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Wednesday Auction Report

RBH Auction Report for Week ending May 8, 2026 (#40)

 

RBH Auction Report for Week ending May 8, 2026 (#40)

Hammer Price

 

Heritage led the RBH top 25 auction results with 11 of their offerings on the list. Placing first was a 1977 Luke Skywalker rookie card (Topps Star Wars - Series 1) graded PSA 10 which sold for $687,500 on May 4.  Also prominent on the list were University Archives with items from their May 6 sale of rare autographs, manuscripts and books and Swann Galleries with a variety of important signed photographs. See below for other highlights of the week.

 

For the week ended May 8, a total of 58 auctions were archived to Rare Book Hub’s database of rare and collectible books, manuscripts, maps and ephemera. 

 

Turnover was $11.9 million. The average lot brought $1,164. There were 14,489  lots offered, of these 10,297 found new homes. For the week 71.07% of all lots offered were sold. Two auctions saw their total proceeds reach a million dollars.  

 

Next week's calendar includes 84 sales. Reports were provided primarily in Dollars ($), Pounds (£), and Euros (€)

 

This is the FREE LINK - any viewer may use this link to see the complete report for the past week and list of upcoming auctions for next week: 

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_updates/1096

 

All other links require an RBH subscription to view the complete text of the archived record. 

 

Selected Highlights

 

 

 

1.  The 1896 Kelmscott Chaucer sold at Bonhams on May 5 (David Godine Collection Part I) for $140,200. The high presale estimate was $90,000. 

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9718440?key=10221150292c95f81e6f116eef2f6bc4d3004592

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2.  Joseph Smith’s Book of Mormon ca. 1830 sold at University Archives on May 6 for $168,750, somewhat below the presale estimate of $220,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9698799?key=d5a3380ed2bdd327905cc983b567f17f706821c0

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3.  A collection of 18 Bauhaus postcards from the Weimar Bauhaus Exhibition of 1923 including

images by Feininger; Kandinsky; Klee; Marcks; Moholy-Nagy and others sold at Kiefer Buch und Kunstauktionen Book and Art Auction Day 3 on May 8 for €112,500 ($132,102). 

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9726334?key=d3c4c6c2f6d674c4a75236eb638e7b3b9d666e53

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4.  A signed and inscribed photo of John Wilkes Booth ca. 1862-1865 sold at Swann Galleries on May 7 for $107,950. The presale high estimate was $10,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9718859?key=629a2dcffcb49a292e28c41f84dfab83ba5147b3

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5.  An 1893 letter by Frederick Douglass on Slavery sold at University Archives on May 6 for $68,750.  

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9698795?key=f17f8742010a4fafd4b36c1cd05c5354459ab6f8

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6.  A 1652 Map of America by J. Blaeu sold on May 7 in Germany at Kiefer Buch und Kunstauktionen (Day 2) for €60,000 ($70,454). The presale high estimate was €9,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9701409?key=8771af1627c228535d56feaef42707e083b1a43f

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.  Yellow Cruise, Citroen Central Asia Expedition, 1931-31 3rd G.M. Haardt Audouin-Dubreuil Mission sold at Gros & Delettrez        (France) on May 6 for €44,200 ($51,952). The presale high estimate was €2,500.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9718126?key=1a41acbf1148fe5e9526e214728a694becc32fa4

 

 

 

 

 

 

8.  Stride Toward Freedom: the Montgomery Story, 1958 signed by Martin Luther King sold at University Archive Rare Autographs, Manuscripts and Books sale on May 6 for $10,000. The presale estimate was $4,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9698798?key=a7f94f337b09a84b65597831ea8f89e32cb64232

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

9.  A 1940 pen and ink portrait of Jared French by Paul Cadmus sold at Rago Arts and Auctions on May 6 for $17,920. The presale high estimate was $5,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9715017?key=ab476d995ac94a6413791cd43d6fe4cc073f64c9

 

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

10.  Two first editions by Cormac McCarthy:  Outer Dark (1968) and The Orchard Keeper (1965) both first editions in less than pristine condition sold as a pair at New England Book Auction on May 5 for $1,920.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9702492?key=3fa661150059597b60d49b82ac7c0b3303d5c86f

 

 

 

 

 

11.  A 1977 Luke Skywalker rookie trading card from Topps Star Wars Series 1 graded PSA 10 sold at Heritage on May 4 for $687,500, more than double the presale high estimate of $300,000.

https://www.rarebookhub.com/auction_lot_books/9640293?key=968076f84bfc5325c39079d848e9d32a1c27beda

  • Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Galileo Galilei. Dialogo sopra i due massimi sistemi del mondo tolemaico, e copernicano. Firenze, 1632
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Saverio Manetti. Storia naturale degli uccelli. Firenze, 1771-76
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Fortunato Depero. Depero futurista. Rovereto, 1927
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Nicolas Visscher. Atlas minor sive totius orbis terrarum contracta delineat ex conatibus. Amsterdam, circa 1649-95
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Andreas Vesalius. Anatomia. Addita nunc. Antiquorum Anatome. Venezia, 1604
    Aste Bolaffi, June 17-18: Tristan Tzara and Salvador Dalì. Grains et Issues. Parigi, 1935
  • 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
  • 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.