William Morris, ‘Tale of King Coustans,’ Kelmscott Press 1894, shortly after rebound by the Ulwar, India bookbinders Qari Abdurrahman’s Sons, estimated at $500-$1,000
SARASOTA, Fla. — Sarasota Estate Auction will hold an Important Fine Book & Manuscript Auction on Sunday, February 12. Headlining this 140-lot sale will be letters written and signed by the Marquis de Lafayette, a Lord Nelson portrait and letter from 1801, and books from Charles Dickens’ own library, featuring his bookplate and his library plate. Also included are first editions by Charles Dickens, George Cruikshank, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and wonderful paper ephemera. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
1652 map of Italy signed by Nicolai Ioannis Visscher, est. $1,500-$2,000
NEW YORK – On Wednesday, July 13, starting at 7 pm Eastern time, Jasper52 will hold a sale titled 15th-19th Century Antique Books Collection, which delivers exactly that – books published between the 15th and 19th centuries, with a few maps and posters mixed in. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
On October 26, Simon & Schuster released ‘David Copperfield’s History of Magic,’ a 272-page hardcover that showcases his peerless collection of magic posters, apparatus, and ephemera. Image courtesy of Simon & Schuster
LAS VEGAS (AP) – The man who has made the Statue of Liberty vanish and walked through the Great Wall of China, strives to travel through time. Living in the moment won’t suffice for David Copperfield. This is true in his stage show at MGM Grand Theater, which employs black-and-white film clips depicting Copperfield’s father, and a time-worn, handwritten letter written decades ago. The illusionist’s zeal to span generations is celebrated on an even grander scale at his own private museum of magic in Las Vegas.
He’s dubbed it the David Copperfield International Museum and Library of the Conjuring Arts, but passersby won’t find an elaborate sign outside, or any indication at all of what lies inside the 40,000-square-foot, one-time warehouse just a few miles from his eponymous theater where he performs 15 shows a week. While the secret museum has no windows, it offers a sweeping view of the history of magic. And despite its undeniable potential as a ticketed attraction, the museum has never been open to the public. But now Copperfield is offering the world its first glimpse of the vast trove of supernatural artifacts in his new 272-page hardbound book David Copperfield’s History of Magic.
Hand-colored plate from Volume 1 of John and Thomas Doughty’s Cabinet of Natural History and American Rural Sports, featuring a red-tailed hawk and an American sparrow hawk, est. $225-$275
NEW YORK – On Wednesday, November 24, starting at 6 pm Eastern time, Jasper52 will offer Books from a Seller’s Private Collection. The 118-lot auction represents the ongoing liquidation of the holdings of a longtime book dealer. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
The home page for the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair (NYIABF) relays the news of the cancellation of the 2021 edition, which was to have taken place in September at the Park Avenue Armory.
NEW YORK – The New York International Antiquarian Book Fair (NYIABF) — officially sanctioned by Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America (ABAA) and International League of Antiquarian Booksellers (ILAB) and produced by Sanford L. Smith + Associates — regrets to announce that the fair, set for September at the Park Avenue Armory, has been canceled due to growing concerns of COVID-19 and the Delta variant.Continue reading
‘Just Friends and Brave Enemies,’ Harper & Row, 1962, by Robert F. Kennedy and inscribed by the author to Senator Stuart Symington. Stated first edition, near-fine condition with dust jacket. Estimate $800-$1,200
FALLS CHURCH, Va. – On Thursday, July 8, Quinn’s Auction Galleries will host an outstanding 317-lot auction of rare and signed books, antique maps, prints and autographs, with absentee and Internet live bidding available through LiveAuctioneers. Selections include works by Thomas Wolfe, Ernest Hemingway, Ulysses S. Grant, and Dutch engraver/cartographer Henricus Hondius II. The art category features an unpublished Frederic Dorr Steele illustration titled The Slavering Hound, which was created for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles.
Nicolaus Copernicus, ‘De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium,’ second edition, Basel, 1566, $60,000-$80,000
NEW YORK — Early printed books head to auction at Swann Galleries Thursday, April 8 at 12:00 noon Eastern with noteworthy publications relating to early printed medical, scientific and travel works, including a selection of incunabula. Absentee and live online bidding will be provided by LiveAuctioneers. Continue reading
CHICAGO – Hindman Auctions saw outstanding results in its Literature From a Private New Orleans Collection sale, held March 19. The auction realized more than $435,000, doubling its pre-sale estimate. Online bidding was available through LiveAuctioneers. Continue reading
1816 first edition English copy of Ada Lovelace’s ‘An Elementary Treatise on the Differential and Integral Calculus.’ Image courtesy Manhattan Rare Book Company
NEW YORK – A historically significant first English edition of a French mathematical text from the personal library of Ada Lovelace (1815-1852), the renowned British scientist and mathematician (and daughter of the renowned poet Lord Byron) has appeared in the marketplace for private purchase. The book is especially significant in the context of Women’s History Month, as many may not realize that Lovelace is regarded as the world’s first computer programmer.Continue reading
Jasper52’s August 28th online-only rare books auction boasts an eclectic selection of fascinating books, autographs, and documents, from the 16th to the 20th centuries. Among the many subject areas to entice collectors at all levels are: American history, nautical history, World War II, literature, popular science, transportation, animal husbandry, art, and early printed books and autographs from England and the Continent.
