Rare Book Monthly Articles - November - 2025 Issue

eCatalogues: they have arrived

eCatalogues: they have arrived

The Internet made it possible for auction houses to attract bids worldwide. With that ability, they invested in cataloging, photography and promotion, expecting they could encourage bidding interest. And they have. Auction sales in the collectible paper category reached $1.371 billion dollars last year.  They have been extraordinarily successful.   The dealer model, composed of printed and eCatalogues, listing sites, and shows has also been effective to connect with their audience but has been losing market share to auctions. With our eCatalogues platform visible on our pages under News ...

Children's Author's Website Leads to Pornographic Site

Children's Author's Website Leads to Pornographic Site

This is one of those nightmare stories brought to us courtesy of the internet. Technology is wonderful, but...   Andrew Cope is a highly respected British children's book author. His most popular...

Are you reading the long form?

Are you reading the long form?   We are in the middle of an undeclared war.   We know that print was financially unhealthy. The Internet has been killing off newspapers. Books are resisting the...

Rookie on the Auction Beat

Rookie on the Auction Beat

If you are a regular reader of RBH Monthly you’ve noticed we have been expanding our services. We’ve increased our auction coverage both for free readers and paid subscribers. Every Sunday we send ...

New Certification Assures Your Book Was Written by a Human

New Certification Assures Your Book Was Written by a Human

Books have never had a rating system like movies, but a new certification process has recently been developed to combat an issue Shakespeare never faced. Actually, no publisher or author has been q...

Boston ABAA Book Fair: Nov. 7-9

Boston ABAA Book Fair: Nov. 7-9

There are book fairs both large and small. Many annual book related events have storied histories, storied participating dealers and occasionally famous collectors. The Boston book fairs have all o...

Boston “Shadow Fair” Has Come Full Circle and Reports Full House

Boston “Shadow Fair” Has Come Full Circle and Reports Full House The annual Boston “shadow show”, now promoted by MW Book Fairs, has come full circle since its beginnings almost 30 years ago at th...

Dr. Guillotin’s Savage Daughter

Dr. Guillotin’s Savage Daughter

When Robert Badinter (1928-2024) had the death penalty abolished in France in 1981, he didn’t destroy the last guillotine, but stored it instead. He wanted it to be later exhibited in a museum. Lat...

Swann: Americana November 20th

Swann: Americana November 20th

Recently I noticed that Swann Galleries of New York was preparing an appealing sale of book and manuscript material. I asked them to send me their news release about it because I’ve bought many lot...

The 2025 Northampton Antiquarian Book, Ephemera, and Book Arts Fair: Nov. 21-22

The 2025 Northampton Antiquarian Book, Ephemera, and Book Arts Fair: Nov. 21-22

17 October, 2025 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The 2025 Northampton Book Antiquarian Book, Ephemera, and Book Arts Fair, the ninth edition, will be Friday, November 21st from 5 – 8pm and Saturday, Novemb...

The 24th Paris Antique Map, Atlas & Globe Fair: November 22nd

The 24th Paris Antique Map, Atlas & Globe Fair: November 22nd

  On Saturday, November 22, 2025, the 24th Annual Antique Map, Atlas Globe Fair is to be held at Hotel Ambassador, 16 Boulevard Haussman, 75009, Paris, France. While it is a single day event, it ...

Doyle: An appealing sale on November 25th

Doyle: An appealing sale on November 25th

Doyle‘s November 25 auction of rare books includes a diverse and inviting array of material in many subject areas. As is usual with our sales, there is a strong component of Americana. This include...

Rare & Important Travel Posters at Swann Galleries November 25

Rare & Important Travel Posters at Swann Galleries November 25

  New York—Rare Important Travel Posters at Swann Galleries continues to live up to its name, offering many of the world's most prominent travel poster designers. This season’s sale on Tuesday, N...

News You May Have Missed: Recent media coverage of news related to libraries, museums and archives 

News You May Have Missed: Recent media coverage of news related to libraries, museums and archives 

Don't Say “Banned Book” Hawaii does a work-around as libraries throughout the state rebrand using the term “Freedom to Read” instead of the familiar “Banned Books” during 2025 Banned Book Week. O...

Settlement Reached in Library Deaccession Case Between an Institution and Ohio Attorney General

Settlement Reached in Library Deaccession Case Between an Institution and Ohio Attorney General

The Ohio Attorney General and a religious institution have reached a settlement of the state's claims against the institution's alleged plans to deaccession some of the books in its library. In wha...

Books and Garlic Mayonnaise. A Perfect Match.

Books and Garlic Mayonnaise. A Perfect Match.

"Bring Out The Hellmann's, and Bring Out the Best." You've undoubtedly heard the jingle for the mayonnaise many times through the years (unless you live west of the Rockies where it's "Bring Out th...

Eight New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

Eight New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

This month we review eight new bookseller catalogues. Hale Co. has released their first catalogue and it is quite a presentation! James Cummins bookseller has combined with the George S. MacManus ...

Rare Book Monthly

  • Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Galileo Galilei. Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo tolemaico, e copernicano. Firenze, 1632
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Saverio Manetti. Storia naturale degli uccelli. Firenze, 1771-76
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Fortunato Depero. Depero futurista. Rovereto, 1927
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Nicolas Visscher. Atlas minor sive totius orbis terrarum contracta delineat ex conatibus. Amsterdam, circa 1649-95
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Andreas Vesalius. Anatomia. Addita nunc. Antiquorum Anatome. Venezia, 1604
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Tristan Tzara and Salvador Dalì. Grains et Issues. Parigi, 1935
  • June 25, 2026
    Doyle, June 25: Houdini's biography, boldly signed. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A volume from Abraham Lincoln's library, signed just before heading to Washington for his inauguration. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A very early Confederate recruiting manual belonging to the chief commissary in Lee's Army. $600 to $800.
    Doyle, June 25: Rare hand-colored lithographs of the life of Napoleon. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Doyle, June 25: The "Holster Atlas" of the American Revolution. $5,000 to $8,000.
    Doyle, June 25: Jewish ceremonies in fine hand-colored engravings. $7,000 to $10,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A very rare work on Turkish military costume. $1,000 to $1,500.
    June 25, 2026
    Doyle, June 25: The most important illustrated work on the Mexican-American War. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, June 25: The finest illustrated book on Afghanistan. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, June 25: Henry Justice Ford St. George rescues the Princess from the horrible Dragon. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A rare work of Prussian Army uniforms under Frederick William II, with exquisite hand-colored engravings. $800 to $1,200.
    Doyle, June 25: Lenny Bruce typed letter signed to a Village bohemian during his obscenity trials, with a manuscript note and drawing. $300 to $500.
    Doyle, June 25: Schiff's scarce Shanghai Sketchbook. $300 to $500.
    Doyle, June 25: The first accurate published representation of the American flag. $2,000 to $4,000.
  • Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 123. Celebrate 250 Years of Independence with Original Stars and Stripes (1790) Est. $1,400 - $1,700
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 20. Keulen's Spectacular Chart of the World Featuring California as an Island (1728) Est. $12,000 - $15,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 42. Schedel's Ancient World Map with Fantastic Humanoid Creatures (1493) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 591. Matching Set of 3 Stunning Globe Gores of Eastern Asia from Coronelli's 3.5 Foot Globe (1688) Est. $5,500 - $7,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 9. Speed's Popular World Map with Allegorical Representations of the Elements (1651) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 168. First Separate Map of Kansas & Nebraska Territories (1854) Est. $5,500 - $7,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 43. Only Macrobius Map with Britain Attached to Europe (1515) Est. $800 - $950
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 250. Rare Map of Boston and One of the Earliest Maps of the Revolutionary War (1775) Est. $2,000 - $2,300
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 79. Schenk's Uncommon Map Featuring Two Figurative Title Cartouches (1696) Est. $1,200 - $1,500
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 681. Hand-Colored Image of the Annunciation to the Shepherds (1502) Est. $800 - $950
  • Sotheby's Book Week
    2 June - 9 July
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations, on its 250th anniversary. $180,000 to $250,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 17: Fontana, Lucio. Concetto Spaziale. 1967. Leporello en papier doré. Bel exemplaire signé. €4,000 to $€,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Fitzgerald, F. Scott. "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past”. $150,000 to $200,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Washington, George (as First President). Washington decries “an ostentatious imitation, or mimickry of Royalty” in his Presidency. $250,000 to $500,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 17: Lope de Vega. Rare manuscrit autographe signé de la préface dédicatoire de "El Cardenal de Belen" (le cardinal de Bethléem), pièce composée en 1610. €40,000 to €60,000.

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