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Sothebys: Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern

Auction Reports


Auction Name	Books, Manuscripts and Music from Medieval to Modern	Total Sales (GBP)	1,980,692.00
Auction Date	July 09, 2025 - July 09, 2025	Low Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP)	1,213,000.00
Sale Number	#L25404	High Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP)	1,752,400.00
Total Lots	161
Sold Lots	114.0	Low Estimate of All Lots (GBP)	2,479,400.00
% of Lots Sold	70.81%	High Estimate of All Lots (GBP)	3,645,900.00
Unsold Lots	47	Total Sales as a % of High Est.	54.33%

Top twenty-five by sale price

Lot Number	Author Name	Book Title	Year Published	Estimate	Actual Price
3		Psalter, C13th \| Illuminated Psalter, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (perhaps Ghent), c. 1255-1265	c. 1255-1265	GBP 80,000.00 - 120,000.00	GBP 330,200.00
112	King Philip II--	King Philip II--Spanish Armada \| Instructions to the Commander of the Armada and related documents, February-June 1588	February-June 1588	GBP 200,000.00 - 300,000.00	GBP 215,900.00
114	William Shakespeare	William Shakespeare \| Poems, 1640, contemporary calf, the earliest obtainable edition of the Sonnets	1640	GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00	GBP 82,550.00
41	American War of Independence	American War of Independence \| Scrapbook, probably assembled by a member of the Sharp family, including rare maps of America		GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00	GBP 69,850.00
95	Aristotle	Aristotle \| Opera, Venice, Aldus, 1496--1499, 4 volumes (of 5), nineteenth-century calf gilt	1496--1499	GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00	GBP 69,850.00
135	J.K. Rowling	J.K. Rowling \| Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 1997, first edition, hardback issue	1997	GBP 50,000.00 - 70,000.00	GBP 69,850.00
69	John Gould	John Gould \| The Birds of Europe, [1832-] 1837, 5 volumes, contemporary half morocco, subscriber's copy	1832-1837	GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00	GBP 53,340.00
4		Legal Manuscripts \| Statuta vetera, in Latin [England, 14th century]	14th century	GBP 3,000.00 - 5,000.00	GBP 44,450.00
1		Book of Hours, C15th \| Book of Hours by the Masters of Otto van Moerdrecht, Use of Sarum, in Latin, Southern Netherlands (Bruges), c.1450	c.1450	GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00	GBP 40,640.00
116	[Jonathan Swift]	[Jonathan Swift] \| Gulliver's Travels, 1726, first edition	1726	GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00	GBP 38,100.00
162	Richard Strauss	Richard Strauss \| Autograph manuscript of his orchestration of the song "Nun halt Frau Minne Liebeswacht", 1898, unpublished in a critical edition	1898	GBP 30,000.00 - 35,000.00	GBP 38,100.00
53	Denis Dodart	Denis Dodart \| Memoires pour servir a l'histoire de plantes, 1676	1676	GBP 30,000.00 - 40,000.00	GBP 33,020.00
155	Joseph Joachim	Joseph Joachim \| Archive of autograph correspondence between Joseph Joachim and Ernst Rudorff, 1861-1907, mostly unpublished	1861-1907	GBP 10,000.00 - 15,000.00	GBP 33,020.00
88	Samuel Purchas	Samuel Purchas \| Purchas His Pilgrimes, 1625 [and] Purchas His Pilgrimage. 1626, 5 volumes in all	1625 [and	GBP 26,000.00 - 35,000.00	GBP 27,940.00
2		Book of Hours, C15th \| Book of Hours in Dutch made by the workshop of the Master of the Zwolle Bible, Use of Utrecht, c. 1470	c. 1470	GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00	GBP 25,400.00
31		Illuminated Leaf, C15th \| Illuminated leaf from a Breviary, Use of Sarum, first half 15th century	first half 15th century	GBP 6,000.00 - 8,000.00	GBP 22,860.00
82	Giovanni Battista Piranesi	Giovanni Battista Piranesi \| Le antichita Romane, [before 1784]	[before 1784	GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00	GBP 21,590.00
132	John Milton	John Milton \| Paradise Lost and Paradise Regain'd. Cresset Press, 1931, in a jewelled binding	1931	GBP 8,000.00 - 12,000.00	GBP 21,590.00
137	Ronald Searle	Ronald Searle \| 6 pen and ink illustrations for The Terror of St Trinian's, framed		GBP 9,000.00 - 12,000.00	GBP 21,590.00
30		Illuminated Leaf, C15th \| Illuminated initial 'N' on a leaf from an Antiphonary, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on vellum. [Italy (Ferrara?), 15th century (second half)]	15th century (second half)	GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00	GBP 20,320.00
147	Gaetano Donizetti	Gaetano Donizetti \| Autograph scena for Settimio from "L'esule di Roma", [1828], unrecorded and unpublished	1828	GBP 18,000.00 - 20,000.00	GBP 20,320.00
8		Fragment, C9th \| Sacramentary, in Latin, manuscript on vellum [Northern Italy, 9th century (2nd half)]	9th century (2nd half)	GBP 5,000.00 - 7,000.00	GBP 19,050.00
64	Elizabeth Gould	Elizabeth Gould \| Gyrfalcon, original watercolour		GBP 12,000.00 - 18,000.00	GBP 19,050.00
79		Neptune Francois..., Paris, 1693 [but Amsterdam, 1700], bound with Cartes Marines..., Amsterdam, 1693 [but 1694], 2 parts in one volume	1693, 1700	GBP 18,000.00 - 26,000.00	GBP 19,050.00
72	Karl Krazeisen	Karl Krazeisen \| [Bildnisse augezeichneter Griechen und Philhellenen, Munich], 1828-1831	1828-1831	GBP 5,000.00 - 7,000.00	GBP 17,780.00

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("Martinus Luther") to His Friend the Theologian Gerhard Wiskamp ("Gerardo Xantho Lampadario"). $100,000 - $150,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: An Exceptionally Fine Copy of Austenís Emma: A Novel in Three Volumes. $40,000 - $60,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Presentation Copy of Ernest Hemmingwayís A Farewell to Arms for Edward Titus of the Black Mankin Press. $30,000 - $50,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript Signed Integrally for "The Songs of Pooh," by Alan Alexander. $30,000 - $50,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Manuscript of "Three Fragments from Gˆtterd‰mmerung" by Richard Wagner. $30,000 - $50,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Preliminary Artwork, for the First Edition of Snow Crash. $20,000 - $30,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("T.R. Malthus") to Economist Nassau Senior on Wealth, Labor and Adam Smith. $20,000 - $30,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: History of the Peloponnesian War by Thucydides Finely Bound by Michael Wilcox. $20,000 - $30,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: First Edition of Lewis and Clark: Travels to the Source of the Missouri River and Across the American Continent to the Pacific Ocean. $8,000 - $12,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Original Artwork for the First Edition of Neal Stephenson's Groundbreaking Novel Snow Crash. $100,000 - $150,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: A Complete Set Signed Deluxe Editions of King's The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King. $8,000 - $12,000.

Bonhams, Dec. 8-18: Autograph Letter Signed ("John Adams") to James Le Ray de Chaumont During the Crucial Years of the Revolutionary War. $8,000 - $12,000.
Sotheby’s
Book Week
December 9-17, 2025

Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Francesco Colonna. Hypnerotomachie, Paris, 1546, Parisian calf by Wotton Binder C for Marcus Fugger. €200,000 to €300,000.

Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Nausea. De principiis dialectices Gorgias, and other works, Venice, 1523, morocco gilt for Cardinal Campeggio. €3,000 to €4,000.

Sotheby’s, Dec. 17: Billon. Le fort inexpugnable de l'honneur, Paris, 1555, Parisian calf gilt for Peter Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld. €120,000 to €180,000.

Sotheby’s
Book Week
December 9-17, 2025

Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Salinger, J.D. The Graham Family archive, including autographed letters, an inscribed Catcher, a rare studio photograph of the author, and more. $120,000 to $180,000.

Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: [Austen, Jane]. A handsome first edition of Sense and Sensibility, the author's first novel. $60,000 to $80,000.

Sotheby’s, Dec. 16: Massachusetts General Court. A powerful precursor to the Declaration of Independence: "every Act of Government … without the Consent of the People, is … Tyranny." $40,000 to $60,000.
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