An Extraordinary Catalogue from Phillip J. Pirages
A circa 1240 manuscript bible created in southern France.
Item 261 is a copy of the earliest obtainable printing of the Koran in the original Arabic. Though circulated widely in the Islamic world in manuscript form, it was not printed until 1538 in Venice. However, Pope Paul III decreed that all copies were to be confiscated and destroyed. Only one copy of this edition is known to survive. This second printing, edited by Abraham Hinckelmann, provided a preface that enabled it to circumvent the edict. The preface explains that it is presented to help Christians understand the contents of the Koran, the better to convert the infidels. Published in 1694. $15,000.
The battle against loose morals goes on, but it is hardly new. Item 173 is a 1678 edition of a work first published in French three years earlier: A Just and Seasonable Reprehension of Naked Breasts and Shoulders. Perhaps author Jacques Boileau had spent too much time hanging around those beaches in the south of France. He warns women that wearing these gowns of "deep neck" will only turn them into fornicators, or hooked up with some rogue of questionable morals. A preface to this English edition cites similar issues in post-Puritan England, and notes that even "deluded" Quaker women know enough to cover themselves. $1,750.
Item 266 is an antiquarian book on the relationship between food and good health that still offers some good advice, though this is a 1745 printing of a book first published in 1702. It is A Treatise of All Sorts of Foods, Both Animal and Vegetable: Also of Drinkables, by Louis Lemery. He advises moderation and a balanced diet, favors drinking tea and water, and also recommends wine, chocolate, and coffee in moderate quantities. He also cautions against an overindulgence in eating frogs, not a problem for most of us. $1,250.
Item 430 offers a report on the "King of the Wild Frontier," Davey Crockett. The book is An Account of Col. Crockett's Tour to the North and Down East, frequently attributed to his friend Augustin Clayton. Published in 1835, it recalls a trip Crockett made to the Northeast in 1834, where his unexpected sympathy for the Indians made him a popular figure. However, association with that part of the country was sufficient then, as now, to get one branded as something of an elitist, and he lost his seat in Congress in the next election. Crockett took off for Texas, where he achieved immortality, though much too soon. $5,500.
Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Manuscripts may be reached at 503-472-0476 or pirages@onlinemac.com. Their website is www.pirages.com.
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.")
