Christies: Valuable Books and Manuscripts
Auction Reports
| Auction Name | Valuable Books and Manuscripts | Total Sales (GBP) | 2,381,875.00 |
| Auction Date | July 10, 2019 - July 10, 2019 | Low Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 1,640,600.00 |
| Sale Number | #17200 | High Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 2,408,400.00 |
| Total Lots | 243 | ||
| Sold Lots | 133 | Low Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 3,583,200.00 |
| % of Lots Sold | 54.73% | High Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 5,369,300.00 |
| Unsold Lots | 110 | Total Sales as a % of High Est. | 44.36% |
Top twenty-five by sale price
| Lot Number | Author Name | Book Title | Year Published | Estimate | Actual Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 599 | COPERNICUS, Nicolaus (1473-1543) | De revolutionibus orbium coelestium, libri V. |
1543 | GBP 500,000.00 - 700,000.00 | GBP 587,250.00 |
| 523 | SERMONS, in Latin, decorated manuscript on vellum |
late 12th or early 13th century | GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00 | GBP 81,250.00 | |
| 556 | SMITH, Adam (1723-1790) | Autograph letter signed ('Adam Smith') to [William Eden, later 1st Baron Auckland], |
1783 | GBP 50,000.00 - 70,000.00 | GBP 77,500.00 |
| 640 | DESCARTES, René (1596-1650) | Discours de la méthode pour bien conduire sa raison, et chercher la vérité dans les sciences. Plus la dioptrique. Les météores. Et la géométrie. |
1637 | GBP 80,000.00 - 120,000.00 | GBP 75,000.00 |
| 603 | FRIDOLIN, Stephan (d.1498) | Schatzbehalter der wahren Reichtümer des Heils. |
1491 | GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00 | GBP 68,750.00 |
| 671 | DARWIN, Charles Robert (1809-1882) -— FITZROY, Robert (1805-1865, editor) | Narrative of the Surveying Voyages of His Majesty's Ships Adventure and Beagle |
1839 | GBP 60,000.00 - 90,000.00 | GBP 68,750.00 |
| 620 | ORTELIUS, Abraham (1527-1598) | Theatrum orbis terrarum. – Parergon. – Nomenclator ptolemaicus. |
1595 | GBP 50,000.00 - 80,000.00 | GBP 62,500.00 |
| 591 | MAO ZEDONG (1893-1976) | Signed photo album presented to Semyon Mikhailovich Budenny, Marshal of the Soviet Union. |
1950s, after 1952. | GBP 50,000.00 - 80,000.00 | GBP 56,250.00 |
| 528 | MAGICAL AND AMULETIC SCROLL OF THE ALCHEMIST JOHANNES MICHAEL, in German and Latin, illuminated manuscript scroll on vellum |
late 16th or early 17th century | GBP 25,000.00 - 35,000.00 | GBP 52,500.00 | |
| 608 | [LICHTENBERGER, Johannes, i.e. Johannes Grünbach (c. 1440-1503)]. | Prognosticatio in Latino. |
1488 | GBP 20,000.00 - 25,000.00 | GBP 52,500.00 |
| 568 | BRONTË, Charlotte (1816-1855) | Autograph letter signed (‘C Brontë’) to D[avid] Waldie, Gloucester Terrace, London, 19 January |
1853 | GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00 | GBP 50,000.00 |
| 619 | WAGHENAER, Lucas Jansszoon (1533-1606) | Pars prima [-altera] speculum nauticum super navigatione maris occidentalis confectum, continens omnes oras maritimas Galliae, Hispaniae et praecipuarum partium Angliae. |
1586 | GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00 | GBP 50,000.00 |
| 573 | EINSTEIN, Albert, (1879-1955) | ‘Über einen die Erzeugung und Verwandlung des Lichtes betreffenden heuristischen Gesichtspunkt,’ in: Annalen der Physik, 4. Folge, Band 17, no. 6, 132-148 pp. |
1905 | GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00 | GBP 37,500.00 |
| 600 | DE BRY, Johann Theodor (1561-1623) and Johann Israel DE BRY (c.1565- c.1609) | Emblemata saecularia, mira et iucunda varietate saeculi huius mores ita exprimentia. |
1596 | GBP 18,000.00 - 25,000.00 | GBP 37,500.00 |
| 652 | MUN, Thomas (1571-1641) | England’s Treasure by Forraign Trade. Or, the ballance of our forraign trade is the rule of our treasure. Written by Thomas Mun of Lond. merchant ... now published ... by his son John Mun of Bearsted |
1664 | GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00 | GBP 37,500.00 |
| 595 | BIBLIA LATINA. |
1455 | GBP 25,000.00 - 40,000.00 | GBP 33,125.00 | |
| 705 | MERIAN, Maria Sibilla (1647-1717) | De Europische Insecten |
1730 | GBP 25,000.00 - 35,000.00 | GBP 32,500.00 |
| 576 | EINSTEIN, Albert (1879-1955) | Autograph letter signed (‘A. Einstein’) to Walter Leich, n.p., 24 April 1950. |
l 1950. | GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00 | GBP 31,250.00 |
| 590 | GANDHI, Mohandas Karamchand (1869-1948) | Autograph manuscript, |
n.d. c.1944-45 | GBP 6,000.00 - 9,000.00 | GBP 30,000.00 |
| 586 | ORWELL, George (pseudonym of Eric Arthur Blair, 1903-1950) | Autograph letter signed (‘Eric A Blair’) to Dennis Collings, n.p. |
1931 | GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00 | GBP 27,500.00 |
| 589 | BOHR, Niels (1885-1962) | Autograph manuscript, diagrams and notes relating to quantum physics, each leaf annotated and signed by Ernest Lawrence, ‘Bohr’s “scribbling?? in connection with our discussions on the train between Berkeley and Omaha, June 10-12 |
1933 | GBP 6,000.00 - 9,000.00 | GBP 27,500.00 |
| 602 | FRANCISCUS DE RETZA (c. 1343-1427; falsely attributed to) | De Generatione Christi, sive Defensorium castitatis B.M.V. |
c. 1479-1482 | GBP 20,000.00 - 25,000.00 | GBP 25,000.00 |
| 647 | LAPLACE, Pierre Simon, Marquis de (1749-1827) | Théorie analytique des probabilités. |
1812-1825. | GBP 12,000.00 - 18,000.00 | GBP 25,000.00 |
| 571 | HOUDINI, Harry (1874-1926) | Autograph letter signed (‘Houdini’) to [Servais] Le Roy, Central Theatre, |
1900 | GBP 10,000.00 - 15,000.00 | GBP 22,500.00 |
| 617 | VITRUVIUS POLLIO, Marcus (1st century BCE) | De architectura libri dece. Translated by Cesare Cesariano (c.1478-1543) Commentary by Cesariano, Benedetto Giovio and Massimo Bono Mauro. |
1521 | GBP 18,000.00 - 25,000.00 | GBP 22,500.00 |
