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Sotheby’s
New York Book Week
12-26 JuneSotheby’s, June 25: Theocritus. Theocriti Eclogae triginta, Venice, Aldo Manuzio, February 1495/1496. 220,000 - 280,000 USDSotheby’s, June 26: Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby, 1925. 40,000 - 60,000 USDSotheby’s, June 26: Blake, William. Songs of Innocence and of Experience, Printed ca. 1381-1832. 400,000 - 600,000 USDSotheby’s, June 26: Lincoln, Abraham. Thirteenth Amendment, signed by Abraham Lincoln. 8,000,000 - 12,000,000 USDSotheby’s, June 26: Galieli, Galileo. First Edition of the Foundation of Modern Astronomy, 1610. 300,000 - 400,000 USD -
Finarte
Books, Autographs & Prints
June 24 & 25, 2025Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE / LANDINO, CRISTOFORO. Comento di Christophoro Landino Fiorentino sopra la Comedia di Danthe Alighieri poeta fiorentino, 1481. €40,000 to €50,000.Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE. La Commedia [Commento di Christophorus Landinus]. Aggiunta: Marsilius Ficinus, Ad Dantem gratulatio [in latino e Italiano], 1487. €40,000 to €60,000.Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE. Il Convivio, 1490. €20,000 to €25,000.Finarte
Books, Autographs & Prints
June 24 & 25, 2025Finarte, June 24-25: BANDELLO, MATTEO. La prima [-quarta] parte de le nouelle del Bandello, 1554. €7,000 to €9,000.Finarte, June 24-25: LEGATURA – PLUTARCO. Le vies des hommes illustres, grecs et romaines translates, 1567. €10,000 to €12,000.Finarte, June 24-25: TOLOMEO, CLAUDIO. Ptolemeo La Geografia di Claudio Ptolemeo Alessandrino, Con alcuni comenti…, 1548. €4,000 to €6,000.Finarte
Books, Autographs & Prints
June 24 & 25, 2025Finarte, June 24-25: FESTE - COPPOLA, GIOVANNI CARLO. Le nozze degli Dei, favola [...] rappresentata in musica in Firenze…, 1637. €6,000 to €8,000.Finarte, June 24-25: SPINOZA, BARUCH. Opera posthuma, 1677. €8,000 to €12,000.Finarte, June 24-25: PUSHKIN, ALEXANDER. Borus Godunov, 1831. €30,000 to €50,000.Finarte
Books, Autographs & Prints
June 24 & 25, 2025Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - LECUIRE, PIERRE. Ballets-minute, 1954. €35,000 to €40,000.Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MAJAKOVSKIJ, VLADIMIR / LISSITZKY, LAZAR MARKOVICH. Dlia Golosa, 1923. €7,000 to €10,000.Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MATISSE, HENRI / MONTHERLANT, HENRY DE. Pasiphaé. Chant de Minos., 1944. €22,000 to €24,000. -
Bonhams, June 16-25: 15th-CENTURY TREATISE ON SYPHILIS. GRÜNPECK. 1496. $20,000 - $30,000Bonhams, June 16-25: THE NORMAN COPY OF BENIVIENI'S TREATISE ON PATHOLOGY. 1507. $12,000 - $18,000Bonhams, June 16-25: FRACASTORO. Syphilis sive Morbus Gallicus. 1530. $8,000 - $12,000Bonhams, June 16-25: THE FIRST PUBLISHED WORK ON SKIN DISEASES. MERCURIALIS. De morbis cutaneis... 1572. $10,000 - $15,000Bonhams, June 16-25: BIDLOO. Anatomia humani corporis... 1685. $6,000 - $9,000Bonhams, June 16-25: THE NORMAN COPY OF DOUGLASS'S EARLY AMERICAN WORK ON INNOCULATION AND SMALLPOX. 1722. $20,000 - $30,000Bonhams, June 16-25: LIND'S FIRST TREATISE ON SCURVY. 1753. $15,000 - $20,000Bonhams, June 16-25: RARE JENNER SIGNED CIRCULAR ON VACCINATION. 1821. $4,000 - $6,000Bonhams, June 16-25: MOST BEAUTIFUL OF MEDICAL ILLUSTRATIONS. BRIGHT. Reports of Medical Cases... 1827-1831. $10,000 - $15,000Bonhams, June 16-25: FLORENCE NIGHTINGALE PRESENTATION COPY TO HER MOTHER. 1860. $6,000 - $8,000Bonhams, June 16-25: LORENZO TRAVER'S MANUSCRIPT JOURNAL OF BURNSIDE'S NORTH CAROLINA EXPEDITION. TRAVER, Lorenzo. $2,000 - $3,000Bonhams, June 16-25: ONE OF THE EARLIEST PHOTOGRAPHIC BOOKS ON DERMATOLOGY. HARDY. Clinique Photographique... 1868. $3,000 - $5,000
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Dominic Winter Auctioneers
June 18 & 19
Printed Books & Maps, Children's & Illustrated Books, Modern First EditionsDominic Winter, June 18-19: World. Van Geelkercken (N.), Orbis Terrarum Descriptio Duobis..., circa 1618. £4,000-6,000.Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Moll (Herman). A New Exact Map of the Dominions of the King of Great Britain..., circa 1715. £2,000-3,000.Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Churchill (Winston S.). The World Crisis, 5 volumes bound in 6, 1st edition, 1923-31. £1,000-1,500Dominic Winter Auctioneers
June 18 & 19
Printed Books & Maps, Children's & Illustrated Books, Modern First EditionsDominic Winter, June 18-19: Darwin (Charles). On the Origin of Species, 2nd edition, 2nd issue, 1860. £1,500-2,000.Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Roberts (David). The Holy Land, 6 volumes in 3, 1st quarto ed, 1855-56. £1,500-2,000.Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Saint-Exupéry (Antoine de, 1900-1944). Pilote de guerre (Flight to Arras), 1942. £10,000-15,000.Dominic Winter Auctioneers
June 18 & 19
Printed Books & Maps, Children's & Illustrated Books, Modern First EditionsDominic Winter, June 18-19: Austen (Jane, 1775-1817). Signature, cut from a letter, no date. £7,000-10,000Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Huxley (Aldous). Brave New World, 1st edition, with wraparound band, 1932. £4,000-6,000Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Tolkien (J. R. R.) The Hobbit, 1st edition, 2nd impression, 1937. £3,000-5,000Dominic Winter Auctioneers
June 18 & 19
Printed Books & Maps, Children's & Illustrated Books, Modern First EditionsDominic Winter, June 18-19: Rackham (Arthur, 1867-1939). Princess by the Sea (from Irish Fairy Tales), circa 1920. £4,000-6,000Dominic Winter, June 18-19: Kelmscott Press. The Story of the Glittering Plain, Walter Crane's copy, 1894. £3,000-4,000Dominic Winter, June 18-19: King (Jessie Marion, 1875-1949). The Summer House, watercolour. £4,000-6,000
![Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE. La Commedia [Commento di Christophorus Landinus]. Aggiunta: Marsilius Ficinus, Ad Dantem gratulatio [in latino e Italiano], 1487. €40,000 to €60,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/4ee20109-25f3-42e8-93ab-bd4c8e17093a.png "<b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> ALIGHIERI, DANTE. <i>La Commedia [Commento di Christophorus Landinus]. Aggiunta: Marsilius Ficinus, Ad Dantem gratulatio [in latino e Italiano],</i> 1487. €40,000 to €60,000.")
![Finarte, June 24-25: BANDELLO, MATTEO. La prima [-quarta] parte de le nouelle del Bandello, 1554. €7,000 to €9,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/5adfdf34-8a9a-47e5-9288-5e65dac5ce79.png "<b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> BANDELLO, MATTEO. <i>La prima [-quarta] parte de le nouelle del Bandello,</i> 1554. €7,000 to €9,000.")
![Finarte, June 24-25: FESTE - COPPOLA, GIOVANNI CARLO. Le nozze degli Dei, favola [...] rappresentata in musica in Firenze…, 1637. €6,000 to €8,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/9a1b8605-a566-4fb7-8a4c-5fb72ac539bc.png "<b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> FESTE - COPPOLA, GIOVANNI CARLO. <i>Le nozze degli Dei, favola [...] rappresentata in musica in Firenze…,</i> 1637. €6,000 to €8,000.")
Rare Book Monthly
Articles - August - 2005 Issue
The Bookseller as Anti-Hero
Johnny Depp and Frank Langella in "The Ninth Gate." Directed by Roman Polanski. Occult thriller, 1999.
Now, I have to admit that although I came to the book expecting little, I secretly hoped for a whole lot more because of the bookish topic and author. However, other than offering some arbitrary (and now out of date) rare book prices here and there, and weaving in aspects of the seedy book scouting business, and the business venue, there isn't much here to interest a rare book seller or collector who also enjoys mysteries. I would characterize the writing more as a thinly plotted crime novel, with a bit of mystery, and a lot of arbitrary violence. Janeway's kidnapping, assault and near killing of Jackie Newton, for example, is irrelevant to the plot, and only brings into question Janeway's own judgment and anger-management issues. The thrown-in sex is dull, and there are barely enough book tidbits to justify Booked's title. More power to Dunning for selling multiple editions and more than one book (I hope and assume his writing has improved over time), but this first Janeway novel is very weak, and I frankly had to force even the half of my brain that was working to read it all.
Maybe it's the heat. Maybe I'm too impatient. Maybe I was hoping that a bookstore-based mystery would be more interesting. It didn't hold a candle to "The Ninth Gate" which I would hardly categorize as one of the world's great movies. Maybe it's the angst of K2 in the book barn .... In any case, I'm going to leave the rest of the Janeway series to some braver soul. Booked to Die is not a good mystery, nor is it a good crime novel. While it says a lot about book hunting and book lust, it has almost nothing to say about books, not even in an air conditioned room, chilled white wine at the ready. For an escape, with intelligence, plot and character, give me Elizabeth George any time.
![Forum, June 19: Euclid. The Elements of Geometrie, first edition in English of the first complete translation, [1570]. £20,000 to £30,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/dbc5286a-4210-44e3-bbf0-6031c1c49801.png "<b>Forum, June 19:</b> Euclid. <i>The Elements of Geometrie,</i> first edition in English of the first complete translation, [1570]. £20,000 to £30,000.")
![Forum, June 19: Shakespeare (William). The Tempest [&] The Two Gentlemen of Verona, from the Second Folio, [Printed by Thomas Cotes], 1632. £4,000 to £6,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/655b361c-71c7-48ba-9455-09c14e8c7494.png "<b>Forum, June 19:</b> Shakespeare (William). <i>The Tempest</i> [&] <i>The Two Gentlemen of Verona,</i> from the <i>Second Folio,</i> [Printed by Thomas Cotes], 1632. £4,000 to £6,000.")
