Spiderman takes on the Hulk, and takes in $657,250 for his efforts. Courtesy Heritage Auctions.
It is time once again to look back at the Americana Exchange's annual listing of the Top 500 sales at auction in the books, works on paper, and related ephemera field for 2012. It was an unusually active year, but likely the new norm. The volume of sales at auction has been building steadily and there is no reason to believe the trend won't continue. For 2012, there were again 11 items in the million dollar category, but #1 was almost $10 million, nearly four times the highest priced item of 2011.
Perhaps most telling was #500. In 2011, that item sold for $52,170. In 2012, #500 sold for $71,700. That's an increase of 37%. What's going on here? Are prices rising that much? While the top end appears to be the strongest part of the market, prices aren't growing that rapidly. What we are seeing is more books coming to auction. As more books are offered at auction, naturally, more high-priced ones appear. Auctions are taking more of the market, like the listing sites did a decade ago, except the auctions garner more of the high end books.
Another trend that continues is the shift to more ephemeral items, manuscripts, maps, images, and items other then traditional books. Visual and unique are increasingly valuable attributes. People like things they can easily display on a wall, and things that are one of a kind. The result is that images and manuscripts continue to generate increasing interest, even as traditional books struggle a bit for attention. Another important factor is familiarity to one's own lifetime experiences. This year the list is filled with comic books and comic book art, mainly U.S. action comics, interspersed with Hergé's French cartoon, Tintin. These are items today's buyers grew up with in their youth.
In a moment, we will look at the top 10, but first, here are a few other choices from the list. At the end of this article is a link to the entire AE Top 500.
Item 495 is a series of documents pertaining to the shooting of Johnny Torrio in Chicago in 1925. One of those documents is a signed deposition of Torrio's protege, Al Capone. Asked how many times he has been arrested in Chicago, Capone replies, “Every time something happens I get arrested.” Capone says he did not know who did the shooting, but when asked if he would say if he did know, Capone responds, “No, I value my life too much to tell if I did know.” $72,000.
Item 422 is a minor document signed by an obscure president. It is a ship's passport, a routinely issued document from presidents at the time. What makes this so valuable is that it was signed by President William Henry Harrison. Harrison took ill shortly after being inaugurated and died a month later. His signature as president, therefore, is extremely rare. $80,500.
Item 335 is an archive of memorabilia pertaining to Edgar Allen Poe, including family correspondence, pictures, a lock of Poe's hair, and the engagement ring he gave his childhood sweetheart when finding her later in life. Poe died before they could wed. $94,000.
Item 275 is a land document signed by explorers Meriwether Lewis and Joseph Clark. It is the only known document signed by both in private hands. $110,000.
Item 191 is the contract Sitting Bull signed to appear in Buffalo Bill's Wild West. The Sioux Chief toured with Buffalo Bill during 1885. $155,350.
Item 168 is a letter from English King Richard III from 1484 or 1485 asking a justice of the peace to assist a nobleman in the return of his manor. $169,338.
Item 143 is the original manuscript and a typescript for an F. Scott Fitzgerald unpublished short story, circa 1920, entitled TheI.O.U. $194,500.
Item 117 is an autographed manuscript of the AveMaria by composer Giuseppe Verdi. $232,400.
Item 22 is Todd McFarlane's original cover art for a 1990 issue of TheAmazingSpider-Man#328. $657,250.
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: APRES DE MANNEVILLETTE Le Neptune Oriental
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: CASSAS Eaux fortes de la Sicile et quelques vues d’Espagne
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: CASSINI DE THURY Carte générale et particulière de la France.
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: JOUY; GARNERAY Vues des côtes de France dans l'Océan et dans la Méditerranée
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: LA PÉROUSE Voyage autour du monde
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: LE GENTIL DE LA GALAISIERE Voyage dans les Mers de l’Inde
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: LICENT Hoang Ho, Pai Ho, Loan Ho, Leao Ho. Itinéraires suivis dans le bassin du golfe du Pei Tcheuly
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: FRENCH SCHOOL FROM THE 19th CENTURY Panorama d’Athènes
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: PEETERS Description des principales villes, havres et isles du golfe de Venise
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: PÉRON; FREYCINET Voyage de découverte aux terres australes
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: STACKELBERG La Grèce : vues pittoresques et topographiques.
Gros & Delettrez, 7 November: VALENTINER Atlas des Sonnensystems.
Forum Auctions Online Sale: The Detective Fiction Collection of John Cooper Ending 7th November, 2024
Forum, Nov. 7: Christie (Agatha). The Thirteen Problems, first edition, The Crime Club, 1932. £15,000 to £20,000.
Forum, Nov. 7: Christie (Agatha). Dumb Witness, first edition, 1937. £3,000 to £4,000.
Forum, Nov. 7: Christie (Agatha). Cards on the Table, first edition, The Crime Club, 1936. £2,000 to £3,000.
Forum, Nov. 7: [Carr (John Dickson)], "Carter Dickson" and John Rhode. Drop to his Death, first edition, Heinemann, [1939]. £600 to £800.
Forum, Nov. 7: Berkeley (Anthony). Jumping Jenny, first edition, Hodder and Stoughton, 1933. £800 to £1,200.
Forum Auctions Online Sale: The Detective Fiction Collection of John Cooper Ending 7th November, 2024
Forum, Nov. 7: Marsh (Ngaio). Overture to Death, first edition, The Crime Club, 1939. £600 to £800.
Forum, Nov. 7: [Day-Lewis (Cecil)] "Nicholas Blake". The Beast Must Die, first edition, 1938. £750 to £1,000.
Forum, Nov. 7: Brand (Christianna). Green for Danger, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author, John Lane the Bodley Head, 1945. £600 to £800.
Forum, Nov. 7: Christie (Agatha). Murder is Easy, first edition, signed by the author, 1939. £3,000 to £4,000.
Forum, Nov. 7: Sayers (Dorothy L.) Lord Peter Views the Body, first edition, Gollancz, 1928. £6,000 to £8,000.
RareBookBuyer.com We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide ABAA Dealer
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RareBookBuyer.com We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide ABAA Dealer
RareBookBuyer.com Specialized in Purchasing Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
RareBookBuyer.com We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide ABAA Dealer
RareBookBuyer.com Specialized in Purchasing Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
RareBookBuyer.com We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide ABAA Dealer
RareBookBuyer.com Specialized in Purchasing Institutional Collections & Deacccessioned Books
RareBookBuyer.com We Buy Librairies & Rare Books Nationwide ABAA Dealer
Sotheby's Fine Books, Manuscripts & More Available for Immediate Purchase
Sotheby’s: J.R.R. Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. 11,135 USD
Sotheby’s: Edgar Allan Poe. The Raven and Other Poems, 1845. 33,000 USD
Sotheby’s: Leo Tolstoy, Clara Bow. War and Peace, 1886. 22,500 USD
Sotheby’s: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, 1902. 7,500 USD
Sotheby’s: F. Scott Fitzgerald. This Side of Paradise, The Great Gatsby, and Others, 1920-1941. 24,180 USD
Freeman’s | Hindman Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts, Including Americana November 14
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: LEROUX, Gaston. The Phantom of the Opera. FIRST AM. ED, FIRST ISSUE IN THE VERY RARE DUST JACKET. 1911. $6,000 – 8,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: GOULD, John. A Monograph of the Trochilidae...Humming-Birds. L., [1849-] 1861. $60,000 – 80,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: A COMPLETE RUN of Limited Editions Club publications, v.p. [mostly New York], 1929-2010. $50,000 – 60,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: ORWELL, George. Nineteen Eighty-Four. Lon., 1949. FIRST EDITION IN A VERY FINE DUST JACKET. $6,000 – 8,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: GOULD. A Monograph of the Ramphastidae...Toucans. L., [1852-] 54. SECOND ED. $35,000 – 45,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14:The Federalist. NY, 1788. FIRST EDITION, THICK PAPER COPY. $60,000 – 80,000.
Freeman’s | Hindman, Nov. 14: SELBY. Plates to Selby’s Illustrations of British Ornithology. Edin., [1833-] 34. $20,000 – 30,000.