Jadi
    Auction 151
    Saturday, April 27, 2024
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 671. Jacob / Picasso. Chronique des Temps, 1956.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 1260. Mary Webb. Sarn. 1948. Lucie Weill Art Deco Binding.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 508. Felix Bonfils. 108 large-format photographs of Syria and Palestine.
    Jeschke Jadi
    Auction 151
    Saturday, April 27, 2024
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 967. Dante Aligheri and Salvador Dali. Divina Commedia, 1963.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 1316. Tolouse-Lautrec. Dessinateur. Duhayon binding, 1948.
    Jeschke Jádi, Apr. 27: Lot 1303. Regards sur Paris. Braque, Picasso, Masson, 1962.
  • Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Isaac Newton on chemistry and matter, and alchemy, Autograph Manuscript, "A Key to Snyders," 3 pp, after 1674. $100,000 - $150,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Exceptionally rare first printing of Plato's Timaeus. Florence, 1484. $50,000 - $80,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: On the Philosophy of Self-Interest: Adam Smith's copy of Helvetius's De l'homme, Paris, 1773. $40,000 - $60,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: "Magical Calendar of Tycho Brahe" - very rare hermetic broadside. Engraved by Merian for De Bry. c.1618. $30,000 - $50,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Author's presentation issue of Einstein's proof of Relativity, "Erklärung der Perihelbewegung des Merkur aus der allgemeinen Relativitätstheorie." 1915. $30,000 - $50,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: First Latin edition of Maimonides' Guide for the Perplexed. Paris, 1520. $20,000 - $30,000.
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: De Broglie manuscript on the nature of matter in quantum physics, 3 pp, 1954. $20,000 - $30,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Tesla autograph letter signed on electricty and electromagnetic theory. 1894. $20,000 - $30,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Heinrich Hertz scientific manuscript on his mentor Hermann Von Helmholtz, 1891. $20,000 - $30,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: The greatest illustrated work in Alchemy: Micheal Maier's Atalanta Fugiens. Oppenheim, 1618. $30,000 - $50,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Illustrated Alchemical manuscript, a Mysterium Magnum of the Rosicurcians, 18th-century. $30,000 - $50,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 28 – May 7: Rare Largest Paper Presentation Copy of Newton's Principia, London, 1726. The third and most influential edition. $60,000 - $90,000
  • Doyle, May 1: Thomas Jefferson expresses fears of "a war of extermination" in Saint-Dominigue. $40,000 to $60,000.
    Doyle, May 1: An exceptional presentation copy of Fitzgerald's last book, in the first issue dust jacket. $25,000 to $35,000.
    Doyle, May 1: The rare first signed edition of Dorian Gray. $15,000 to $25,000.
    Doyle, May 1: The Prayer Book of Jehan Bernachier. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, May 1: Van Dyck's Icones Principum Virorum Doctorum. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, May 1: The magnificent Cranach Hamlet in the deluxe binding by Dõrfner. $7,000 to $10,000.
    Doyle, May 1: A remarkable unpublished manuscript of a voyage to South America in 1759-1764. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Doyle, May 1: Bouchette's monumental and rare wall map of Lower Canada. $12,000 to $18,000.
    Doyle, May 1: An rare original 1837 abolitionist woodblock. $8,000 to $12,000.
    Doyle, May 1: An important manuscript breviary in Middle Dutch. $15,000 to $25,000.
    Doyle, May 1: An extraordinary Old Testament manuscript, circa 1250. $20,000 to $30,000.

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