Rare Book Monthly

Book Catalogue Reviews - February - 2006 Issue

Books About Books, Bibliography and the Oak Knoll Fest

Illustration by Joan Hassall.

Illustration by Joan Hassall.


Here is the story of another master forger. Mark Hoffman made a name for himself in Mormon circles by creating historic documents, some of which raised questions about the foundations of the faith. His most notable document was the so-called "Salamander Letter," which showed Mormon founder Joseph Smith involved in folk magic. As so often happens with a life of crime, questions arose and the tumbling of Hoffman's house of cards led him to commit two murders. Item 311 is Salamander, the Story of the Mormon Forgery Murders, by Linda Sillitoe and Allen Roberts. Today, manuscript dealer Hoffman resides at the Utah State Penitentiary, where he shall remain for eternity. $35.

Now for an unusual title, The Snouters, from the Life of the Rhinogrades, by Harald Stumpke (say, his name is unusual too). Snouters are technically members of the family of Rhinogrades, animals that have well-developed snouts. Some can actually walk upon them; others catch food with their snouts. They are apparently somewhat akin to elephants, but with far more developed noses. They lived only on a Pacific island, but unfortunately, they accidentally perished as a result of atomic bomb testing. Sadly, so too did Professor Stumpke, their discoverer. Of course, if you believe any of this, you are quite gullible. "Stumpke" was Gerolf Steiner, a German zoology professor, who invented the entire natural history spoof. However, the story is entertaining enough for the work to have been translated into several languages. Item 445 is in English, published for the American Museum of Natural History in 1967. $17.50.

Joan Hassall was one of the more notable illustrators of the 20th century, most noted for her wood engravings. While her work is well known, its creator is more obscure. Item 276, edited by Brian Lee, will help correct that shortcoming. The book is Dearest Joana, a Selection of Joan Hassall's Lifetime Letters and Art. Published in 2001 (Ms. Hassall died in 1988), it includes letters to family and friends over much of her life. Sixty of her wood engravings plus other art is pictured. This is from a limited edition of just 40 copies. $1,350.

The final catalogue section contains bibliographies. They run from the familiar, such as bibliographies of famous authors, events, and presses, to the obscure, such as Books on Poultry and Cockfighting... or The Lighter Than Air Society Collection (balloons). If you are looking for a bibliography on any subject, no matter how obscure, give Oak Knoll Books a call. They just might have it. Their phone number is 302-328-7232. The website is www.oakknoll.com.

Rare Book Monthly

  • Forum AuctionsFine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper  17th July 2025 Forum AuctionsFine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper  17th July 2025
    Forum Auctions
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    17th July 2025
    Forum Auctions
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    17th July 2025
    Forum, July 17: Lucianus Samosatensis. Dialogoi, editio princeps, second issue, Florence, Laurentius Francisci de Alopa, 1496. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, July 17: Boccaccio (Giovanni). Il Decamerone, Florence, Philippo di Giunta, 1516. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, July 17: Henry VII (King) & Philip the Fair (Duke of Burgundy). [Intercursus Magnus], [Commercial and Political Treaty between Henry VII and Philip Duke of Burgundy], manuscript copy in Latin, original vellum, 1499. £8,000 to £12,000.
    Forum, July 17: Bible, English. The Holy Bible, Conteyning the Old Testament, and the New, Robert Barker, 1613. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum, July 17: Bond (Michael). A Bear Called Paddington, first edition, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1958. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    17th July 2025
    Forum, July 17: Yeats (William Butler). The Secret Rose, first edition, with extensive autograph corrections, additions and amendments by the author for a new edition, 1897. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum, July 17: Byron (George Gordon Noel, Lord). Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, bound in dark green morocco elaborately tooled in gilt and with 3 watercolours to fore-edge, by Fazakerley of Liverpool, 1841. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum, July 17: Miró (Juan), Wassily Kandinsky, John Buckland-Wright, Stanley William Hayter and others.- Spender (Stephen). Fraternity, one of 101 copies, with signed engravings by 9 artists. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum, July 17: Sowerby (George Brettingham). Album comprising 22 leaves of original watercolour drawings of fossil remains of Cheltenham and Vicinity, [c.1840]. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum, July 17: Mathematics.- Blue paper copy.- Euclid. De gli Elementi, Urbino, Appresso Domenico Frisolino, 1575. £12,000 to £18,000.
  • Sotheby’sGeek Week2-17 July | New York Sotheby’sGeek Week2-17 July | New York
    Sotheby’s
    Geek Week
    2-17 July | New York
    Sotheby’s
    Geek Week
    2-17 July | New York
    Sotheby’s, July 15: Buzz Aldrin's FLOWN Apollo 11 Crew-Signed NASA Manned Spacecraft Center Cover. $15,000 to $20,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: Lunar Surface Flown Mission Emblem Presented to Tom Stafford by John Young. $8,000 to $12,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 17: Albert Einstein. Typed Letter Signed ("A. Einstein."), to Ann Morrisett, Affirming a Pacifist's Right to Self-Defense, March 21, 1952. $10,000 to $15,000.
    Sotheby’s
    Geek Week
    2-17 July | New York
    Sotheby’s, July 17: Operating and Maintenance Manual for the BINAC Binary Automatic Computer Built for Northrop Aircraft Corporation. Philadelphia, 1949. $30,000 to $50,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 17: Steve Jobs Apple Computer Business Card, c. 1977. $5,000 to $8,000.
    Sotheby’s, July 15: Extensive Chronology of Spacecraft From Apollo to Skylab, Signed by a Member of Every Crewed Apollo Flight and the Commanders of Each Skylab Mission. $5,000 to $8,000.
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  • DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025 DOYLERare Books, Autographs & MapsJuly 23, 2025
    DOYLE
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    July 23, 2025
    DOYLE
    Rare Books, Autographs & Maps
    July 23, 2025
    DOYLE, July 23: WALL, BERNHARDT. Greenwich Village. Types, Tenements & Temples. Estimate $300-500
    DOYLE, July 23: STOKES, I. N. PHELPS. The Iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498-1909. New York: Robert H. Dodd, 1915-28. Estimate: $3,000-5,000
    DOYLE, July 23: [AUTOGRAPH - US PRESIDENT]FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT. A signed photograph of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Estimate $500-800
    DOYLE, July 23: [ARION PRESS]. ABBOTT, EDWIN A. Flatland. A Romance of Many Dimensions. San Francisco, 1980. Estimate $2,000-3,000.
    DOYLE, July 23: TOLSTOY, LYOF N. and NATHAN HASKELL DOLE, translator. Anna Karénina ... in eight parts. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell & Co., [1886]. Estimate: $400-600
    DOYLE, July 23: ROWLING, J.K. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. London: Bloomsbury, 2000. Estimate $1,200-1,800

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