Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - September - 2004 Issue

25 Years For Bernard Shapero Rare Books

Bernard Shapero's 25th anniversary catalogue.

Bernard Shapero's 25th anniversary catalogue.


By Michael Stillman

This season marks the 25th year of bookselling for Bernard Shapero, and he celebrates that anniversary with a catalogue as gorgeous as many of the books listed therein. That is no small accomplishment as most of the items offered are illustrated books from the 18th and 19th century and the artistry is at times phenomenal. Shapero begins with a brief recounting of his career, from a 16-year-old beginner to proprietor of Bernard Shapero Rare Books, one of London's major booksellers and one which today possesses a worldwide reputation. The catalogue is called simply "25 years."

The major fields covered are travels and views of far off lands (far off from Europe, that is), and botanical and zoological books. These are topics well-suited for spectacular illustration, and these books do not let you down.

Item 92 is The Holy Land... by David Roberts. This is the earliest edition of this work, published in three volumes from 1842-1845. Roberts visited the Near East in the late 1830s and produced a vast number of drawings of sites in the biblical lands along with adjacent Syria and Jordan. Shapero notes that "many people consider this work to contain the finest prints of the area that have ever been produced." That is no exaggeration. Priced at £55,000 (all items are priced in British pounds. We will provide an approximate U.S. dollar conversion as well). US $98,571.

For a place about 100 degrees cooler than the Holy Land, there is a Narrative of a Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea in the Years 1819, 20, 21, and 22...[and]...Narrative of a Second Expedition to the Shores of the Polar Sea, in the Years 1825, 1826, and 1827. The immediate question that comes to mind is why John Franklin, having already spent four years in that bitter cold, went back for a second time. The first journey had been horrific, with many of the explorers dying from the cold, hunger, and even murder. That journey had taken them to the mouth of the Coppermine River in far northern Canada, from which they surveyed the coast to the east. Franklin's second journey brought him from Great Bear Lake to the mouth of the Mackenzie River, from which more of the northern coast was explored. The book includes illustrations of the spectacular arctic scenery plus the natives who lived under these harsh conditions. Item 43. £4,500 (US $8,065).

Rare Book Monthly

  • High Bids Win
    Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines
    and Machine Manuals
    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Ellis Smith Prints unsigned. 20” by 16”.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: United typothetae of America presidents. Pictures of 37 UTA presidents 46th annual convention United typothetae of America Cincinnati 1932.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec signed Paper Impressionism Art Prints. MayMilton 9 1/2” by 13” Reine de Joie 9 1/2” by 13”.
    High Bids Win
    Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines
    and Machine Manuals
    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Aberle’ Ballet editions. 108th triumph, American season spring and summer 1944.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Puss ‘n Boots. 1994 Charles Perrult All four are signed by Andreas Deja
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Specimen book of type faces. Job composition department, Philadelphia gazette publishing company .
    High Bids Win
    Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines
    and Machine Manuals
    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: An exhibit of printed books, Bridwell library.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur Court By Mark Twain 1889.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 1963 Philadelphia Eagles official program.
    High Bids Win
    Rare Books, Catalogs, Magazines
    and Machine Manuals
    December 24 to January 9
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: 8 - Esquire the magazine for men 1954.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: The American printer, July 1910.
    High Bids Win, Dec. 24 – Jan. 9: Leaves of grass 1855 by Walt Whitman.
  • Sotheby's
    Fine Books, Manuscripts & More
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s: William Shakespeare.
    The Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare, 1960. 7,210 USD
    Sotheby’s: Charles Dickens.
    A Christmas Carol, First Edition, 1843. 17,500 USD
    Sotheby’s: William Golding.
    Lord of the Flies, First Edition, 1954. 5,400 USD
    Sotheby's
    Fine Books, Manuscripts & More
    Available for Immediate Purchase
    Sotheby’s: Lewis Carroll.
    Through the Looking Glass and What Alice Found There, Inscribed First Edition, 1872. 25,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: J.R.R. Tolkien.
    The Hobbit, First Edition, 1937. 12,000 USD
    Sotheby’s: John Milton.
    Paradise Lost, 1759. 5,400 USD

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