Ancient Indian rulers are depicted in Thomas Hendley's Rulers of India.
Afghanistan has always been a challenging land for foreign invaders. James Atkinson was a superintending surgeon with the British army when it advanced on Kabul in 1841. The British were engaged in a long-running rivalry with the Russians to control the area between Russia and their colony in India. Neither ever had much success, the Afghans being an independence-minded people who knew the difficult land far better than any foreign invaders. Atkinson's book, Sketches in Afghanistan, includes 25 tinted plates of the country from this brief period of British control. Fortunately for Atkinson, he returned to Bengal in 1841, avoiding the terrible fate of thousands of British and Indian occupiers the following year. £3,750 (US $7,662).
Lady Florentina Sale was not so fortunate as Atkinson to escape before the disastrous British retreat, and yet she was quite lucky to be one of the very few to survive. Her husband, Sir Robert Henry Sale, was off defending Jalalabad when the British were forced by rebellious Afghans to abandon Kabul. This signaled one of the most horrific of retreats ever experienced by the British. Poorly equipped and supplied, some 15,000 British, about a third from the military, primarily Indian units, and 10,000 civilians, including many women and children, marched over the frozen, snowy passes of Afghanistan in the dead of winter. Their destination was Jalalabad, 90 miles away. However, most succumbed to the bitter cold, huge snowdrifts, and constant attack by Afghans better suited for the treacherous conditions. Of the 15,000 who retreated from Kabul, only one, Dr. William Brydon, is known to have made it Jalalabad. Other than Dr. Brydon, the only survivors were a few of the Indians who hid in caves, and a few civilians taken prisoner by the Afghans and later freed. Among the latter was Lady Sale, who managed to keep a diary of her experiences. This became the basis for her account published in 1843, A journal of the disasters in Affghanistan, 1841-2. Item 163. £950 (US $1,941).
You may visit Bernard J. Shapero Rare Books online at www.shapero.com, telephone +44 (0)20 7493 0876.
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.
![<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.")
