Historic Autographed Documents from The Raab Collection
John Hancock signed the only surviving first House credentials.
James Buchanan wanted for years to be President. As early as 1844, he was a serious contender. He finally achieved his ambition in 1856, only to ineptly preside over a nation falling apart at the seams, with the South finally seceding during the waning days of his administration. In 1847, he wrote this letter to George Guier, a Philadelphia Democrat who was evidently not a Buchanan supporter. Buchanan, in typical political fashion, pretends he is more interested in the Democratic Party than his own ambitions, and while acknowledging the two haven't been close, attempts to at least neutralize Guier's opposition if not make him a supporter. Writes Buchanan, "I have no ambitious aspirations beyond that of a desire to obtain & preserve the good opinion of my fellow citizens.' Yes, that and be elected President. Item 19. $4,600.
Buchanan failed to win the nomination that year, but it was just as well because the Democratic nominee, Lewis Cass, lost to Whig candidate Zachary Taylor. Taylor ran a candidacy not merely short on specifics, but totally absent of them. Taylor was a war hero, but with the end of the Mexican War, which had helped unify the nation, the disposition of the newly acquired territory, whether it be free or slave, was starting to tear the nation apart. So Taylor ran on his personal popularity, saying little but platitudes. Cass ran on a popular sovereignty platform - let the new territories decide whether to have slavery. This was a more pro-South position as heretofore these areas were off limits to slavery. Taylor said nothing, which appealed more to the North, while his being a southern slaveholder himself, appealed to the South. Writes the vague Taylor in this 1848 letter, "...if I can be instrumental in moderating to some extent the bitterness of party and political asperity, I should consider myself more than fortunate." Taylor did, and won, and then incensed many of his southern compatriots by trying to push the newly acquired territories to statehood while they were free. However, he died a year into office before accomplishing his goals, allowing for weaker leaders than he to try, unsuccessfully, to compromise their way into a resolution. Item 20. $7,500.
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…
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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. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
![<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.")
