Kelmscott Press: the finest of Arts and Crafts fine presses

Kelmscott Press’s The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer attained £48,000 ($58,311) plus the buyer’s premium in February 2023. Image courtesy of Lyon & Turnbull and LiveAuctioneers.

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Kelmscott Press’s The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer attained £48,000 ($58,311) plus the buyer’s premium in February 2023. Image courtesy of Lyon & Turnbull and LiveAuctioneers.
Kelmscott Press’s The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer attained £48,000 ($58,311) plus the buyer’s premium in February 2023. Image courtesy of Lyon & Turnbull and LiveAuctioneers.

NEW YORK — In the publishing world, the Kelmscott Press was in operation for a mere blip’s worth of time, only publishing 50-some books between 1891-1898. Yet these elegantly appointed books with lavish pictorial decorations, typefaces and fine bindings have been collectors’ favorites ever since.

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Coveted first editions dominate Potter & Potter’s Aug. 17 rare books sale

J.R.R. Tolkien, ‘The Hobbit or There and Back Again,’ estimated at $10,000-$15,000
J.R.R. Tolkien, ‘The Hobbit or There and Back Again,’ estimated at $10,000-$15,000
J.R.R. Tolkien, ‘The Hobbit or There and Back Again,’ estimated at $10,000-$15,000

CHICAGO – Potter & Potter Auctions will hold a 382-lot sale of the collection of Robin and Kathryn Smiley, the co-publishers and editors of Firsts: The Book Collector’s Magazine, on Thursday, August 17, starting at 10 am Central time. The Smiley collection features modern firsts of literature, mystery and detective fiction, and western literature, with a special emphasis on books into film. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

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Sarasota Estate Auction promises to fill your bookshelves, Feb. 12

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
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
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.

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Kelmscott Press Chaucer tops strong lineup at Potter & Potter, Feb. 16

Kelmscott Press 1896 limited edition of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer Now Newly Imprinted,’ estimated at $100,000-$125,000
Kelmscott Press 1896 limited edition of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer Now Newly Imprinted,’ estimated at $100,000-$125,000
Kelmscott Press 1896 limited edition of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer Now Newly Imprinted,’ estimated at $100,000-$125,000

CHICAGO – Potter & Potter Auctions will hold a Fine Books & Manuscripts, Including Americana Sale, its first in 2023, on Thursday, February 16, starting at 10 am Central time. The 531-lot auction will feature century-spanning works across all categories, as well as signed and presentation editions and maps. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

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Fine books, manuscripts surpass $1M mark at Potter & Potter

William Morris for Kelmscott Press edition of ‘The Poems of William Shakespeare,’ $16,800
William Morris for Kelmscott Press edition of ‘The Poems of William Shakespeare,’ $16,800
William Morris for Kelmscott Press edition of ‘The Poems of William Shakespeare,’ $16,800

CHICAGO – Potter & Potter Auctions‘ October 20 Fine Books and Manuscripts sale realized nearly $1.1 million. The auction presented once-in-a-lifetime selections, including a fine collection of materials with provenance to the great explorers of the 18th and 19th centuries.

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Indigenous Northwest Coast art speaks to collectors everywhere

Robert Davidson’s (Haida), S’gan mask (Killer Whale mask), carved and painted red cedar, cedar bark, feathers and operculum shells, attained $54,458 plus the buyer’s premium in July 2021. Image courtesy of First Arts Premiers Inc. and LiveAuctioneers.
Robert Davidson’s (Haida), S’gan mask (Killer Whale mask), carved and painted red cedar, cedar bark, feathers and operculum shells, attained $54,458 plus the buyer’s premium in July 2021. Image courtesy of First Arts Premiers Inc. and LiveAuctioneers.
Robert Davidson’s S’gan mask (Killer Whale mask), fashioned from carved and painted red cedar, cedar bark, feathers and operculum shells, attained $54,458 plus the buyer’s premium in July 2021. Image courtesy of First Arts Premiers Inc. and LiveAuctioneers.

NEW YORK — The arts and objects made by native and indigenous peoples in North America have long been of interest, not just in region where they were made but by collectors and admirers everywhere. This is no less true for the works of the Native American communities of the Northwest Coast of the continent.

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Kelmscott Press Chaucer an exciting entry to PBA Galleries’ June 2 sale

Kelmscott Press printing of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer,’ est. $70,000-$100,000
Kelmscott Press printing of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer,’ est. $70,000-$100,000

Kelmscott Press printing of ‘The Works of Geoffrey Chaucer,’ est. $70,000-$100,000

BERKELEY, Calif. – PBA Galleries announces an auction of Rare Books & Manuscripts to be held Thursday, June 2. The sale comprises a selection of more than 200 lots of rare and significant books, with manuscript material dating from the 14th through 20th centuries. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.

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Interior designers freshen decor by mixing styles

Carsons tufted chaise lounge in burnt orange. Image courtesy of LiveAuctioneers and Regency Auction House

NEW YORK – The freshest style in decor these days is … mixing styles.

Traditional and contemporary often work well together. Think abstract art with an overstuffed chaise, or an 18th century-style toile wallpaper with an ’80s-era lamp. The appeal is in the pleasing tension between the styles; sophisticated, artsy, yet livable.

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Lyon & Turnbull to auction ‘Modern Made’ studio glass collection, April 30

Richard Jolley, ‘Visionary’, 1992, estimated at £4,000-£6,000
Richard Jolley, ‘Visionary,’ 1992, estimated at £4,000-£6,000

LONDON – On April 30, Lyon & Turnbull will offer an important collection of studio and contemporary glass from a private European collection. The consignment, part of its Modern Made auction, features works by leading names in the field from Italy, Britain, Sweden, Japan, and the United States. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
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