Printed & Manuscript Americana: <br>An Interesting Auction at Swann on December 4th.
- by Bruce E. McKinney
The Swann sale is very strong in interesting Americana.
By Bruce McKinney
On Thursday December 4th Swann Galleries in New
York, in two sessions, is offering 511 lots of
printed and manuscript Americana.For Americana
collectors there is a great deal of worthwhile material to consider.Marquee items include Samuel Colt’s copy of McKenny & Hall,
the first appearance of the Book of
Mormon and a private collection of American
almanacs.There is enough important
material that a 1524 Cortes PraeclaraFernandi, printed in Nuremberg
in 1524, is not listed among the most important items.On the auction catalogue cover is a Lincoln
assassination broadside dated April
20, 1865, offering a $100,000 reward for the murderer of the late
President.Described as “America’s
most famous reward poster issued only days after the assassination,” it is
estimated at $15,000 to $25,000.This is
an important sale.For Americana
collectors of all descriptions there is a wide variety of less expensive
material as well. Here are some representative
items.
This is the suppressed critique of New Yorkers, Gotham and the Gothamites;
a Medley.And the description reads
on, “This was suppressed and the author and publisher... both imprisoned and
fined.It is a satire on the New
Yorkers.”The date is 1823 and the
estimate $500 to $750.Does nothing
change?
There are ten Mormon lots whose aggregate high estimate is
$164,350.There is the aforementioned
first appearance of the Book of Mormon in the upstate New
York newspaper, The
Reflector of Palmyra dated January 2, 1830.On December 4th it will be offered
with an estimate of $50,000 to $75,000.There is also a copy of the first edition, in book form, of the Book of
Mormon.It is estimated $50,000 to
$70,000.
And then there are American
almanacs from the 18th and 19th centuries.In the sale they comprise lots 445 to 511 and
include, in total, 903 copies.For those
with an interest in very local material these lots represent an unusual
opportunity to obtain, in some cases, large lots of relatively obscure
material.The estimates are modest but
this is desirable material that will go higher with complete justification.
Supporters of OhioState will be interested in lot
280, Journal of the Proceedings of the
Convention...[concerning] the admission of Michigan into the Union.Columbus
history students may want to acquire this material to search for defects in the
process by which their football rivals gained admission to the Union.If you can’t beat ‘em on the football field beat ‘em
in court.
Students of Spanish and residents of Mexico
will be interested in a bound volume containing 179 royal decrees, including broadsides issued in Mexico between 1811 and 1813.This is described as “an impressive
collection of Mexican government documents” issued during the movement for
independence.It is estimated $5,000 to
$7,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.
Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.
Sotheby’s Book Week December 9-17, 2025
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
Heritage Auctions Rare Books Signature Auction December 15, 2025
Heritage, Dec. 15: John Donne. Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death. London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
Heritage, Dec. 15: F. Scott Fitzgerald. Tender is the Night. A Romance.
Heritage, Dec. 15: Jerry Thomas. How to Mix Drinks, or the Bon-Vivant's Companion, Containing Clear and Reliable Directions for Mixing All the Beverages Used in the United States…
![<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a74d9ff-42dd-46a1-8bb2-b636c4cec796.png "<b>Sotheby’s, Dec. 16:</b> [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of <i>Sense and Sensibility,</i> the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.")
![<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/8caddaea-4c1f-47a7-9455-62f53af36e3f.jpg "<b>Heritage, Dec. 15:</b> John Donne. <i>Poems, By J. D. With Elegies on the Author's Death.</i> London: M[iles]. F[lesher]. for John Marriot, 1633.")
