Twain, Tarzan, and Everything Else from The Heritage Book Shop
none
Another captain sent to observe the transit of 1769 was Jean Chappe D'Auteroche, sent by France. The
French sent out two observatory expeditions, one to the Philippines and the Chappe D'Auteroche expedition to
the coast of California. The book is Voyage to California to Observe the Transit of Venus, this being
the first English edition published in 1778. This book retells the ship's race against time, trying to reach
Baja California in time for the transit. Chappe D'Autertoche made it just in time, but tragically, two days
after the transit, the ship was hit with a fever called the "Black Vomit." Chappe D'Auteroche was one of the
crewmen who became sick and died. Item 39. $2,500.
Heritage offers 11 Mark Twain items in this catalogue, including some wonderful first editions. Item
286, however, is a photograph. It's a rather formal image of this man who could find humor in anything.
The photo comes with an inscription from Twain to his daughter, Jean Clemens, including the description, "This
starchy but justifiable & very commendable exaggeration of her Papa's aspect...." This photo can be seen on the
image of the catalogue's cover which accompanies this review. $15,000.
Item 309 was the first book published in America about flying in heavier than air vehicles. First
published in England in 1810 (the American edition is from 1814), Thomas Walker used his years of studying
birds to design his machine. Walker was no Wilbur or Orville Wright. He was at best something of a theoretical
amateur. A contemporary account indicates he did finally build something beyond the paper airplanes he started
working with, a contraption that was unable to lift off of the ground. Walker believed that two things were
critical to building an airplane: wings large enough to support it, and a source of power sufficient to
overcome man's insufficient arm strength. Therein lies the problem. Walker imagined an airplane which flapped
its wings. This notion would have to be put aside before an airplane would be designed which could actually
fly. The book is A Treatise on the Art of Flying, by Mechanical Means with a full explanation of the
natural principles by which birds are enabled to fly: likewise instructions and plans for making a flying car
with wings....$12,500.
If you've ever dreamed of having a first edition of Freud's major work, here is your chance. Item 112
is Die Traumdeutung, or the Interpretation of Dreams. Only 600 copies of this book, which opened the
door to psychoanalysis, were printed. Here is one of them. $40,000.
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.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
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…
![<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.")
![<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.")
