Auction Update Review

Sotheby's Paris, Oct 15th.
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AUCTIONATA Oct 14th. Click
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The Season in Earnest

For the week ended Saturday 26 September 30 auctions were archived to the Rare Book Hub Transaction Database; 5 denominated in Swiss francs, 6 in euros, 1 in British pounds, 17 in US dollars and 1 in South African rands.  Eight thousand and two lots were offered and 5,852 sold for a 73% success rate.  Turnover was $14,820,868.

6 auctions saw their total proceeds reach a million dollars: 

Swann Galleries19th and 20th Century Prints and Drawings on September 24th: $3,698,900 
BonhamsFine Books and Manuscripts on September 22nd: $1,780,290 
Arader GalleriesAudubon's Aquatints of Birds and Quads, Important Maps and Natural History Watercolors on September 19th: $1,634,235 
Heritage AuctionsEntertainment and Music Memorabilia on September 20th: $1,334,389 
BonhamsThe History of Science and Technology on September 21st: $1,317,400 
Koller AuctionsA Private Collection of Italian Manuscript Illumination on September 18th: $1,266,359 

5 auctions saw total sales exceed 100% of the high estimates of all lots offered: 

Dorotheum Books and Decorative Prints on September 22nd: 196.71% 
Koller AuctionsPrints, Books, Photographs on September 18th: 132.49% 
Kedem AuctionJewish and Israeli History and Culture on September 8th: 132.32% 
Koller AuctionsA Private Collection of Italian Manuscript Illumination on September 18th: 117.43% 
Bruun RasmussenPrints on September 23rd: 112.60% 

10 sales saw at least 80% of their lots sell: 

Carlsen GalleryPrints, Books on September 20th: 100.00% 
Heritage AuctionsComics - Internet bidstart 9/13 on September 20th: 99.44% 
Heritage AuctionsMovie Posters - Internet bidstart 9/13 on September 20th: 98.25% 
Heritage AuctionsRare Books - Internet bidstart 9/17 on September 24th: 90.33% 
Bruun RasmussenOld Master Prints on September 21st: 85.71% 
Clars Auction GalleryPrints on September 19th: 84.25% 
Arader GalleriesAudubon's Aquatints of Birds and Quads, Important Maps and Natural History Watercolors on September 19th: 83.57% 
Koller AuctionsPrints, Books, Photographs on September 18th: 82.61% 
Clars Auction GalleryPrints on September 20th: 80.62% 
BonhamsFine Books and Manuscripts on September 22nd: 80.41% 

The Top 25 Lots Reported This Past Week.
  1. Bonhams THE 1934 NOBEL PRIZE MEDAL FOR PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE. PRESENTED TO GEORGE MINOT FOR HIS PIONEERING WORK ON PERNICIOUS ANEMIA. on September 21st Actual price: USD $545,000.
  2. Bonhams ENIGMA MACHINE. A Rare Early 3-Rotor German Enigma I Enciphering Machines (aka Heeres Enigma), on September 21st Actual price: USD $209,000.
  3. Bonhams Autograph Letter Signed ("Ch. Darwin") on September 21st Actual price: USD $197,000.
  4. Koller Auctions The Holy Land, Syria, Idumea, Arabia, Egypt, & Nubia. on September 19th Actual price: USD $142,655.
  5. Bonhams Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War. on September 22nd Actual price: USD $137,000.
  6. Bonhams An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. on September 22nd Actual price: USD $137,000.
  7. Bonhams An Essay on the Principle of Population, as It Affects the Future Improvement of Society. on September 22nd Actual price: USD $137,000.
  8. Arader Galleries Wood Ibis, Pl 216 on September 19th Actual price: USD $136,640.
  9. Arader Galleries Toucan on September 19th Actual price: USD $109,800.
  10. Heritage Auctions The First Recording Contract Signed By The Beatles, For The "My Bonnie" Session (Germany, 1961). on September 20th Actual price: USD $93,750.
  11. Bonhams On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. on September 22nd Actual price: USD $81,250.
  12. Heritage Auctions Beatles - A Sign From the Montreal Bed-In For Peace Signed By John Lennon and Yoko Ono (1969). on September 20th Actual price: USD $75,000.
  13. Heritage Auctions Beatles Yesterday And Today Sealed First State Stereo "Butcher Cover" LP in GEM MINT 10 Condition (Capitol, 1966). on September 20th Actual price: USD $75,000.
  14. Arader Galleries Wood Duck, Pl. 206 on September 19th Actual price: USD $73,200.
  15. Bonhams Autograph Manuscript in Latin on September 21st Actual price: USD $68,750.
  16. Arader Galleries Trumpeter Swan, Mature, Pl. 406 on September 19th Actual price: USD $67,100.
  17. Swann Galleries Les Courses on September 24th Actual price: USD $62,500.
  18. Koller Auctions Historiated initial M with the three Marys at the empty tomb of Christ. on September 18th Actual price: USD $62,315.
  19. Arader Galleries Some of the Best Harts in the Forest on September 19th Actual price: USD $61,000.
  20. Swann Galleries Les Caprices de Goya on September 24th Actual price: USD $55,000.
  21. Swann Galleries Le Permissionaire on September 24th Actual price: USD $55,000.
  22. Swann Galleries Femme assise au Chignon on September 24th Actual price: USD $55,000.
  23. Arader Galleries Orbis Typus Universalis luxta hydrographorum on September 19th Actual price: USD $51,850.
  24. Swann Galleries Imaginations and Objects of the Future on September 24th Actual price: USD $50,000.
  25. Swann Galleries Shadow Dance on September 24th Actual price: USD $50,000.


30 total sales reported this week:

Auctionata. Meet the Masters: From Modern to Pop on September 24th: 61.32%
PBA Galleries. Rare Books and Manuscripts on September 24th: 67.35%
Dorotheum . Books and Decorative Prints on September 22nd: 77.97%
Swann Galleries. 19th and 20th Century Prints and Drawings on September 24th: 68.38%
Bloomsbury Auctions. The Transport Sale on September 23rd: 50.00%
Heritage Auctions. Rare Books - Internet bidstart 9/17 on September 24th: 90.33%
Bruun Rasmussen. Prints on September 23rd: 65.71%
Bruun Rasmussen. Modern and Contemporary Prints on September 22nd: 79.79%
Bruun Rasmussen. Old Master Prints on September 21st: 85.71%
PIASA. Wegman: Dogs on Furniture on September 16th: 70.27%
Arader Galleries. Audubon's Aquatints of Birds and Quads, Important Maps and Natural History Watercolors on September 19th: 83.57%
Koller Auctions. Photography on September 19th: 44.19%
Koller Auctions. Books and Autographs on September 19th: 57.48%
Koller Auctions. Prints on September 18th: 60.64%
Koller Auctions. A Private Collection of Italian Manuscript Illumination on September 18th: 76.06%
Koller Auctions. Prints, Books, Photographs on September 18th: 82.61%
Carlsen Gallery. Prints, Books on September 20th: 100.00%
Skinner. Asian Works of Art - Prints on September 19th: 39.02%
RR Auction. Fine Autographs & Artifacts - Internet bidstart 8/21 on September 16th: 61.15%
PBA Galleries. Fine Books on September 17th: 62.50%
Vermot de Pas. CollectioMania II : Posters, Mai 68 Posters, Abstract and Contemporary Paintings and Prints, Tribal on September 3rd: 37.77%
Clars Auction Gallery. Prints on September 20th: 80.62%
Clars Auction Gallery. Prints on September 19th: 84.25%
Bonhams. Fine Books and Manuscripts on September 22nd: 80.41%
Bonhams. The History of Science and Technology on September 21st: 68.75%
Kedem Auction. Jewish and Israeli History and Culture on September 8th: 72.34%
Quagga Rare Books and Art. Collectible Africana Books, Art and Ephemera - Internet bidstart 9/8 on September 15th: 52.38%
Heritage Auctions. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 9/13 on September 20th: 98.25%
Heritage Auctions. Comics - Internet bidstart 9/13 on September 20th: 99.44%
Heritage Auctions. Entertainment and Music Memorabilia on September 20th: 75.58%

For the week ahead 29 sales are scheduled: 

Mon. Sep. 28th 
Auctionata. Berlin. Prints and Editions. 140 lots 
Adams Amsterdam Auctions. Amsterdam. Modern Art from the Collection of Frans Molenaar. 272 lots 
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Prints. 81 lots 

Tue. Sep. 29th 
Sothebys. London. Prints and Multiples. 175 lots 
Dorotheum . Vienna. Posters, Advertising Art, Comics, Film and Photohistory. 303 lots 
Profiles in History. Calabasas Hills. Hollywood Auction - Day 1. 627 lots 
Sothebys. London. Rock and Pop. 65 lots 
Sothebys. Paris. A Collection of Historical Items. 34 lots 
Adams Amsterdam Auctions. Amsterdam. Design, Photography and Books from the Collection of Frans Molenaar. 125 lots 
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Photographs. 137 lots 
Morton Casa de Subastas. México DF CP 11000. Books and Documents. 325 lots 
Potomack Company. Alexandria. Prints, Books. 28 lots 

Wed. Sep. 30th 
Sothebys. London. Exploration & Discovery 1576-1939: The Library of Franklin Brooke-Hitching. Part 4, Q-Z. 350 lots 
Dorotheum . Vienna. Prints. 54 lots 
Ader. PARIS. Photographs. 447 lots 
Sothebys. London. Made in Britain. 190 lots 
PIASA. Paris. Japanese Art: Estate of Madam X - Woodblock Prints. 184 lots 
Profiles in History. Calabasas Hills. Hollywood Auction - Day 2. 611 lots 

Thu. Oct. 1st 
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Rare Books - Internet bidstart 9/24. 403 lots 
Profiles in History. Calabasas Hills. Hollywood Auction - Day 3. 660 lots 
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Chuck Jones Birthday Auction Benefiting the Chuck Jones Center for Creativity. 58 lots 

Fri. Oct. 2nd 
ALDE. Paris. Library of Georges Wendling and other Amateur Collectors. 111 lots 
Holabird Kagin Americana. Reno. Six Day - Million Dollar Auction - Session 4. 586 lots 
Alaska Auction. Anchorage. Books and Prints. 17 lots 

Sat. Oct. 3rd 
Holabird Kagin Americana. Reno. Six Day - Million Dollar Auction - Session 5. 552 lots 
Alaska Auction. Anchorage. Books and Prints. 54 lots 

Sun. Oct. 4th 
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Comics - Internet bidstart 9/27
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 9/27
Holabird Kagin Americana. Reno. Six Day - Million Dollar Auction - Session 6. 7 lots 

Bruce McKinney

RBH and AE

  • Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: [Langland (William)]. The vision of Pierce Plowman, nowe the seconde time imprinted..., Roberte Crowley, 1550. £8,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: [Shakespeare (William)]. [Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies], second folio edition, [by Tho.Cotes, for Robert Allot], [1632]. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Bible, Czech Biblia Bohemica, first complete Bible printed in the Czech vernacular, Prague, August 1488. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Shabthai Tzvi.- Collection of four printed and illustrated broadsides detailing the appearance, rise and fall of the false messiah, Shabthai Tzvi, Augsburg, 1666-67. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Leaf from the Beauvais Missal, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment, [Northern France (perhaps Beauvais or Amiens)], [fourteenth century (c.1310)]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Aubrey (John). [Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme], manuscript in English, Latin and Greek, [c. 1693]. £30,000 to £50,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Poems on Various Occasions, first edition, Harriet Maltby's copy, Newark, Printed by S. & J. Ridge, 1807. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, second impression with dust-jacket, 1937 [but 1938]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Blake (William).- Thornton (Robert John). The Pastorals of Virgil, 2 vol., engraved plates by William Blake, 1821. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: America.- Mount (William J.) & Thomas Page. The English Pilot…, [bound with] The Fourth Book, describing The West Indies Navigation from Hudson's-Bay to the River Amazones, 1721. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Oldfield (Henry Ambrose), Rajman Singh Chitrakar & others. An album of 160 photographs and 13 original artworks, (1833-1919), [c. 1850s-1880s]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Audubon (John James) [and William MacGillivray]. Ornithological Biography…, 5 vol., first edition, presentation copy inscribed by Audubon, Edinburgh, 1831-49 [i.e. 1831-39]. £10,000 to £15,000.
  • 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
  • Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG BEADED JUDICIAL COLLAR. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: ONLY KNOWN COPY OF THE ONLY BOOK BY THE REMARKABLE EVE ADAMS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A COMPLETE RUN OF VISIONAIRE MAGAZINE THROUGH 2010. $6,000 - $9,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: LAW REVIEW OFFPRINT SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY RUTH BADER GINSBURG. $3,000 - $5,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: META REBNER'S WORKING SCRIPT OF THE LOVED ONE. $1,500 - $2,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A KATHY GROVE PORTRAIT OF CYNDI LAUPER FOR THE FEBRUARY 1989 DETAILS COVER. $800 - $1,200
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A PLASTIC COAT BY MILLIE DAVID FEATURED IN SOHO NEWS STYLE SECTION, FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANNIE FLANDERS. $500 - $700
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG JEWELRY BOX. $600 - $900
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A SET OF JONI MITCHELL LYRICS FOR "IF I HAD A HEART." $2,000 - $3,000
  • 19th Century Shop
    Catalogue 198 just published
    19th Century Shop. Darwin and Wallace, first printing of the first paper on natural selection
    19th Century Shop. Shakespeare’s Poems, first collected edition
    19th Century Shop. Walt Whitman portrait inscribed with a Leaves of Grass poem
    19th Century Shop. Major Elizabeth Barrett Browning manuscript notebook
    19th Century Shop. Spock's Baby Book, original MS
    19th Century Shop. Cellarius, Harmonia Macrocosmica, the great celestial atlas
  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    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
    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
    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
    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.