As spring begins to push away the vestiges of the northern hemisphere’s winter outside, inside auction rooms around the world, things are beginning to heat up. For London-based Forum Auctions, March sees a number of sales between their London and Milan locations. Two sales in particular, an online sale of Modern Literature taking place on the 23^rd, and a traditional sale of Fine Books and Works on Paper including Modern Literature, Children’s & Illustrated and Private Press on the 30^th, bear mentioning. 

Here’s what Forum has to say about some of the material you’ll find up for bidding: 

On the 23^rd March, Forum Auctions will be holding its first online collector’s sale dedicated to modern literature and 20^th century books. Highlights include a rare signed copy of J.K.Rowling’s The Tale of Beedle the Bard, the first edition of Erskine Childer’s landmark spy thriller The Riddle of the Sands, and a superb copy of the Arthur Rackham illustrated The Rhinegold & the Valkyrie in the scarce dust-jacket.

And for their March 30^th sale: 

The morning session opens with a fine, private consignment of Beatrix Potter books and related material, with top billing going to a nice copy of the 1901 privately printed The Tale of Peter Rabbit (lot 4) at £15,000-20,000 and with many deluxe, dust-jacketed, or inscribed copies of the other titles also on offer. Other highlights from the Childrens’ Books section include a first edition of Lewis Carroll’s The Hunting of the Snark, 1876, in the rare original dust-jacket (lot 63), estimate £7,000-9,000. A selection of Kelmscott Press works and another private collection of books illustrated by John Buckland-Wright, plus original illustrations by Max Beerbohm, E.J. Detmold, Edward Seago and Feliks Topolski, and a superb designer binding by Elizabeth Greenhill (lot 169), estimate £6,000-8,000 also come under the hammer. A section of Modern First Editions includes a dust-jacketed copy of F.Scott Fitzgerald’s magnum opus The Great Gatsby, 1925 at £25,000-35,000, works by James Joyce, Aldous Huxley, Anthony Burgess, Ian Fleming and J.K. Rowling. A small group of Evelyn Waugh books is complemented by his ear trumpet (lot 207), est. £1,000-1,500.

Early printed books open the afternoon session with a host of 16^th century works from presses in continental Europe, followed by a strong section of manuscripts and autograph letters. Under the English Literature and History heading there is a presentation copy of John Taylor’s (the Water-Poet’s) All the Workes…, 1630 (lot 362), estimate £3,000-4,000 and, continuing the aquatic theme, lot 373 is Percey’s 1658 book, The Compleat Swimmer, one of the earliest works on the sport, at £5,000-7,000. A monumental 1716 Bible bound in red morocco with elaborate silver decorations and clasps by the great English silver-smith of the time, Anthony Nelme (lot 377), carries an estimate of £10,000-15,000. After further book sections of Travel (including a group on Afghanistan and Central Asia), Art & Architecture (including Nash’s The Royal Pavilion at Brighton, in a sumptuous deluxe binding for King George IV (lot 424, est. £8,000-10,000)), and Science & Natural History, the sale concludes with Prints, Watercolours and Drawings from Old Master to Gillray caricatures (lots 455 and 456). 

The March 23^rd sale is online only, and the March 30^th sale will be held at the Westbury Hotel in London at 10:30 am BST. To bid at either auction, registration with Forum Auctions is required if not done so on a previous occasion, and may be done so here. 

Select lots are available for viewing online now, and the provided links will become full online catalogs in early March:

Modern Literature

Fine Books and Works on Paper including Modern Literature, Children’s & Illustrated and Private Press