• 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
  • Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Alken (Henry). Sporting Notions, first edition, T.McLean, 1832-33. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Bardi (Lorenzo). Nuova Raccolta delle piu interessanti Vedute della Citta di Firenze…, Florence, Lorenzo Bardi, [c.1840]. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Crawfurd (John). Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava..., first edition, 1829. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Dawe (George, engraver). The Life of a Nobleman, first edition, Geo. Henderson, [c.1825]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: [Doyle (John)], "H.B.". Political Sketches &c., 10 vol. including The Descriptive Key to H.B., Thomas McLean, [1829-51]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Eben (Adolphus Christian Frederick, Baron von) and Nicolaus Heideloff. Modèles de l'Uniforme Militaire Adopté dans l'Armée Royale de Suède, Rudolph Ackerman, 1808. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Geissler (J.G.G.) and Friedrich Hempel. Mahlerische Darstellungen der Sitten, Gebrauche und Lustbarkeiten bey den Russischen, Tartarischen…, 4 parts in 1, Leipzig and Paris, [1804]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Hunt (Charles). Portraits of Winning Horses...of the Derby, Oaks, & St. Leger, from the Year 1842 to 1849…, Rock Brothers & Payne, 1849. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Kunike (Adolf Friedrich). Zwey hundert und sechzig Donau-Ansichten nach dem Laufe des Donaustromes…, Vienna, Leopold Grund, 1826. £3,000 to £5,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Lasinio (Carlo). [Matrimony], Florence, 1790. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Reinhardt (Joseph). A Collection of Swiss Costumes, in Miniature, second English edition, James Goodwin, [1828]. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Wengen (Gottfried Durst von). Die Öffentliche Maskerade Bamberg am Fastnachts-Montage 1833…, Bamberg, [1833]. £2,000 to £3,000.
  • Koller Auctions
    Books & Autographs
    20 March 2024
    Koller, Mar. 20: DADA - Der Zeltweg. Redaktion: Flake, Serner, Tzara. Zürich, 1919. CHF 5,000 – 8,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: Jespers, Floris - Peeters, Jan. Kinderlust. Antwerpen, J. F. Bogaerts & R. R. Dodson, [1923]. CHF 2,000 – 3,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: FARBENLEHRE - Chevreul, M. E. De la Loi du contraste simultané des couleurs et de l'assortiment des objets colorés. Paris, 1839. CHF 4,000 – 5,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: BOTANIK - Schrank, Franz de Paula von. Flora Monacensis, seu plantae sponte circa Monachium nascentes. München, 1811-1818. CHF 20,000 – 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: French Bible manuscript. Latin manuscript on parchment. With 81 illuminated, ornamental and figurative initials. Paris, c. 1250. CHF 90,000 – 120,000
    Koller Auctions
    Books & Autographs
    20 March 2024
    Koller, Mar. 20: Gradual for the use of a Dominican convent. Latin manuscript on parchment, with Flemish rubrics in black and red. Mecheln (?), c. 1520. CHF 25,000 – 40,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: Calendar. French manuscript on parchment. With 12 large colored thorn leaf initials on a gold background. Paris, c. 1380/1390. CHF 40,000 – 60,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: Freud, Sigmund. Collection of 23 handwritten letters to Alphonse Maeder in Zurich. In addition to 4 letter drafts from Maeder to Freud. 2 February 1910 - 21 September 1913. CHF 50,000 – 80,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: Jung, Carl Gustav. Collection of 26 autograph and 3 typescript letters and a postcard to Alphonse Maeder. 1911-1918. CHF 20,000 – 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 20: Nietzsche, Friedrich, philosopher. Handwritten letter signed to Richard Wagner. Basel, September 27, 1876. CHF 20,000 to 30,000
  • 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

Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - August - 2015 Issue

The 60's – 80's Underground from Brian Cassidy Bookseller

The 60's come alive.

Brian Cassidy Bookseller has launched his Catalogue #10. This is filled with, what should we call it, "counter culture" material from the 60's to the early 80's? That's a terrible name, but it is a collection of literature, poetry, music, politics, and life in general from outside the mainstream, except perhaps for a brief period in the late 60's when strangeness became mainstream. And then the 70's arrived and it retreated to its traditional, underground mode. A clue of what is to be found here is most works are held together by staples, not bindings, a sure sign of being on the fringes. Others are posters and photographs, in no need of being held together. If you are 45-70 years old, this will rekindle memories of lost youth. If you are younger, it's a chance to discover what you missed (and if you are older, you hated this stuff then and undoubtedly still do). One thing we can say about the era is it was filled with creativity, perhaps in shorter supply today. Here are just a few examples.

 

We start with a more traditional item, a regular book. Then again, this is pre-60's, having been published in 1959. The title is The Butterfly Tree, and it was written by Robert Bell. Bell was an Alabama native, the story is set in Alabama, and the work is considered a significant piece of Alabama literature. Still, it is not a well-known title, and Bell spent most of his working life as a librarian rather than a writer. Nonetheless, it fits in this catalogue because of the cover art. It was drawn by perhaps the greatest symbol of 1960's underground art, the artist of that period to achieve the greatest mainstream recognition (don't plan on buying any of his paintings unless you are very well set financially). Andy Warhol drew the picture of the young man on the dust jacket in the days before his reputation had been established. He was still primarily a commercial artist at the time, drawing advertisements and the like. Warhol has signed the dust jacket on this copy. Item 18. Priced at $1,250.

 

Next we have a pair of photographs of the family that ushered in the 1960's. They were hardly the radicals of the latter half of that decade, but they were the image of youth and change that signified its beginning. These are pictures of the Kennedy family, taken by Mark Shaw, a family favorite who was allowed to join them and take natural, unguarded photographs. Item 42 was taken in their Georgetown home in 1959. The scene is the breakfast table. Caroline, then two years old, is sitting on her father's lap. Jackie is reaching out to her from the side. Plates, glasses, and coffee cups are visible on the clear glass table. Everyone looks happy. $2,500. Item 43 was taken in Palm Beach in 1963. This was before the horror in Dallas later that year. Jackie is holding two-year-old John, who has an impish grin. Jackie's mouth is wide open, either in surprise or to shout out something. Both this and the previous picture were printed in 1964 and appeared in Shaw's photo book of the Kennedy's shortly after JFK was assassinated. $2,500.

 

We move to the other end of the decade and photographs of radicalized youth at the height of the protests against the Viet Nam War. Item 47 is a collection of 21 black and white photographs in an envelope with the business card of photographer Ann Douglas. Date these to circa 1968. The pictures feature members of the Youth International Party, better known as the "Yippies." If traditional left wing organizations tended to be overly serious and angry, the Yippies promoted their beliefs with street theater, laughs, and fun. Pictures include their founders, Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, and Ed Sanders, and Judy Collins as she announced their formation (in front of a sign proclaiming "Abandon The Creeping Meatball"). There is even a nude photograph of Hoffman. You didn't need to do this, Abbie. The Yippies would become best known at the Chicago Democratic Convention of 1968, where the Mayor and police were not amused by their theatrics and sense of humor. Both Hoffman and Rubin would end up as part of the Chicago Seven. They were convicted of crossing state lines to incite a riot, but their convictions were overturned. $2,500.

 

Next we have a flyer for some musical performances in Philadelphia, smack in the middle of the decade (1965). On the left side we have mainly folk and protest type of musicians playing extended runs (several days to more than a week) at the 2nd Fret. Featured performers include Tom Rush, Dave Van Ronk, and Phil Ochs. And then there are The Trolls, who are described as Rock & Roll. I'm not sure who they are, maybe the 60's band out of Chicago whose biggest hit, Every Day and Every Night, made it all the way to #96 on the Billboard charts in 1966. The right side of the flyer promotes a concert at the nearby Camden Convention Center by a man who needs no introduction – Johnny Cash. He is accompanied by the legendary bluegrass duo Flatt & Scruggs. Lester and Earl were the best of their genre, but may only be known to most people for recording the theme song of the Beverly Hillbillies. Item 59. $200.

 

We close with a return to one more traditional item, more fitting for the 70's (it was published in 1973). It comes from the Gahenna Press, the private press of noted artist and wood-engraver Leonard Baskin. It is the first volume of the never-completed The Gahenna Shakespeare. This is a folio publication and a "first thus," so perhaps we can call it the "First Thus Folio." Naturally, this limited edition features Baskin's engravings along with Shakespeare's text, and is one of 150 copies signed by the artist. Item 34. $2,000.

 

Brian Cassidy Bookseller may be reached at 301-589-0789 or books@briancassidy.net. The website is www.briancassidy.net.

Rare Book Monthly

  • 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.

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