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Bonhams, June 16-24: KELMSCOTT PRESS. RUSKIN. The Nature of Gothic. 1892. $1,500 - $2,500Bonhams, June 16-24: ASHENDENE PRESS. The Wisdom of Jesus. 1932. $2,000 - $3,000Bonhams, June 16-24: CHARLOTTE BRONTE WRITES AS GOVERNESS. Autograph Letter Signed, 1851. $15,000 - $25,000Bonhams, June 16-24: FIRST AMERICAN EDITION OF WUTHERING HEIGHTS. BRONTE, Emily. New York, 1848. $3,000 - $5,000Bonhams, June 16-24: IAN FLEMING ASSOCIATION COPY. You Only Live Twice. London, 1964. $7,000 - $9,000Bonhams, June 16-24: DELUXE EDITION WITH ORIGINAL PAINTING. BUKOWSKI, Charles. War All the Time. 1984. $3,000 - $5,000Bonhams, June 16-24: EINSTEIN'S MOST POWERFUL STATEMENT ON THE ATOMIC BOMB. Original Typed Manuscript Signed, "On My Participation in the Atom Bomb Project," 1953. $100,000 - $150,000Bonhams, June 16-24: EINSTEIN ON SCIENCE, WAR AND MORALITY. Autograph Letter Signed, 1949. $20,000 - $30,000Bonhams, June 16-24: SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATI. WASHINGTON, George. Engraved document signed, 1786. $8,000 - $12,000Bonhams, June 16-24: AN EARLY CHINESE-MADE 34-STAR U.S. CONSULAR FLAG. $8,000 - $12,000Bonhams, June 16-24: SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH OF LINCOLN WITH HIS SON TAD. 1864. $60,000 - $90,000Bonhams, June 16-24: MALCOLM X WRITES FROM KENYA. Postcard signed, 1964. $4,000 - $6,000
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Forum Auctions
A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library
19th June 2025Forum, June 19: Euclid. The Elements of Geometrie, first edition in English of the first complete translation, [1570]. £20,000 to £30,000.Forum, June 19: Nicolay (Nicolas de). The Navigations, peregrinations and voyages, made into Turkie, first edition in English, 1585. £10,000 to £15,000.Forum, June 19: Shakespeare source book.- Montemayor (Jorge de). Diana of George of Montemayor, first edition in English, 1598. £6,000 to £8,000.Forum, June 19: Livius (Titus). The Romane Historie, first edition in English, translated by Philemon Holland, Adam Islip, 1600. £6,000 to £8,000.Forum Auctions
A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library
19th June 2025Forum, June 19: Robert Molesworth's copy.- Montaigne (Michel de). The Essayes Or Morall, Politike and Millitarie Discourses, first edition in English, 1603. £10,000 to £15,000.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.Forum, June 19: Boyle (Robert). Medicina Hydrostatica: or, Hydrostaticks Applyed to the Materia Medica, first edition, for Samuel Smith, 1690. £2,500 to £3,500.Forum, June 19: Locke (John). An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding in Four Books, first edition, second issue, 1690. £8,00 to £12,000. -
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
Rare Book Monthly
It’s the (Book) Antiques Road ShowWith Kenneth Gloss of the Brattle Book Shop
By Michael Stillman
They line up in two separate rows to speak to the man because one line would be too long to fit in the room. Some carry bibles. You would think they had come to see some renowned healer who could bestow great prosperity upon them. In a way, they have. For while this man may not have any supernatural powers, he does have an almost supernatural ability to estimate the value of virtually every book he sees. Meet Kenneth Gloss, proprietor of the Brattle Book Shop of Boston, and book appraiser extraordinaire.
This night happens to be February 27, 2003, and the venue is the Kingston Public Library in Kingston, Massachusetts, but the place could be anywhere. Ken Gloss has spoken for 45 minutes on valuing books, and has entertained the crowd with the many stories he’s developed over four plus decades in the book business. Now the moment has arrived that the audience has been most anticipating, the moment when they can bring the books they have gathered from their shelves and attics and basements to the expert to find out what they are worth.
Ken Gloss works quickly. He has no references or bibliographies with him. There are far too many books to look over tonight for any detailed research. He needs only a few seconds, and then gives an estimate: $35 for the Elizabeth Browning Sonnets from the Portuguese. It’s a nice edition, but not a first, and it’s a little worn. $100-$150 if perfect, he explains. Another book receives a $100 valuation. The next gets a somewhat disappointingly low estimate as Mr. Gloss immediately recognizes it’s only one volume of a three-volume set.
They all leave with a thank you and a certain amount of relief at finally being able to put a number on a book they’ve had for years without a clue as to its value. Some are pleased to know that their books are at least moderately valuable. With others, while smiling on the outside, you can see disappointment in their eyes. You realize that they were dreaming that the book printed in the 1800’s which was handed down from their grandfather was going to be their lottery ticket. One hundred dollars is nice, but it doesn’t make you wealthy overnight. Ken Gloss has warned his audience in the talk that old doesn’t always mean valuable. There must also be demand for the book, and the reality is that there are many very old books that no one particularly wants. Still, once in awhile someone will show up with a book that breaks the bank, and many dream that they will be one of the lucky ones.
If this all sounds like the enormously popular PBS television series the “Antiques Road Show,” that shouldn’t be surprising: Ken Gloss is one of the book appraisers for this show. Last year he appeared at three of their six stops, in Seattle, Kansas City, and Hot Springs. Keep your eyes open for future appearances as he may be there. Ken Gloss enjoys doing the Road Show, but then again, he enjoys just about everything having to do with books. He goes to work at his store at 6:00 in the morning and works until 6:00 in the evening. “My wife says I only work half a day,” he jokes. However, on nights like this, when Ken Gloss goes out on the road, those twelve-hour days can seem short.