• Sotheby’s
    Book Week
    November & December
    Sotheby’s, Nov. 6-20: Tory, Geoffroy. L'Art et science de la vraye proportion des Lettres. Paris 1549. Seconde édition. In-8. Reliure de P.L. Martin. €7,000 to €9,000.
    Sotheby’s, Nov. 6-20: Gauguin, Paul. Lettre autographe signée à son ami Émile Bernard. [Le Pouldu août 1889]. Illustrée d'un croquis original. €10,000 to €15,000.
    Sotheby’s, Nov. 6-20: [Portulan — Joan Martines, attribué à]. Carte portulan de la côte atlantique de l'Amérique du Sud. [Messine, vers 1570-1591.] €15,000 to €20,000.
    Sotheby’s, Nov. 6-20: Zamora, Alonso de. Historia de la provincia de San Antonio del nuevo reyno de Granada... Barcelone, 1701. €10,000 to €15,000.
    Sotheby’s, Nov. 6-20: [Chastenet de Puységur, Antoine]. Détail sur la navigation aux côtes de Saint-Domingue... Paris, 1787. €5,000 to €7,000.
  • Freeman’s, Nov. 13: HEMINGWAY, Ernest. Three Stories and Ten Poems. First edition, inscribed to his cousin, Ruth White Lowry. $60,000-80,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: CURTIS, Edward S. The North American Indian... Portfolio and two text volumes. $20,000-30,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: A Superb Illuminated Manuscript of Tennyson’s Le Morte d'Arthur, ca. 1910, by Alberto Sangorksi and in an exceptional Riviere binding. $40,000-50,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: A Remarkable Epistle from Robert Burns to Frances Dunlop, containing all lines of the first version of "Written in Friars Carse Hermitage" and 12 lines of the first version of "First Epistle to Robert Graham Esq." $20,000-30,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: FAULKNER, William. Go Down, Moses. First edition, limited issue, one of 100 copies signed by Faulkner. $10,000-15,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: MAUGHAM, W. Somerset. Of Human Bondage. First English edition, presentation copy, inscribed by Maugham, in the rare suppressed dust-jacket. $40,000-50,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: An Excessively Rare First Issue and Previously Unrecorded Copy of Shakespeare’s Third Folio. $40,000-60,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: AUDUBON, John James. Louisiana Heron, Ardea Ludoviciana. (Plate CCXVII). $30,000-40,000
    Freeman’s, Nov. 13: HERBERT, Frank. Dune, 1965. First edition, inscribed by Herbert. $8,000-12,000
  • Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Presentation Copy of a Whitman "Holy Grail." Whitman, Walt. $10,000-$15,000.
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Endymion in Original Boards. Keats, John. $8,000-
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Association Copy of the Privately Printed Edition of The Tale of Peter Rabbit. Potter, Beatrix. $8,000-$12,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Christina Rossetti's Own Copy of Her First Book. Rossetti, Christina G. $8,000-$12,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: The Borden Copy of The Life of Merlin in an Elaborate Binding by Riviere. Heywood, Thomas, Translator. $6,000-$8,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Arion Press. Whitman, Walt, Leaves of Grass. $4,000-$6,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Call It Sleep in the First State Jacket. Roth, Henry. $2,000-$3,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Steinbeck's Best-Known Work. Steinbeck, John. $2,000-$3,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: A Fine Jewelled Binding Signed by Sangorski & Sutcliffe. Sangorski, Francis. $40,000-$60,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: The Complete Tales of Beatrix Potter: A Complete Set of First Editions. Potter, Beatrix. $2,000-$3,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Kelmscott Shelley. Shelley, Percy Bysshe. The Poetical Works. $3,000-$5,000
    Bonhams, Nov. 3-13: Inscribed by Martin Luther King Jr. King, Martin Luther, Jr. $3,000-$5,000
  • Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 75. The Second Printed Map of the North American Continent - Full Contemporary Color (1593) Est. $35,000 - $40,000
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 37. Schedel's Ancient World Map with Fantastic Humanoid Creatures (1493) Est. $16,000 - $18,000
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 104. Important Revolutionary War Plan of Battle of Quebec in Contemporary Color (1776) Est. $4,000 - $4,750
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 43. Mercator's Map of the North Pole - the First Printed Map Devoted to the Arctic (1606) Est. $2,750 - $3,500
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 237. Rare and Striking Bird's-Eye View of Lawrence, Kansas (1880) Est. $2,000 - $2,500
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 10. Rare Map from Atlas Maior with Representations of the Seasons in Contemporary Color (1662) Est. $14,000 - $17,000
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 374. Bunting's Map of Europe Depicted as the Queen of the World (1589) Est. $2,000 - $2,400
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 590. Willem Blaeu's Magnificent Carte-a-Figures Map of Asia (1634) Est. $2,750 - $3,500
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 647. The Earliest and Most Decorative Map of the East Coast of Africa (1596) Est. $3,000 - $3,750
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 710. Ruscelli's Complete, Third Edition Atlas with 65 Maps (1574) Est. $9,500 - $11,000
    Old World Auctions (Nov 12):
    Lot 696. Superb Hand-Colored Image of the Adoration of the Shepherds (1502) Est. $800 - $950

Rare Book Monthly Articles - July - 2021 Issue

A Story of Fraud, Deceit, Forgery and Murder Comes to Its Conclusion at Heritage Auctions

A Story of Fraud, Deceit, Forgery and Murder Comes to Its Conclusion at Heritage Auctions

A story of deceit, fraud, forgery, and murder closed perhaps its final chapter in the book rooms at Heritage Auctions last month. This sordid tale goes back 35 years, though its beginnings started over four centuries earlier, in 1638. That is when Stephen Daye, a locksmith by trade, boarded a ship bound for the New World. He had agreed to work for printer Joseph Glover in return for paying his fare. Daye didn't know much about printing, but Glover was there to teach him the ropes.   It didn't turn out that way. Glover died on the voyage. Daye's indebtedness now belonged to Glover's widow,...

Shifting Gears

Shifting Gears

Collecting old books for me has been a day by day, step by step process over six decades converting interests, ambitions and possibilities into accumulations that held together over the years to be...

Sotheran’s, Historic London Bookseller, Reports on Emergence from Pandemic

Sotheran’s, Historic London Bookseller, Reports on Emergence from Pandemic

“Sotheran's home is London,” wrote Chris Saunders, 47, the managing director for Henry Sotheran Ltd. “ We've been here for over 200 years, which is a long time, but only the blink of an eye for a c...

Has a Book from Shakespeare's Library Finally Been Located?

Has a Book from Shakespeare's Library Finally Been Located?

Has a book from Shakespeare's library finally been found? William Shakespeare is undoubtedly the English language's greatest literary giant. We also know that many of his plays were based on earlie...

Detroit Festival Of Books: July 18th, 2021 - Get Ready!

Detroit Festival Of Books: July 18th, 2021 - Get Ready!

As cities begin to open up, post-Covid, Detroit (again) is showing its commitment to books and the culture of the book. The upcoming Bookfest, again at Eastern Market, Detroit, may set another atte...

The Numbers are Way Up:  Way Up

The Numbers are Way Up: Way Up

Rare Book Hub is the combination of facts and numbers about books and recently the number of auctions covering books, manuscripts, maps and ephemera has rapidly increased this year.  To illustrate ...

Mungo Park in Africa: A Classic, I Presume

Mungo Park in Africa: A Classic, I Presume

Mungo Park’s Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa (London, 1799) is one of the most iconic travel books ever. It is the testimony of one of the very first white men to travel this part of th...

Where are we?

Where are we?

The last year has been a whirlwind for the auction market. In the early months of the Pandemic, when the Trade and book fairs scrambled to work out online platforms and the possibilities of sourcin...

Donald Heald Announces his first Americana Sale:  Buckle Up!

Donald Heald Announces his first Americana Sale: Buckle Up!

An invitation to you extended by Donald Heald - Please join me for our first Americana sale on July 17th beginning at 1:00 pm EST.  Our upcoming event at Donald Heald Auctions offers a dive into m...

The U. S. Economy is Rebounding, so says Jerome H. Powell

The U. S. Economy is Rebounding, so says Jerome H. Powell

Economies go through cycles   Free world economies are complex systems that balance economic and political realities in democracies.  Recessions and occasionally depressions reflect declines in e...

Another Record Price and Two More News Items about Collectible Cards

Another Record Price and Two More News Items about Collectible Cards

We have been writing lately about record prices for baseball and other sports cards seemingly ad nauseam. You may wonder why we do this on a rare books site, besides the fact they are constantly hi...

A Nation:  A City, & Its First Library:  the St. Louis Mercantile Library

A Nation: A City, & Its First Library: the St. Louis Mercantile Library

Libraries represent bundles of ambitions, many initially modest, always beginning with the hope to make a difference in people’s lives.  This is why tens of thousands of volunteers commit their tim...

Shapero Rare Books' Parent Finishes Year with a Loss

Shapero Rare Books' Parent Finishes Year with a Loss

This has been a tough year for just about anyone in the book business, but most don't have to announce their results. That is not true for Shapero Rare Books parent, Scholium Group, as it is a publ...

LiveAuctioneers announces proposed acquisition by Auction Technology Group

LiveAuctioneers announces proposed acquisition by Auction Technology Group

  Treasure hunters and auctioneers to receive access to enhanced suite of online products and services   NEW YORK – LiveAuctioneers, one of North America’s favorite destinations for fine and de...

Dr. Seuss Is Coming to Blockchain

Dr. Seuss Is Coming to Blockchain

Dr. Seuss is coming to blockchain. The beloved children's author, who has recently been in some hot water due to racially insensitive drawings he made in the 1930s and 40s, is now leaping into the ...

Six New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

Six New Catalogues Reviewed This Month

This month we review six new bookseller catalogues. Type Punch Matrix is focused on the counterculture. Lorne Bair Rare Books feature progressive and radical movements. Ursus Rare Books targets Ava...

Rare Book Monthly

  • Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
  • Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction November 24th
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: M. Waldseemüller, Ptolemaeus auctus restitutus, 1520. Est: € 250,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: I. Newton, Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica, 1687. Est: € 100,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: L. Feininger, Collection of 33 comic strips, 1906-1907. Est: € 8,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction November 24th
    Ketterer, Nov. 24:H. Schedel, Liber chronicarum, 1493. Est: € 30,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: K. Bodmer, Personal Sketchbook with ca. 80 pencil drawings. Est: € 25,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: Collection of 18 Bauhaus postcards “Bauhaus-Ausstellung Weimar 1923.“ Est: € 40,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction November 24th
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: Latin Book of hours on vellum, 1505. Est: € 12,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: G. Shaw & F. P. Nodder, Vivarium naturae, 1789-1813. Est: € 10,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: A. de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince, 1943. Est: € 6,000
    Ketterer Rare Books
    Auction November 24th
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: Ibn Butlan, Tacuini sanitatis, 1531. Est: € 8,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: H. Hesse, Casa Camuzzi in Montagnola, 1927. Est: € 12,000
    Ketterer, Nov. 24: Pop Art portfolio Reality & Paradoxes, 1973. Est: € 12,000
  • Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
    Doyle
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    November 25
  • Swann
    Printed & Manuscript Americana
    November 20, 2025
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 9
    George Catlin. O-Kee-Pa: A Religious Ceremony; and other Customs of the Mandans. London, 1867.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 17
    Benjamin Beal, Unpublished diary of a lieutenant serving in the Invasion of Quebec, 1776.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 23
    George Washington, Autograph Letter Signed anticipating the coming British campaign against Philadelphia, 1777.
    Swann
    Printed & Manuscript Americana
    November 20, 2025
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 35
    Matthias C. Sprengel, Allgemeines historisches Taschenbuch, the first published appearance of the American flag, [1784].
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 120
    Portfolio of lithograph Civil War portraits by Ehrgott, Forbriger & Co. and others. Cincinnati, OH, circa 1863.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 130
    Eleazar Huntington, engraver. Early broadside engraving of the Declaration of Independence, circa 1820-24.
    Swann
    Printed & Manuscript Americana
    November 20, 2025
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 175
    Jeremiah B. Taylor, Letterbook of a frontier Baptist missionary in Kansas with tales of friendly Indians and unfriendly Confederate raiders, 1839-1887.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 188
    Jonas Rishel, The Indian Physician, Containing a New System of Practice, Founded on Medical Plants, 1828.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 201
    Brigham Young and the First Presidency of the LDS, Commission issued to two Church representatives, 1849.
    Swann
    Printed & Manuscript Americana
    November 20, 2025
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 293
    Kuonraden's Vart (Kuonrad's Travels), an illustrated western travel memoir set to verse, circa 1914.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 311
    Hermann Stieffel, Early watercolor view of the ruins of a Spanish mission in the Manzano Grant. Manzano, NM, circa 1860-67.
    Swann, Nov. 20: Lot 343
    Vida de San Felipe de Jesus, protomartir del Japon, y patron de su patria Mexico.
  • University Archives
    Rare Autographs, Manuscripts & Books
    Now through Nov. 19
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 308 - Bob Dylan Handwritten & Signed Lyrics to "Just Like a Woman" With Jeff Rosen & JSA Authentication
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 455 - Isaac Newton Admiration For Judaism & Moral Continuity With Christianity! 350+ Words in his Hand - Extraordinary Content!
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 219 - 371g Moon Meteorite, Incredible Find - Laâyoune 002
    University Archives
    Rare Autographs, Manuscripts & Books
    Now through Nov. 19
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 448 - Scarce Einstein AM on Unified Field Theory, 180+ Words & 11 Equations in His Hand! From His Published Article, "A Generalization of the Relativistic Theory of Gravitation"
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 159 - Woodrow Wilson Baseball Signed for WWI Red Cross Fundraiser, Ex. Forbes & PSA Authentic - Finest Known!
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 84 - Lee Harvey Oswald ALS to Brother, Trying Desperately to Get out of Russia! Highly Important
    University Archives
    Rare Autographs, Manuscripts & Books
    Now through Nov. 19
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 152 - George Washington Signed Discharge for MA Soldier Whose Regiment Was at Bunker Hill!
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 88 - Abraham Lincoln Fully Signed Military Appointment for Mexican War Vet & Respected Cavalryman
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 188 - Apollo XI Astronauts & Their Wives Signed Photo, Plus Crew Signed Cover, From Apollo XI Presidential Goodwill Tour Era, Pre-Cert Zarelli
    University Archives
    Rare Autographs, Manuscripts & Books
    Now through Nov. 19
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 265 - Martin Luther King, Jr. TLS Re: "Stride Toward Freedom" Film Rights To Literary Agent Marie Rodell
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 324 - John Lennon Signed Apple Records Check, PSA GEM MT 10! Possibly Finest Known
    University Archives, Nov. 19:
    Lot 79 - John & Jacqueline Kennedy Signed WH 1963 Christmas Gift Inscribed to Close Friend Joan Braden, PSA Authentic

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