• Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Alken (Henry). Sporting Notions, first edition, T.McLean, 1832-33. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Bardi (Lorenzo). Nuova Raccolta delle piu interessanti Vedute della Citta di Firenze…, Florence, Lorenzo Bardi, [c.1840]. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Crawfurd (John). Journal of an Embassy from the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava..., first edition, 1829. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Dawe (George, engraver). The Life of a Nobleman, first edition, Geo. Henderson, [c.1825]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: [Doyle (John)], "H.B.". Political Sketches &c., 10 vol. including The Descriptive Key to H.B., Thomas McLean, [1829-51]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Eben (Adolphus Christian Frederick, Baron von) and Nicolaus Heideloff. Modèles de l'Uniforme Militaire Adopté dans l'Armée Royale de Suède, Rudolph Ackerman, 1808. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Geissler (J.G.G.) and Friedrich Hempel. Mahlerische Darstellungen der Sitten, Gebrauche und Lustbarkeiten bey den Russischen, Tartarischen…, 4 parts in 1, Leipzig and Paris, [1804]. £1,000 to £1,500.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Hunt (Charles). Portraits of Winning Horses...of the Derby, Oaks, & St. Leger, from the Year 1842 to 1849…, Rock Brothers & Payne, 1849. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Kunike (Adolf Friedrich). Zwey hundert und sechzig Donau-Ansichten nach dem Laufe des Donaustromes…, Vienna, Leopold Grund, 1826. £3,000 to £5,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Colour Plate Books from the Library of Norman Bobins
    Part 2
    27th March 2024
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Lasinio (Carlo). [Matrimony], Florence, 1790. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Reinhardt (Joseph). A Collection of Swiss Costumes, in Miniature, second English edition, James Goodwin, [1828]. £800 to £1,200.
    Forum Auctions, Mar. 27: Wengen (Gottfried Durst von). Die Öffentliche Maskerade Bamberg am Fastnachts-Montage 1833…, Bamberg, [1833]. £2,000 to £3,000.
  • Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Winston Churchill. The Second World War. Set of First-Edition Volumes. 6,000 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: A.A. Milne, Ernest H. Shepard. A Collection of The Pooh Books. Set of First-Editions. 18,600 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Salvador Dalí, Lewis Carroll. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Finely Bound and Signed Limited Edition. 15,000 USD
    Sotheby’s
    Modern First Editions
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ian Fleming. Live and Let Die. First Edition. 9,500 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: J.K. Rowling. Harry Potter Series. Finely Bound First Printing Set of Complete Series. 5,650 USD
    Sotheby’s, Available Now: Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell to Arms. First Edition, First Printing. 4,200 USD
  • Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG BEADED JUDICIAL COLLAR. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: ONLY KNOWN COPY OF THE ONLY BOOK BY THE REMARKABLE EVE ADAMS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A COMPLETE RUN OF VISIONAIRE MAGAZINE THROUGH 2010. $6,000 - $9,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: LAW REVIEW OFFPRINT SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY RUTH BADER GINSBURG. $3,000 - $5,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: META REBNER'S WORKING SCRIPT OF THE LOVED ONE. $1,500 - $2,000
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A KATHY GROVE PORTRAIT OF CYNDI LAUPER FOR THE FEBRUARY 1989 DETAILS COVER. $800 - $1,200
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A PLASTIC COAT BY MILLIE DAVID FEATURED IN SOHO NEWS STYLE SECTION, FROM THE COLLECTION OF ANNIE FLANDERS. $500 - $700
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A RUTH BADER GINSBURG JEWELRY BOX. $600 - $900
    Bonhams, Mar. 22 – Apr. 2: A SET OF JONI MITCHELL LYRICS FOR "IF I HAD A HEART." $2,000 - $3,000
  • 19th Century Shop
    Catalogue 198 just published
    19th Century Shop. Darwin and Wallace, first printing of the first paper on natural selection
    19th Century Shop. Shakespeare’s Poems, first collected edition
    19th Century Shop. Walt Whitman portrait inscribed with a Leaves of Grass poem
    19th Century Shop. Major Elizabeth Barrett Browning manuscript notebook
    19th Century Shop. Spock's Baby Book, original MS
    19th Century Shop. Cellarius, Harmonia Macrocosmica, the great celestial atlas

Rare Book Monthly

Articles - October - 2015 Issue

10 More Tips from an e-Bay Power Seller

Smaller is better: Sometimes, especially in science fiction, the earliest version is in digest or paperback format. "The Fireman" the first incarnation of Fahrenheit 451 came out in Galaxy in 1951, the true first was the Ballantine paperback of 1953.

Here are 10 bookish tips for those who sell books and antiquarian paper online. Perhaps the best way to summarize these suggestions is by saying anyone can have a book, magazine, map, photo or other kind of old paper, but what the really good dealer adds is knowledge that sets what they have to offer apart from others and inspires confidence.



1 SMALLER IS BETTER

In today’s market smaller is better, and that includes vintage paperbacks and older digest sized specialty magazines such as science fiction. Looking at a shelf of paperbacks, look for the short ones, they are apt to be older. When in doubt about the actual publication date be guided by the cover price. The lower the price the older the paperback. Some of the most collectible science fiction came out first in paperback or in digest sized magazines. For example, Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451” came out first as the novella “The Fireman” in Galaxy, Feb. 1951; it was expanded and published as a Ballantine paperback in 1953. The paperback is considered the true first edition.



2 SMALLER IS LESS EXPENSIVE TO SHIP BY AIR

First class packages are a good value. They are not expensive to ship, the classification goes up to 13 oz. and it goes by air. There’s a lot of small cool stuff that can be well packed and still under 13 oz. Words like “mini, tiny, wee, petite, itsy-bity" and even the old stand by ”small” are all sell words that describe a size. “Little” is good.



3 DATES TO KNOW:  Zip Code, Bar Code, ISBN Number

Trying to date something where the feel of the paper doesn’t match the date on the copyright page? There are several useful dates to know.



Zip codes first began in mid 1961 and became universal rapidly. No zip code on the publisher’s address usually means pre-1961. ISBN numbers come into use in the late 1960s and early 1970s and are slightly different depending on whether the item is American or English. If it’s got an ISBN number it is apt to be post-1970. Bar codes were first used in 1974 and were not widespread until a few years later.



So no matter what the printed copyright date says, if it has a bar code or an ISBN, it’s published sometime in the 70s or later, sometimes much later.



4 EVERY SPECIALTY FIELD HAS REFERENCE DATES - INCLUDE THEM

As people increasingly search for more and more specific kinds of antiquarian paper materials, it’s important not just to include a date, but also to include a date that puts the material in context. If you’re offering an early cartoon about the perils of flying published in 1909, don’t just say “1909.” It’s better to say, “1909, only six years after the  Wright Brothers first flight in 1903.”  If you don’t know the benchmark date, then look it up. If the material you are offering is in some way prophetic and the forecast turned out to be right, don’t neglect to  say so, it’s it’s apt to make the item appear more valuable and significant. Also mention if it was wrong, the wronger the better. Don’t just say “historic,” give the actual publication date, and a companion benchmark date that puts it in context, and if there is some futuristic element, right or wrong, point it out.



5 A FEW THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT BOOK OF THE MONTH CLUB EDITIONS

You have doubtless encountered books that carry the Book of the Month Club imprint. With rare exceptions these books are of lesser value because they were printed in very large editions and thus were very common. The best way not to get stuck with them is not to take them in in the first place. A typical BCE (Book Club Edition) has no price on the dust jacket, is a little smaller than the size the book was first issued, and frequently the binding has a small dimple (a little impressed mark about the size of a blunt pencil point) on the back board near the bottom close to the spine. A book without a dust jacket that has that little dimple is almost certainly a BCE.



6 DATING LITTLE GOLDEN BOOKS

Some of the early Little Golden Books bring a decent price, but where do you find the the actual edition indicated? Clever those publishing folks, they hid the mark inside the back cover. Open the back of the book. With the book open press down on the pages in the book. Gently look underneath the back cover below the bottom staple near the bottom edge of the last page. There should be a letter in the margin near the spine. The lower the letter the earlier the printing. The letter “A” designates a first.

 

A WORD ABOUT DUST JACKETS

Sad to say much of the current value of rare and scarce books, especially fiction, resides in the dust jacket. A book with a dust jacket, no matter how ratty that jacket might be, is worth more than one without. A book with a priced dust jacket is worth more than a book with a price clipped jacket. So don’t forget to mention when that book you’re selling has a complete priced dust jacket and include the original price shown.



8 WHEN TO FIX IT AND WHEN TO LEAVE IT ALONE?

Most of the time you don’t want to be the one who repairs a book. Especially if you think it might have significant value, leave it alone. It’s not your job to fix it; it’s your job to describe it accurately. With less than perfect dust jackets put them in jacket protectors and let the tension of the backing keep the jacket intact and prevent further deterioration. For older books (especially those with interesting bindings) you almost never want to fix it. You want to describe what’s wrong (backstrip detached but present, hinge broken or tender, etc.) and let the buyer decide if it’s worth it to them to send it out for repairs. The exceptions are low value books that need simple mending  - then use a linen backed adhesive tape for repairing broken hinges and Filmoplast or other inert archival tape to fix small edge tears. Don’t use Scotch tape. Don’t tape the dust jacket to the boards. When in doubt do nothing.



10 HAND SIGNED, FLAT SIGNED, SIGNED IN THE PLATE, INSCRIBED?

An real signature or inscription by the author can substantial value, just be sure you describe what you actually have. “Hand signed” by the author, illustrator or photographer means a real signature on the item. If there is a signature, inscription or date, it is important to note them. The term “flat” signed” has come to mean a book that is not inscribed to a particular person, it just has the autograph. However in the higher end more agust regions of bookselling world this term is vehemently opposed, and while it is useful to know what it is intended to mean, it is seldom (OK never) a good idea to include that particular terminology in your description if you want to be taken seriously by the elders of the tribe. No matter which descriptive term you use to describe a handwritten signature, remember it is not difficult to forge signatures so be cautious.  If it is a book or poster that you are taking to get signed, ask that it be dated, particularly if it is close to the original date of issue. “Signed in the plate” is another way of saying a printed signature (looks like a signature but it is a reproduction). “Inscribed” can a variety of meanings: Inscribed by a prior owner can mean something like “Happy birthday, Love Mom”, while inscribed by the author can be a much more significant, “A fond memory of Havana, regards Ernest Hemingway.”



On older  material, especially prints and maps the abbreviation “del.” stands for delineator - the name of the person who drew the picture, i.e. artist, (it’s usually on the left under the edge of the image.) The  abbreviation “sc.” or a number of other terms starting with the letters “sc” gives the name of the engraver or firm that did the engraving. This is usually found at the right below the edge of the image.  If you see “del” or “sc” point it out along with the names that follow.


Posted On: 2015-10-01 08:09
User Name: edition

Interesting article. I have fixed 20+ SciFi books and after your comments I'm unsure about if it was the right decision. For instance a professional fixed an ExLib Doubleday of Dick's "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep". With ExLibs, replacing the end papers make such a difference. Of course I have chosen the appearance (color and thickness) of the endpapers exactly as the original. The book looks so much better, on first sight almost new. There is still a handwritten number on the front page that tells you that is an ExLib. I have paid $150 for the professional restauration. Was this a good decision?


Posted On: 2015-10-01 15:53
User Name: SASB

Excellent article. I would add, regarding book club editions, that often they feel less hefty in in the hand - just lighter than they ought to be. Also some quite modern book club books lack a bar code.


Posted On: 2015-10-01 19:33
User Name: old_susanhalas

As the author of the article I have received quite a few comments from other dealers objecting to the use of the term "flat signed" ever under any circumstances. Readers should be aware that even though the term has come to mean an item with only the signature of the author, there is a back story to its use in the trade that has a less than ethical connotation and thus the sentiment seems to be to avoid its use altogether. As one correspondent put it the word is "tainted with questionable practices." I myself do not use it but when I see it used, that is usually what it means. Susan Halas


Posted On: 2015-10-01 19:36
User Name: old_susanhalas

In response to the reader who asked if paying $150 to "restore" an ex-library copy to something approaching its original state, I can't say for sure. It depends on your own taste and that of your customers. As long as when you sell it you indicate the extent of the restoration is is your choice to do it or not do it. The main point is to indicate that work has been done.


Posted On: 2015-10-02 13:49
User Name: mcbr1depub

Please be accurate: ZIP code began July 1, 1963. It took a while for it to be used universally in printed matter: for example, postcards from the 1960s may or may not have ZIP code in the publisher's address, even though the card may show a motel parking lot scene with a 1968 Pontiac. Else fine or near fine article.

McBride/Publisher
The Jumping Frog


Posted On: 2015-10-06 16:24
User Name: Fattrad1

You failed to mention the use of hand laid paper and archival acid free glue for book repairs.


Rare Book Monthly

  • Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [RUTH, George Herman “Babe” (1895-1948)]. Signed photograph. Circa 1930s. 191 x 248 mm. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HARRISON, Benjamin. Document signed (“Benj Harrison”) as governor of Virginia, certifying the service of Daniel Cumbo, a Black Revolutionary soldier. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: ONE OF THE FIRST PRINTED ANNOUNCEMENTS OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: FIRST PRINTING OF LINCOLN’S IMMORTAL GETTYSBURG ADDRESS. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: HIGHLY IMPORTANT MORMON ARCHIVE. ALLEY, George. Archive of 23 Autograph Letters Signed by Mormon Convert George Alley to His Brother Joseph Alley. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [AVIATION]. [ARMSTRONG, Neil A.] Aviation Hall of Fame Gold Medal MS64 NGC, Awarded to Neil Armstrong in 1979. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: NEWLY DISCOVERED FIRST PRINTING OF "WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE... " FROM THE ONLY NEWSPAPER ACTUALLY ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE IN LINCOLN’S SECOND INAUGURAL PROCESSION. $4,000 to $8,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: THE MOST IMPORTANT GEORGE WASHINGTON DOCUMENT IN PRIVATE HANDS; GEORGE WASHINGTON’S COMMISSION AS COMMANDER IN CHIEF, 1775, ONE OF ONLY TWO ORIGINALS. $150,000 to $250,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: A VERY RARE ACCOUNT OF BLACKBEARD’S DEATH AND ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIRATE ITEMS EXTANT. $3,000 to $5,000.
    Potter & Potter Auctions
    How History Unfolds on Paper:
    Choice Selections from the Eric C. Caren Collection
    Part IX
    April 18, 2024
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: EDISON, Thomas. Patent for Edison’s Improvements on the Electric-Light, No. 219,628. [Washington, D.C.: U.S. Patent Office], 16 September 1879. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: [VIETNAM WAR]. The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, Paris, 27 January 1973. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Potter & Potter, Apr. 18: SONS OF LIBERTY FOUNDER COLONEL BARRÉ ANNOTATED TITLE-PAGE, “WHICH OUGHT TO ROUSE UP BRITISH ATTENTION”. $4,000 to $6,000.
  • Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: [Langland (William)]. The vision of Pierce Plowman, nowe the seconde time imprinted..., Roberte Crowley, 1550. £8,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: [Shakespeare (William)]. [Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies], second folio edition, [by Tho.Cotes, for Robert Allot], [1632]. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Bible, Czech Biblia Bohemica, first complete Bible printed in the Czech vernacular, Prague, August 1488. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Shabthai Tzvi.- Collection of four printed and illustrated broadsides detailing the appearance, rise and fall of the false messiah, Shabthai Tzvi, Augsburg, 1666-67. £40,000 to £60,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Leaf from the Beauvais Missal, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on parchment, [Northern France (perhaps Beauvais or Amiens)], [fourteenth century (c.1310)]. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Aubrey (John). [Remaines of Gentilisme and Judaisme], manuscript in English, Latin and Greek, [c. 1693]. £30,000 to £50,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Poems on Various Occasions, first edition, Harriet Maltby's copy, Newark, Printed by S. & J. Ridge, 1807. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Hobbit, first edition, second impression with dust-jacket, 1937 [but 1938]. £7,000 to £10,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Blake (William).- Thornton (Robert John). The Pastorals of Virgil, 2 vol., engraved plates by William Blake, 1821. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    28th March 2024
    Forum Mar. 28: America.- Mount (William J.) & Thomas Page. The English Pilot…, [bound with] The Fourth Book, describing The West Indies Navigation from Hudson's-Bay to the River Amazones, 1721. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Oldfield (Henry Ambrose), Rajman Singh Chitrakar & others. An album of 160 photographs and 13 original artworks, (1833-1919), [c. 1850s-1880s]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Mar. 28: Audubon (John James) [and William MacGillivray]. Ornithological Biography…, 5 vol., first edition, presentation copy inscribed by Audubon, Edinburgh, 1831-49 [i.e. 1831-39]. £10,000 to £15,000.

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