Rare Book Monthly Reviews - June - 2009 Issue

Captain Bligh and the Mutiny on the Bounty from Hordern House

Captain Bligh and the Mutiny on the Bounty from Hordern House

By Michael Stillman

Hordern House of Australia has issued a new catalogue, though this spectacular presentation has more the appearance of a fine press book than a bookseller's catalogue. Offered are selections from the collection of Robert and Mary Anne Parks of Michigan. Last year, Hordern House offered books from the Parks' collection of the great explorer James Cook. This latest collection is an homage to one of the most controversial men to sail the seas. Some see him as one of the bravest, most skillful navigators ever to captain a ship. Others see him as a tyrant deserving of the ...

The Laurence Urdang Collection of Maritime Books from the Ten Pound Island Book Co.

The Laurence Urdang Collection of Maritime Books from the Ten Pound Island Book Co.

By Michael Stillman

This month we have received our first catalogue from the Ten Pound Island Book Company of Gloucester, Massachusetts. The title could not be more appropriate for Gloucester: ...

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American Philosophy from Rudi Thoemmes Rare Books

American Philosophy from Rudi Thoemmes Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

Rudi Thoemmes Rare Books has issued a somewhat surprising catalogue, American Philosophy, 1738-1914. It's unexpected as Thoemmes is a British bookseller, located in Bristol. ...

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Americana and the West from Clark Rare Books

Americana and the West from Clark Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

Clark Rare Books has prepared a new catalogue, Catalog 938 of Americana, The West, and General. There are many new acquisitions available this month, along with a few new tit...

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The Wide World of Jo Mora from Carpe Diem Fine Books

The Wide World of Jo Mora from Carpe Diem Fine Books

By Michael Stillman

We recently received our first catalogue from Carpe Diem Fine Books, and it is dedicated to one individual that some of you may not know. The man is Jo Mora (or Joseph Jacint...

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The Dutch Overseas from Gert Jan Bestebreurtje Rare Books

The Dutch Overseas from Gert Jan Bestebreurtje Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

Gert Jan Bestebreurtje Rare Books has issued their 138th catalogue, The Dutch Overseas. The Netherlands was a major colonial power, particularly from the 17th through the 19t...

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Six Hundred Children's Books from Aleph-Bet Books

Six Hundred Children's Books from Aleph-Bet Books

By Michael Stillman

Aleph-Bet Books has released their Catalogue 91 of Children's Books and Illustrated Books. Actually, most are illustrated children's books, thereby qualifying under both head...

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Signed American Documents from Joe Rubinfine

Signed American Documents from Joe Rubinfine

By Michael Stillman

Joe Rubinfine of Cocoa, Florida, has published his List 163 of American Historical Autographs. Most of these autographs come on letters or other written documents, and most a...

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Fine Press, Artists' Books, History and More from Kelmscott Bookshop

Fine Press, Artists' Books, History and More from Kelmscott Bookshop

By Michael Stillman

Kelmscott Bookshop Rare Books has released their Catalog 4 of Artists' Books, Private Press, the Pre-Raphaelites, William Morris, Photography, Art, Fine Literature, History, ...

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The Latest in Film, Literature and Mystery from James Pepper Rare Books

The Latest in Film, Literature and Mystery from James Pepper Rare Books

By Michael Stillman

We have received the latest collections of books and related items for sale from James Pepper Rare Books: Catalogue 82. Pepper's catalogues feature literature, items related...

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"Bad Books" and More from Garrett Scott, Bookseller

"Bad Books" and More from Garrett Scott, Bookseller

By Michael Stillman

It's not often we see a catalogue with the cover warning "Beware of Bad Books." Is this the ultimate caveat emptor, a warning as to the quality of books within? Of course, no...

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More Literature, Film, Etc. from Waverly Books

More Literature, Film, Etc. from Waverly Books


By Michael Stillman

Waverly Books has issued a new catalogue, List 164. Offered are books in their usual fields of literature and film-related, with enough surprises to make any collector want...

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Latin American and Spanish Works from Plaza Books

Latin American and Spanish Works from Plaza Books


By Michael Stillman

Plaza Books recently issued their List 28. The California bookseller specializes in Latin American and Spanish books. The greatest concentration is in Mexican items, includ...

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Gene W. Baade Offers Inexpensive Books on the West

Gene W. Baade Offers Inexpensive Books on the West


By Michael Stillman

Gene W. Baade Books on the West has now issued Catalogue 509. This includes 190 items from stock, most of which, he notes, have been reduced in price. This is a catalogue d...

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Rise To Globalism - The U.S. 1865-1941 from the William Reese Company

Rise To Globalism - The U.S. 1865-1941 from the William Reese Company


By Michael Stillman

The William Reese Company has issued a catalogue of American items from a period, though long, not often the subject of catalogues we see. The Revolution, antebellum period...

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Martayan Lan Offering a Collection of Early Maps

Martayan Lan Offering a Collection of Early Maps


By Michael Stillman

Martayan Lan has issued a foldout pamphlet that serves as an announcement that they are offering an important collection of maps, atlases, and books containing maps. It is ...

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Rare Book Monthly

  • Sotheby's Book Week
    2 June - 9 July
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Smith, Adam. The Wealth of Nations, on its 250th anniversary. $180,000 to $250,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 17: Fontana, Lucio. Concetto Spaziale. 1967. Leporello en papier doré. Bel exemplaire signé. €4,000 to $€,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Fitzgerald, F. Scott. "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past”. $150,000 to $200,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 25: Washington, George (as First President). Washington decries “an ostentatious imitation, or mimickry of Royalty” in his Presidency. $250,000 to $500,000.
    Sotheby’s, June 17: Lope de Vega. Rare manuscrit autographe signé de la préface dédicatoire de "El Cardenal de Belen" (le cardinal de Bethléem), pièce composée en 1610. €40,000 to €60,000.
  • June 23rd, 24th & 25th 2026
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Medical Incunabula: Petit (Jean)publisher & Kerver (Thielman)printer. Regimen Sanitatis Salernitanum, sm. 8vo, Paris [1498]
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Hugo (Victor) [Wraxall (Lascelles)]. Les Miserable, 3 vols., 8vo, L. (Hurst & Blackett) 1862, First Authorized English Translation (copyright).
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Shelley (Mary Wollstonecraft). Frankenstein: or The Modern Prometheus, 8vo, 2 vols. in one, L. (G. & W.B. Whittaker, Ave-Maria-Lane) 1823.
    June 23rd, 24th & 25th 2026
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Cuisine: Anon. Cookery, Pastry, and Sweet Meats in three Books, Alphabetically Digested, 8vo 1710.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Lambert (Aylmer Bourke). A Description of the Genus Pinus, with Directions Relative to the Cultivation…, 2 vols. Sm. folio L. (Messrs. Weddell) 1832.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Botany: Curtis (William). Flora Londinensis: or Plates and Descriptions of such Plants as Grow Wild in the Environs of London, 2 vols. folio, London (B. White) 1777 – 1798.
    June 23rd, 24th & 25th 2026
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Le Moire (J.M.) Maple Leaves, Canadian History and Quebec Scenery (Third Series) 8vo Quebec (Hunter, Rose & Co.) 1865. First Edn.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: The Earliest Extant Printed House Contents Sale Catalogue in Ireland: Baillie, Auctioneer, Abby Street. A Catalogue of the Goods and Stock of the late Edward Wingfield…
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: William III King of England. Autograph Letter Signed ("William R") to an unnamed correspondent [possibly Charles-Henri de Lorraine] discussing his strategy against the French forces during the siege of Namur.
    June 23rd, 24th & 25th 2026
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: [Austen (Jane) (1785-1817]. Pride and Prejudice, 3 vols. sm. 8vo, L. (T. Egerton) 1813.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Heaney (Seamus). Ugolino, sm. folio D. (Dolmen) 1979, Limited Edn. No. 78/125 Copies, Signed by Seamus Heaney, Louis le Brocquy, Liam Miller and Andrew Carpenter.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, June 23-25: Voltaire (F.M. Avouet de). Petits Ouvrages, attribues a M. de Voltaire, sm. folio manuscript, dated 1776, containing 9 works.
  • Bonhams, June 14-23: Franklin D. Roosevelt Presentation Gold Pocket Watch. Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Presentation Copy of the First Issue of the Lincoln Douglas Debates Signed by Abraham Lincoln in Pencil to a Sangamon County Illinois Republican. Estimate: $150,000 - 250,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: A Senate Resolution Signed in the Tense Days After the Union's Humiliating Defeat at the First Battle of Bull Run. Estimate: $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Seven Passages to a Flight, an Artists Book with a Story Quilt by Faith Ringgold, the Publisher's Own Copy. Estimate: $80,000 - 120,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: A New Charter for Virginia, A Response to the First Armed Rebellion in the American Colonies. Estimate: $15,000 - 25,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Earliest obtainable printing of the Bill of Rights. Estimate: $8,000 - 12,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Edward Curtis Orotone. Estimate: $7,000 - 9,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Owned by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis: A Butter or Dessert Plate from FDR's State Dinner Service. Estimate: $3,000 - 5,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: An Early Large-Format Plan of the City of Washington. Estimate: $1,500 - 2,500
    Bonhams, June 14-23: Containing the First Map to Name the Hudson River. Estimate: $20,000 - 30,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: America's First Major Novelist, a Complete Chapter in Autograph Manuscript by James Fenimore Cooper. Estimate: $15,000 - 20,000
    Bonhams, June 14-23: The Only Full-Length Book by Jefferson, with the Justly Famous Map. Estimate: $12,000 - 18,000
  • June 25, 2026
    Doyle, June 25: Houdini's biography, boldly signed. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A volume from Abraham Lincoln's library, signed just before heading to Washington for his inauguration. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A very early Confederate recruiting manual belonging to the chief commissary in Lee's Army. $600 to $800.
    Doyle, June 25: Rare hand-colored lithographs of the life of Napoleon. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Doyle, June 25: The "Holster Atlas" of the American Revolution. $5,000 to $8,000.
    Doyle, June 25: Jewish ceremonies in fine hand-colored engravings. $7,000 to $10,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A very rare work on Turkish military costume. $1,000 to $1,500.
    June 25, 2026
    Doyle, June 25: The most important illustrated work on the Mexican-American War. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, June 25: The finest illustrated book on Afghanistan. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Doyle, June 25: Henry Justice Ford St. George rescues the Princess from the horrible Dragon. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Doyle, June 25: A rare work of Prussian Army uniforms under Frederick William II, with exquisite hand-colored engravings. $800 to $1,200.
    Doyle, June 25: Lenny Bruce typed letter signed to a Village bohemian during his obscenity trials, with a manuscript note and drawing. $300 to $500.
    Doyle, June 25: Schiff's scarce Shanghai Sketchbook. $300 to $500.
    Doyle, June 25: The first accurate published representation of the American flag. $2,000 to $4,000.
  • Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 123. Celebrate 250 Years of Independence with Original Stars and Stripes (1790) Est. $1,400 - $1,700
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 20. Keulen's Spectacular Chart of the World Featuring California as an Island (1728) Est. $12,000 - $15,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 42. Schedel's Ancient World Map with Fantastic Humanoid Creatures (1493) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 591. Matching Set of 3 Stunning Globe Gores of Eastern Asia from Coronelli's 3.5 Foot Globe (1688) Est. $5,500 - $7,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 9. Speed's Popular World Map with Allegorical Representations of the Elements (1651) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 168. First Separate Map of Kansas & Nebraska Territories (1854) Est. $5,500 - $7,000
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 43. Only Macrobius Map with Britain Attached to Europe (1515) Est. $800 - $950
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 250. Rare Map of Boston and One of the Earliest Maps of the Revolutionary War (1775) Est. $2,000 - $2,300
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 79. Schenk's Uncommon Map Featuring Two Figurative Title Cartouches (1696) Est. $1,200 - $1,500
    Old World Auctions (June 17): Lot 681. Hand-Colored Image of the Annunciation to the Shepherds (1502) Est. $800 - $950

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