54th London Antiquarian Book Fair Set for June 9-11
- by Michael Stillman
Getting ready for the fair.
The 54th annual London International Antiquarian Book Fair has been scheduled for June 9-11 this year. It will again be held at the London Olympia Exhibition Centre, and this year's edition promises to be as fascinating and exciting as any on record. This is the fair in the U.K., and one of the most important book fairs held anywhere each year. Many newcomers will be joining the regular group of exhibitors this time around.
Over 160 booksellers from around the world will be participating. While the largest contingent, naturally, comes from the U.K., it is about evenly divided between local and overseas dealers. Other countries represented include the Netherlands, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium. Sweden, Finland, Israel, Australia, the United States and Canada, and, for the first time, Hungary. The event is organized by England's Antiquarian Booksellers Association, and in turn is sanctioned by ILAB, the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers. All exhibitors are ILAB members.
While books are the obvious feature of a book fair, including rare and antiquarian, first editions, illustrated, fine printings and bindings, there is also an extensive selection of manuscripts, maps, prints, photographs, and other associated ephemera.
This year's Charity Preview will benefit Shakespeare's Globe. Shakespeare's Globe is building a new library and archive designed as a research center for Elizabethan and Jacobean society, particularly its plays, playwrights, and theaters (such as the Globe Theater where Shakespeare's plays were first performed). The Charity Preview will be held Thursday afternoon, June 9, prior to the opening of the exhibition hall.
The Downstairs section of the fair will also be available throughout its run. This area will feature lectures, guided tours of the fair, and live exhibitions of bookbinding. Visitors will also be able to bring books and manuscripts for appraisal by the ABA Roadshow.
The first ABA fair was held in London in 1958. At that time, only a handful of dealers participated. The idea was to enable booksellers from the countryside to make their collections available to London buyers, along with those offered by London sellers themselves. Times have changed, fewer dealers even have showrooms any more, and many books are sold via the internet. Still, the opportunity to meet dealers face to face, and to see and touch the books personally remains an enormous draw for serious collectors. It is doubtful there will ever be an electronic book fair, and dubious anyone would attend if there were. The printed word, however, continues to draw collectors from around the world, drawn by a passion for book collecting as great today as it was five centuries ago. If you are such an individual, and can be in London from June 9-11, you won't want to miss this event.
There is a website for this fair, and if you are thinking of going, you definitely want to visit it. For starters, you can obtain free tickets at the site. Otherwise, you will pay £10 at the door. The website is found at www.olympiabookfair.com.
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. 12: Hooke, Robert. Micrographia: or some Physiological Descriptions of Minute Bodies made by Magnifying Glasses. London: James Allestry for the Royal Society, 1667. $12,000 to $15,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Chappuzeau, Samuel. The history of jewels, first edition in English. London: T.N. for Hobart Kemp, 1671. $12,000 to $18,000.
Sotheby’s, Dec. 12: Sowerby, James. Exotic Mineralogy, containing his most realistic mineral depictions, London: Benjamin Meredith, 1811, Arding and Merrett, 1817. $5,000 to $7,000.
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>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.")
