Rare Book Monthly Articles - December - 2016 Issue

Back from the Brink:  The Trial of Episcopacy

Back from the Brink: The Trial of Episcopacy

I recently purchased a copy of The Trial of Episcopacy printed in Poughkeepsie, New York in 1817.  There is no author as such but in the author’s place it reads Reported by R. C. C., A. M. [in pencil noted “otherwise known to be Reverend Dr. William Smith”].  This book was posted on eBay with minimal description and a parenthetical notation that the author is actually John Reed.  It was interesting.   Here is the listing:   Trial of Episcopacy reported by R.C.C., (John Reed).  An acceptable 4 x 6 inch leather hard cover printing from P. S. Potter in Poughkeepsie. N.Y.  Leather 1st HC (...

The Caren Archive in The Trump/Kardashian Age?  Collection to be Sold

The Caren Archive in The Trump/Kardashian Age? Collection to be Sold

Extraordinary Collection of Historical Paper will either be saved/sold intact in 60 days or there will be a Stream of Caren Auctions Ala Sir Thomas Phillipps on Horizon   Eric is a 50 something w...

Old Books / New Editions. Part III of III. New Work on Margaret Cavendish’s "The Blazing World" (1666;  2016)

Old Books / New Editions. Part III of III. New Work on Margaret Cavendish’s "The Blazing World" (1666; 2016)

Welcome to this third and final installment in my Guest Series on new editions of 17th-century women writers. This last essay discusses an extraordinary figure whose writings are a rich weave of in...

Books Missing Over Half a Century Found in Deceased Man's Cabinet

Books Missing Over Half a Century Found in Deceased Man's Cabinet

Some very old books, overdue for a very long time, were recently discovered in the back of a locked cabinet in Wimbledon. They had been missing from the London Library since the 1950s. A spokesman ...

Sendak Foundation Outscores the Rosenbach 252-88 in Battle Over Children's Author's Estate

Sendak Foundation Outscores the Rosenbach 252-88 in Battle Over Children's Author's Estate

A bitter dispute between two of the heirs of famed children's author Maurice Sendak has come to a conclusion, at least until/unless the Connecticut Probate Court's decision is appealed. The war was...

From Champlain to Boissel de Monville, A travel books sale in Paris.

From Champlain to Boissel de Monville, A travel books sale in Paris.

Samuel Champlain was in Paris the other day, and since he had come with his iconic map of New France, many people came to see him. In fact, the showroom at Drouot was overcrowded with various trave...

Fonsie Mealy:  a compelling Sale on December 13th

Fonsie Mealy: a compelling Sale on December 13th

Fonsie Mealy Auctioneers of Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny, Ireland is set to conduct a major sale in the rare books, manuscripts, and works of art categories on December 13th in Dublin, Ireland.  Those...

Some Collectible Holiday Gift Books

Some Collectible Holiday Gift Books

Most historians say the creation of a book specially written to be given as a holiday gift started with Charles Dickens. When A Christmas Carol first appeared in 1843 it started a trend of holiday ...

Dorothy Sloan:  An important Auction on December 15 & 16 in Texas

Dorothy Sloan: An important Auction on December 15 & 16 in Texas

Dorothy Sloan:  An important Auction on December 15 16 in Texas   Dorothy Sloan, the Texas based auctioneer and dealer in rare and important Americana, is holding a two day auction of important ...

Dec. 2-4: Neal Auction Company's Louisiana Purchase Auction

Dec. 2-4: Neal Auction Company's Louisiana Purchase Auction

This month, Neal Auction Company, an auction house based in New Orleans and operating since 1983, is hosting its annual Louisiana Purchase Auction. While not a company focused solely on rare books,...

Another Library Plans to Sell Books to Raise Funds, But This Time With a Twist

Another Library Plans to Sell Books to Raise Funds, But This Time With a Twist

Another case of a library seeking to pare its collections for financial reasons comes from Newcastle Upon Tyne, in England's northeast. This is a story we have heard before, though this time it has...

Two sales Dec. 7 at Bonhams: History of Science & Voices of the 20th Century

Two sales Dec. 7 at Bonhams: History of Science & Voices of the 20th Century

If you happen to be in New York on December 7, Bonhams has two superb reasons to stop by their location on Madison Ave. At 11am, 98 lots of History of Science and Technology will be up for bidding,...

Stolen Comics Recovered When Thief Attempts to Sell Them

Stolen Comics Recovered When Thief Attempts to Sell Them

The rare book trade has an extensive system in place to locate stolen books when the thief attempts to sell them. Organizations such as America's ABAA and similar groups overseas provide informatio...

The Perfect Gift Book:  99 Versions of Gooey Buttercake

The Perfect Gift Book: 99 Versions of Gooey Buttercake

If you are looking for a book to give to someone you care about, but not so much that you want to spend a lot of money on them, we have discovered the perfect book. It is cheap ($12.95), useful (a ...

Fourteen New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

Fourteen New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

This month we have 14 new bookseller catalogues to review. From America, the George S. MacManus Co. has a selection of material pertaining to the Civil War. Old West Books focuses on the American W...

Rare Book Monthly

  • Fonsie Mealy’s
    Rare Books & Collectors’ Sale
    April 30th & May 1st
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Taylor (Geo.) & Skinner (A.) Maps of the Roads of Ireland, Surveyed 1777. Lond. & Dublin 1778. €500 to €750.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Messingham (Thos.) Florilegium Insulae Sanctorum seu Vitae et Acta Sanctorum Hibernia, Paris 1624. €350 to €500.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus). The Haw Lantern, L. (Faber & Faber) 1987, First Edn., Signed and dated. €225 to €350.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Valencey (Lt. Col. Chas.) Collectanea de Rebus Hibernicis, Vols. I-IV, 4 vols. Dublin 1786. €400 to €600.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Powerscourt (Viscount). A Description and History of Powerscourt, Lond. 1903. €350 to €500.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Moryson (Fynes). An Itinerary ... Containing His Ten Yeeres Travel Through the Twelve Dominions of Germany, Bohermerland, Sweitzerland…, Lond. (John Beale) 1617. €700 to €1,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: After Buffon, Birds of Europe, c. 1820. Approx. 120 fine hd. cold. plts., mor. backed boards. €125 to €250.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Dunlevy (Andrew). An Teagasg Criosduidhe De Reir Ceasda agus Freagartha... The Catechism or Christian Doctrine by Way of Question and Answer, Paris (James Guerin) 1742. €400 to €700.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: The Georgian Society Records of Eighteen-Century Domestic Architecture in Dublin, 5 vols. Complete, Dublin 1909-1913. €500 to €750.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Scale (Bernard). An Hibernian Atlas or General Description of the Kingdom of Ireland, L. (Robert Sayer & John Bennet) 1776. €625 to €850.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: [Johnson (Rev. Samuel)]. Julian the Apostate Being a Short Account of his Life, together with a Comparison of Popery and Paganism,L. (Langley Curtis) 1682. €300 to €400.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Nichlson (Wm.) Illustrator. An Almanac of Twelve Sports, Lond. 1898. €300 to €400.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus) trans. The Light of the Leaves, 2 vols., Mexico (Imprenta de los Tropicos/Bunholt) 1999. €1,500 to €2,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Fleming (Ian). Moonraker, L. (Jonathan Cape) 1955. €1,500 to €2,000.
    Fonsie Mealy’s, Apr 30-May 1: Heaney (Seamus) & Egan (Felim) artist. Squarings, Twelve Poems, D. (Hieroglyph Editions Ltd.) 1991. €1,750 to €2,250.
  • Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: ANDERSEN'S EXTREMELY RARE FIRST APPEARANCE IN PRINT. "Scene af: Røverne i Vissenberg i Fyen." in Harpen, 1822.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: FIRST ISSUE OF THE FIRST THREE FAIRY TALE PAMPHLETS, WITH ALL INDICES AND TITLE PAGES. Eventyr, fortalte for Børn. 1835-1837.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: THE FIRST FAIRY TALES WITH A SIGNED CARTE DE VISITE OF ANDERSEN AS FRONTIS. Eventyr, fortalte for Børn. 1835-1837.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: KARL LAGERFELD. Original pastel and ink drawing in gold, red and black for Andersen's The Emperor's New Clothes (1992), "La cassette de l'Empereur."
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY OF THE SIXTH PAMPHLET FOR PETER KOCH. Eventyr, Fortalte For Børn, Second Series, Third Pamphlet. 1841. Publisher's wrappers, complete with all pre- and post-matter.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN RARE AUTOGRAPH QUOTATION SIGNED IN ENGLISH from "The Ugly Duckling," c.1860s.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: HEINRICH LEFLER, ORIGINAL WATERCOLOR FOR ANDERSEN'S SNOW QUEEN, "Die Schneekönigin," 1910.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: FIRST EDITION OF ANDERSEN'S FAIRY TALES IN ENGLISH. Wonderful Stories for Children. London, 1846.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: ANDERSEN ON MEETING CHARLES DICKENS. Autograph Letter Signed ("H.C. Andersen") in English to William Jerdan, July 20, 1847.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY FOR EDGAR COLLIN. Nye Eventyr og Historier. Anden Raekke. 1861.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: DOLL HOUSE FURNITURE BY HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON, DECORATED WITH FANTASTICAL CUT-OUTS, for the children of Jonna Stampe (née Drewsen), his godchildren.
    Bonhams, Apr. 21-29: PRESENTATION COPY FOR GEORG BRANDES. Dryaden. Et Eventyr fra Udstillingstiden i Paris 1867. 1868.
  • Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: William Blake | Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Sold: 4,320,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD
    Sotheby's
    Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
    Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
    Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR

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