A Variety of New Acquisitions from Bauman Rare Books
New acquisitions from Bauman Rare Books.
By Michael Stillman
Bauman Rare Books recently issued a catalogue of New Acquisitions from December. This is not material that can be pigeonholed into some particular category, but what it does have in common is that it is all top shelf. Bauman offers a selection of important and highly collectible work, much of it signed, that runs the gamut from politics to history, science, arts, literature, poetry, children's books, Americana, and more. Here are a few items from this latest collection.
Item 190 must be Nirvana for collectors of signed books. It is called Liber Scriptorum, published in two volumes, 28 years apart. The book was published by the Author's Club of New York, formed to assist young writers. To raise funds, each of the club's members contributed a story, poem, essay or the like, which was never to be published elsewhere. Just 251 copies of the first edition were printed. There were 213 contributors, and 204 of them signed volume 1. The most prominent were Mark Twain, Theodore Roosevelt, and Andrew Carnegie. The book was printed in 1893 by Theodore de Vinne. The book sold for $100, a lot of money in those days (but not to Carnegie). Profits were $10,500. Despite the plan, Twain's Californian's Tale, first published here, was republished later. The Club planned to publish the second volume on the 25th anniversary of the first, but because of the War, it was delayed until 1921. It follows the same format as number one. Priced at $8,500.
The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway, is one of the most collectible of modern firsts. The book launched Hemingway into iconic status. This copy comes in the rare first issue dust jacket, which Bauman notes is one of the two most prized dust jackets of 20th-century American literature (the other being The Great Gatsby). Item 6. $75,000.
Item 8 is a rare piece of correspondence between President Abraham Lincoln and General George McClellan. In 1861, Congress authorized the appointment of an additional aide-de-camp for all major generals. McClellan, commander of the Union forces, was so entitled, and so he requested the appointment of Richard Irwin as his aide. Offered is McClellan's letter, endorsed by Lincoln: "Let the appointment within requested be made. A. Lincoln." Of course, the relationship between these two would deteriorate as Union forces struggled, and Lincoln would remove McClellan from command for being too cautious and timid. McClellan would in turn challenge Lincoln for the presidency as the Democratic nominee is 1864, but Union victories before the election doomed McClellan's chances. $31,000.
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.")
