Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - April - 2013 Issue

Bibliographies from Forest Books

Bibliography.

Bibliography.

Forest Books has issued their Catalogue 112 Bibliography & Reference. It is filled with almost 700 primarily bibliographical titles. They cover innumerable authors and subjects. You will find the greatest of writers starting with Shakespeare, to lesser known names, many of which, I confess, I do not know. Topics range from those of noted collectibility, such as travel, science, medicine, Americana, great literature, and the like, to those of rather tight niches and obscurity. Some of the subjects of collecting for which you might not expect anyone to have written a bibliography include jigsaw puzzles, the circus, British bee books, British farm livestock, playing cards, British lepidoptera (butterflies), clockmakers' library, English topography, Italian economic literature, foreign travels to Norway before 1900, fencing and dueling, society of civil engineers, fireworks, and the Lesser Antilles. Sorry, but no Greater Antilles bibliographies this time. As you might guess from this list, Forest Books is located in England, but there are many bibliographies centered on American and European subjects. If you are looking for a bibliography of an obscure topic, this is a great place to start. Here are a few samples.

We will start with a bibliography that applies to both Britain and America: A Bibliographical Study of the British Pamphlets About the American Disputes, 1764-1783. That's a gentle way of describing an all-out war with each side doing its best to kill the other. Americans tend to be familiar with their own attacks on the British during the 1760s and 1770s, but pamphlets flew off the British presses concerning these issues at the same time. They ranged from hostility toward the colonists and opinions that they were all a bunch of ingrates, to sympathy for their cause. Though focused on British pamphlets, this 1980 bibliography by Thomas R. Adams was produced by the Bibliographical Society of America. It covers 1,400 titles in about 2,350 editions. Item 8. Priced at £50 (British pounds, or roughly $75 in U.S. dollars).

Benjamin Franklin is noted for many things, primarily his diplomatic skills during the period around the American Revolution, and for being America's greatest scientist of the 18th century. However, he is also well known for his press, having been a printer while undertaking his scientific experiments and before graduating into serious diplomacy. Item 429 is C. William Miller's Benjamin Franklin's Philadelphia Printing 1728-1766: A Descriptive Bibliography, published in 1974. It contains 583 pages of information on Franklin's active press work. £40 (US $60).

Next we have a biography and bibliography of a British publisher and bookseller for whom Americans will certainly allow the British to claim full credit: The Unspeakable Curll. Being some account of Edmund Curll, bookseller, to which is added a full list of his books. This is a first edition of Ralph Straus' 1927 account. Edmund Curll was a rogue, a sleaze, and just about anything else unpleasant one can say about a man. He published all sorts of books, some legitimate, others trash, pornography, scandalous and dishonest. Needless to say, his books were popular. He specialized in pirating books, and if the authors complained, he would just publish more. He published people's private letters, and if these weren't scandalous enough, he would just make them up. He made up claims for medical books and sold patent medicines on the side. His behavior at times got him into trouble. He was sued for libel and was in and out of prison. The experiences would not deter him, Curll quickly returning to his old ways. Curll's career began around 1700 and continued until his not much lamented death in 1747. Item 605. £28 (US $42).

Whether your collection is pro or anti-Methodist, Forest has a bibliography for you. Both were prepared by Rev. Richard Green. The first is The Works of John and Charles Wesley. This is a chronological bibliography of the works published by the Wesley brothers, a second edition from 1906. Item 248. £50 (US $75). The second is Anti-Methodist Publications Issued During the Eighteenth Century. It covers all books written in opposition to the Methodist revival during the lifetime of John Wesley. Item 249 is a 1973 reprint of a book published in 1902. £18 (US $27).

We also find the same treatment available for collectors of Quaker material. Item 580 is A Descriptive Catalogue of Friends' Books, or Books Written by Members of the Society of Friends, Commonly Called Quakers... This is a 1970 reprint of an 1867 edition prepared by Joseph Smith. £65 (US $97). Item 579 is Bibliotheca Anti-Quakeriana; or, a Catalogue of Books Adverse to the Society of Friends... Most unfriendly. This was also written by Joseph Smith, a 1968 reprint of the 1878 edition. £14 (US $21).

No subject is too painful for a bibliography, as attested by Dental Bibliography. A Standard Reference List of Books on Dentistry Published Throughout the World from 1536-1885. This is a 1968 reprint of the 1885 edition, compiled by C. George Crowley. Dentistry wasn't much fun in that era. Item 140. £20 (US $30). It might sound more romantic in French, but is probably no less unpleasant. Item 153 is T. David's Bibliographie Francaise de l'Art Dentaire, a 1970 reprint of an 1889 bibliography. £12 (US $18).

Forest Books may be reached at +44 1949-842360 or bib@forestbooks.co.uk. Their website is www.forestbooks.co.uk.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Dominic Winter Auctioneers

    April 9
    Printed Books, English Bibles, Maps & Decorative Prints
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Johnson (C.). A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most Notorious Pyrates, 1724. £3,000-4,000
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Ordonez de Cevallos (Pedro). Viage del Mundo, 1st edition, Madrid: Luis Sanchez, 1614. £1,000-1,500
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: North America. Merian (Matthaus), Virginia..., 1627 or later. £1,500-2,500
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers

    April 9
    Printed Books, English Bibles, Maps & Decorative Prints
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: World. Waldseemuller (Martin), Tabula Nova Totius Orbis, Vienne: 1541. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Erasmus (Desiderius). The ... paraphrase of Erasmus... 2 volumes, 1st edition, 1549. £3,000-5,000
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Bible [English]. [The Bible and Holy Scriptures conteyned in the Olde and Newe Testament, 1562]. £3,000-5,000
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers

    April 9
    Printed Books, English Bibles, Maps & Decorative Prints
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Smith (Lucy). Biographical Sketches of Joseph Smith the Prophet, 1st edition, 1853. £1,000-1,500
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Derain (Andre). Pantagruel, signed limited edition, Albert Skira, 1943. £2,000-3,000
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Austen (Jane). Pride and Prejudice, illustrated by Hugh Thomson, Large Paper edition, 1894. £1,500-2,000
    Dominic Winter Auctioneers

    April 9
    Printed Books, English Bibles, Maps & Decorative Prints
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Ellison (Ralph). Invisible Man, 1st edition, New York: Random House, 1952. £200-300
    Dominic Winter, Apr. 9: Taschen Collector's Edition. Annie Leibovitz, limited edition, 2014. £1,000-1,500
  • Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 1: Bob Dylan, his high school classmate's yearbook with his senior portrait, signed and inscribed to her, 1959. $10,000 to $20,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 4: Various entertainers, Group of 30 items, signed or inscribed, various dates. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 27: John Adams, Autograph Letter Signed to Benjamin Rush introducing Archibald Redford, Paris, 1783. $35,000 to $50,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 36: Robert Gould Shaw, Autograph Letter Signed to his father from Camp Andrew, Boston, 1861. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 53: Martin Luther King Jr., Time magazine cover, signed and inscribed "Best Wishes," 1957. $5,000 to $7,500.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 127: Paul Gauguin, Autograph Letter regarding payment for paintings, with woodcut letterhead, 1900. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 169: Suck: First European Sex Paper, complete group of eight issues, 1969-1974. $800 to $1,200.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 173: Black Panthers, The Racist Dog Policemen Must Withdraw Immediately From Our Communities, poster, 1969. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 187: Marc Attali & Jacques Delfau, Les Erotiques du Regard, first edition, Paris, 1968. $300 to $500.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 213: Andy Warhol, Warhol's Index Book, first printing, New York, 1967. $800 to $1,200.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 215: Cookie Mueller, Archive of 17 items, including 4 items inscribed and signed. $3,000 to $4,000.
    Swann, Apr. 10: Lot 249: Jamie Reid, The Ten Lessons / The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle; Sex Pistols, chromogenic print with collage, signed, circa 1980. $20,000 to $30,000.
  • 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
  • Bonhams, Apr. 8: First report outside of the colonies of the American Revolution, from American accounts. Printed broadsheet, The London Evening-Post, May 30, 1775. $20,000 - $30,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Joyce, James. The earliest typescript pages from Finnegans Wake ever to appear at auction, annotated by Joyce, 1923. $30,000 - $50,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Joyce's Ulysses, 1923, one of only seven copies known, printed to replace copies destroyed in customs. $10,000 - $15,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: ATHANASIUS KIRCHER'S COPY, INSCRIBED. Saggi di naturali esperienze fatte nell' Accademia del Cimento, 1667. $2,000 - $3,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Bernoulli's Ars conjectandi, 1713. "... first significant book on probability theory." $15,000 - $25,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Aristotle's Politica. Oeconomica. 1469. The first printed work on political economy. $80,000 - $120,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: John Graunt's Natural and political observations...., 1662. The first printed work of epidemiology and demographics. $20,000 - $30,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: William Playfair's Commercial and Political Atlas, 1786. The first work to pictorially represent information in graphics. $15,000 - $25,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Anson's A Voyage Round the World, 1748. THE J.R. ABBEY-LORD WARDINGTON COPY, BOUND BY JOHN BRINDLEY. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: La Perouse's Voyage de La Perouse autour du monde..., 1797. LARGE FINE COPY IN ORIGINAL BOARDS. $8,000 - $12,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Francesca Woodman's Some Disordered Interior Geometries, 1981. Untrimmed publisher's proof sheets. $4,000 - $6,000
    Bonhams, Apr. 8: Charles Schulz original 8-panel Peanuts Sunday comic strip, 1992, pen and ink over pencil, featuring Charlie Brown, Snoopy and Lucy as a psychiatrist. $20,000 - $30,000

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