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Articles - March - 2024 Issue

Sotheby’s is still the straw that stirs the drink

- by Bruce E. McKinney

Sotheby’s is still the straw that stirs the drink

Sotheby’s is still the straw that stirs the drink

Sotheby’s has announced they are capping their buyer’s maximum commission to 20%, down from 26 + 1%.

 

It has been apparent for some time that while auction outcomes for paintings and other high value collectibles were rising, Sotheby’s original business based on rare books, while best in class worldwide in 2023 among the 300 auction houses we cover, was also relatively quiet by their recent standards.  Sotheby’s February announcement to lower their commission rates effective May 20th was probably principally based on improving their performance with paintings, their largest category.  While Sotheby’s has often dominated collectible paper over the years, Christie’s has been turning paint, pigments and frames into gold.  Now Sotheby’s new lower commission rates seem designed to encourage additional bids on paintings by lowering their buyer’s premium.  In this calculation, collectible paper is almost an innocent bystander except that collectible paper and paintings share the same rate card.  Simply stated, paintings are where the dough is.

 

Sotheby’s revised rates are logical based on objects worth well into the five figures but very few examples of collectible paper reach that threshold.  Last year we covered 658,433 lots offered that turned into 525,664 sales worldwide, from which we have drawn our annual Top 500 lots for 2023.  Leading off was Sotheby’s Codex Sassoon at $38,126,000 descending to No. 500, Bonham’s Darwin’s On the Origins of Species [1859] that sold for $93,449.00.  Further below were the other 525,164 lots that sold, generating close to a billion dollars with a $1,904.17 average winning realization.  In other words, most collectible paper is making tens of thousands of people’s hearts flutter but not many lots are going to be mentioned on the front pages of the New York Times.

 

My point is Sotheby’s new pricing is aimed to encourage bidders spending major money, while collectible paper is solid and healthy, is a few light years away. Using the same rate card for paper and paintings is going to need imagination.

 

High value collectibles have been on a very good run for the past 10 years while prices for paper rarely reach $90,000 for single lots [per our annual report].  Hence Sotheby’s adjusting their rates now to cater to the art and high value collectible markets is simply good sense.

 

While the headlines about Sotheby’s are speaking to and of the lower buyer’s premium, in the weeds is another important change, their fresh incentives to lower estimates.  That’s going to increase their percentage of lots sold.

 

Now Collectible Paper needs to adjust.

 

For Sotheby’s and other houses that have this lucky predicament, to sell collectible paper and valuable paintings, they can match Sotheby’s headline figure:  20%, by reinstating the previously waived or reduced consigner’s fees.  Presto the houses’ net margins are restored and collectible paper’s place in their pantheons remain secure.

 

This does not suggest that the collectible paper auction market is unhealthy, rather than when an auction house makes policy based on expensive paintings and other high ticket material, collectible paper’s consignor fees are going to be firmer.

 

In any event, many rising mid-tier auction houses may find themselves benefiting from the focus on higher value material by their stately brethren, leaving them opportunities to sell superb material that falls outside of their target range.

 

Certainly the vast majority of Collectible Paper will continue to flow easily into those rooms that are open to it.  Adjustments in fees will be resolved.  And because a fresh wave of Collectible Paper, primarily ephemera is now looking for auction rooms to accommodate them, many houses will offer them a safe harbor.

 

The world changes.

 

Here are their lots within our Top 500 for 2023:

1 38,126,000 USD 30,000,000.00 - 50,000,000.00 . Codex Sassoon .  
1 1,744,000 USD 1,500,000.00 - 2,000,000.00   Ydea Topografica de los altos del Missisipi y del Missouri. Que demuestra los progresos de la compañia Española de descubiertas del rio Missouri, y las usurpaciones de las companies inglesas sobre las posesiones Españolas. …   [Antoine Soulard]
1 1,722,168 GBP 800,000.00 - 1,200,000.00   Autograph manuscript draft lyrics for 'Bohemian Rhapsody', c.1974   Freddie Mercury
1 889,000 USD 700,000.00 - 1,000,000.00   Articles of Agreement, assigning to Sir Humphrey Gilbert 1,500,000 acres of land   Sir Humphrey Gilbert
1 698,500 USD 300,000.00 - 500,000.00   Typescript scroll of The Dharma Bums. Typed by Kerouac in Orlando, Florida, 1957, published by Viking in 1958   Kerouac, Jack
1 635,000 USD 250,000.00 - 300,000.00   Trattato della pittura, manuscript on paper   Leonardo da Vinci
1 546,134 GBP 150,000.00 - 200,000.00   A unique set of 14 daguerreotypes of the officers of the Franklin expedition, 1845   Richard Beard Studio
1 533,400 USD 250,000.00 - 300,000.00   Petri Criniti Libri de poetis Latinis.   Crinito, Pietro.
1 529,200 USD 400,000.00 - 600,000.00   The President's Answer. To the Hebrew Congregation, in Newport, Rhode Island, in The Herald of Freedom, Vol. IV, Numb. LI.   George Washington
1 529,200 USD 400,000.00 - 600,000.00   A True Relation of such occurrences and accidents of noateas hath hapned in Virginia since the first planting of that Collony, which is now resident in the South part thereof, till the last returne from thence. Written by a Gentleman of the said Collony,   [John Smith]
1 508,000 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Mao Zedong, Calligraphic autograph letter to Evans Carlson, 9th May (1937)    
1 508,000 USD 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   A signed photograph of Mao Zedong at Yan'an, dedicated to Evans Carlson, circa 1937    
1 482,600 USD 400,000.00 - 500,000.00   Il terzo libro; Regole generali   Serlio
1 482,600 USD 300,000.00 - 400,000.00   The Federalist: A Collection of Essays, Written in Favour of the New Constitution, as Agreed upon by the Federal Convention, September 17, 1787.   (Hamilton, Alexander, James Madison, and John Jay)
1 446,099 EUR 5,000.00 - 7,000.00   Coran enlumine.    
63 412,371 GBP 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   Notebook with autograph manuscript lyrics for songs in the album Jazz, c.1978   Freddie Mercury
67 396,511 GBP 120,000.00 - 180,000.00   Autograph manuscript draft lyrics for 'Don't Stop Me Now', c.1978   Freddie Mercury
68 396,511 GBP 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   Autograph draft working lyrics for 'We Are The Champions', c.1977   Freddie Mercury
69 388,665 GBP 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Autograph manuscript of Hagars Klage, D.5, SCHUBERT'S FIRST SURVIVING SONG, SIGNED BY THE 14-YEAR-OLD COMPOSER ("Franz Schubert")   Franz Schubert
73 381,000 USD 400,000.00 - 600,000.00   Hypnerotomachia Poliphili : ubi humana omnia non nisisomnium esse docet atque obiter plurima scitu sane quam digna commemorat [Latin and Italian]   Colonna, Francesco.
77 369,532 GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   Mr Adams' Album, a large album of watercolours depicting people, ceremonies, occupations, genre scenes, architecture, and flora and fauna, India, Bengal, and Burma, circa 1828-40   Mr Adams
82 355,600 USD 280,000.00 - 350,000.00   Carmina, manuscript on vellum   Tiraboschi
83 348,930 GBP 50,000.00 - 70,000.00   Autograph draft lyrics for 'Killer Queen', c.1974   Freddie Mercury
86 333,069 GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   A folio from an Akbarnama, A prince on horseback with his entourage, India, circa 1595-1600   Mughal, attributed to the artist Khem
88 325,139 GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   Autograph draft lyrics to 'Love of My Life', c.1974-75   Freddie Mercury
95 304,800 USD 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   The original manuscript for "Snow Crash," 1991-1992   Neal Stephenson
97 301,348 GBP 150,000.00 - 200,000.00   Autograph draft lyrics for 'Somebody To Love', c.1976   Freddie Mercury
98 301,348 GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   Autograph manuscript lyrics for songs on the album 'A Night at the Opera', c.1975   Freddie Mercury
111 279,400 USD 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   Il libro del cortegiano del conte Baldessar Castiglione. Nuovamente ristampato   Castiglione, Baldassarre.
120 266,700 USD 275,000.00 - 350,000.00   Divina proportione; Euclid Opera   Pacioli; Euclid
139 241,300 USD 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   Athenaeus Naucratita.   Athenaeus Naucratita.
140 241,300 USD 70,000.00 - 100,000.00   Mansfield Park, the first edition in original boards --- a rare survival   [Austen, Jane]
141 241,300 USD 70,000.00 - 100,000.00   A handsome first edition in boards of the author's debut novel   [Austen, Jane]
152 228,600 USD 20,000.00 - 30,000.00   The original typesetting manuscript for "Snow Crash," ca. 1992.   Neal Stephenson
154 226,800 USD 180,000.00 - 220,000.00   The Federalist: A Collection of Essays, written in favour of the new Constitution, as agreed upon by the Federal Convention, September 17, 1787.   Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay
155 226,721 GBP 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Clavier Ubung bestehend in einer Aria mit verschiedenen Veraenderungen vors Clavicimbal mit 2 Manualen.   Johann Sebastian Bach
166 215,900 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Jane Austen's copy of Curiosities of Literature   [Austen, Jane] --- Isaac D'Israeli
168 214,116 GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   Autograph manuscript lyrics of songs for the album Sheer Heart Attack, c.1974   Freddie Mercury
182 203,200 USD 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   M.T.C. Epistolae familiares.   Cicero, Marcus Tullius.
183 203,200 USD 80,000.00 - 100,000.00   Catullus, Tibullus, Propertius,   Catullus, Tibullus, Propertius,
184 203,200 USD 200,000.00 - 300,000.00   Il libro del cortegiano del conte Baldesar Castiglione.   Castiglione, Baldassarre.
187 198,765 GBP 1,500.00 - 2,500.00   The Story of the Sultan and Imperial Leather, c.1968-9   Freddie Mercury
191 194,985 EUR 15,000.00 - 20,000.00   Les Roses.   Redoute, Pierre-Joseph et Claude-Antoine Thory
192 194,332 GBP 120,000.00 - 180,000.00   Manuscript miscellany owned, annotated and signed (with initials) four times by Ralegh   Sir Walter Ralegh
199 190,500 USD 140,000.00 - 200,000.00   Petri Bembi de Aetna ad Angelum Chabrielem liber   Bembo, Pietro.
200 190,500 USD 80,000.00 - 120,000.00   Original mock-up of Madeline.   Bemelmans, Ludwig
201 190,500 USD 150,000.00 - 250,000.00   The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America.   Audubon, John James
217 177,800 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Printed broadside signed ("John Hancock") as a Selectman of Boston, denouncing taxes "imposed upon the People, without their Consent"   Hancock, John
218 177,800 USD 180,000.00 - 250,000.00   United States Constitution   United States Constitution
228 174,465 GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   Autograph manuscripts lyrics of songs for the album Queen II, c.1973   Freddie Mercury
244 167,130 EUR 80,000.00 - 120,000.00   De Trinitate (livres IV-XV, cum tabula) ; Confessiones (livres I-V).   Augustin, saint (Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis)
246 165,693 GBP 50,000.00 - 70,000.00   Book of fair copies of 52 letters, mostly unpublished, many in Wesley’s hand   John Wesley–Methodism
248 165,100 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   I called myself Pip, and came to be called Pip.   Dickens, Charles
249 165,100 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   I am no bird; and no net ensnares me...   Bronte, Charlotte
257 161,589 EUR 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   Apocalypsis cù[m] figuris.   Dürer, Albrecht
259 159,824 GBP 100,000.00 - 200,000.00   Queen Elizabeth I—Sir Gilbert Dethick | 9 illustrated heraldic manuscripts presented to the Queen, 1568-80   Queen Elizabeth I—Sir Gilbert Dethick
260 158,604 GBP 120,000.00 - 180,000.00   Notebook with working lyrics, early 1970s   Freddie Mercury
262 156,038 GBP 70,000.00 - 90,000.00   A history of the birds of Europe, including all the species inhabiting the Western Palaearctic Region.   Henry Eeles Dresser
274 152,400 USD 80,000.00 - 120,000.00   It is a truth universally acknowledged...   [Austen, Jane]
275 152,400 USD 150,000.00 - 200,000.00   L'anthropologia di Galeazzo Capella secretario dell'illustrissimo signor duca di Milano   Capella, Galeazzo Flavio
294 145,749 GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00   A map of the British and French dominions in North America, with the roads, distances, limits and extent of the settlements.   John Mitchell
309 142,744 GBP 12,000.00 - 18,000.00   Notebook containing autograph manuscript lyrics of songs for The Miracle, 1988-89   Freddie Mercury
315 138,269 EUR 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Histoire de la peinture en Italie.    
316 138,269 EUR 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Copie autographe de sa correspondance croisée, et de celle de sa fille, avec Mme de Sévigné, Mme de Grignan et quelques-uns de leurs amis.   Bussy-Rabutin, Roger de
328 132,555 GBP 15,000.00 - 20,000.00   Sacrae Scripturae veteris, novaeque omnia.    
329 132,311 EUR 50,000.00 - 70,000.00   Rituel de l'abbaye royale de S. Germain des Prez les Paris, Contenant les prieres & ceremonies a faire lorsque les Religieux de la de Abbaye portent les Reliques de la glorieuse Vierge & Martyre S. Marguerite aux Reynes & Princesses du sang.   Jarry, Nicolas (attribue a) - Nicolas Robert
344 127,000 USD 100,000.00 - 150,000.00   Autograph document signed ("Th: Jefferson") as third President, to the New Jersey legislature   Jefferson, Thomas
345 127,000 USD 150,000.00 - 200,000.00   Florilegium diversorum epigrammatum in septem libros. [Device]   Anthologia Graeca.
346 127,000 USD 150,000.00 - 200,000.00   Autograph manuscript signed ("A. Lincoln"), being Lincoln's official transcript of the "Subscription Book forthe Capital Stock of the Alton and Sangamon Rail Road Company,"   Lincoln, Abraham
367 121,458 GBP 60,000.00 - 80,000.00   The Lord of the Rings.   J.R.R. Tolkien
384 118,953 GBP 20,000.00 - 30,000.00   Autograph manuscript lyrics for songs on the album A Day at the Races, 1976   Freddie Mercury
395 114,300 USD 80,000.00 - 100,000.00   Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, ubi humana omnia non nisisomnium esse docet atque obiter plurima scitu sane quam digna commemorat   Colonna, Francesco.
402 113,400 USD 90,000.00 - 120,000.00   Gardner's Photographic Sketch Book of the War.   [Alexander Gardner, et al]
412 111,610 GBP 70,000.00 - 100,000.00   The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (B. 64; M., Holl. 167)   Albrecht Durer
415 111,023 GBP 5,000.00 - 7,000.00   A significant archive of c. 265 photographs, mainly 1980s   Freddie Mercury
418 109,227 GBP 70,000.00 - 90,000.00   The natural history of Carolina, Florida and the Bahama Islands.   Mark Catesby
440 105,263 GBP 10,000.00 - 15,000.00   The Hobbit or There and Back Again. Boston and New York   J.R.R. Tolkien
444 104,456 EUR 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   Voyage pittoresque de la Grece.   [Choiseul-Gouffier, Marie Gabriel, comte de]
447 103,093 GBP 50,000.00 - 70,000.00   Autograph manuscript lyrics of songs for the album Jazz, c.1978   Freddie Mercury
451 101,600 USD 70,000.00 - 100,000.00   A Monograph of the Trochilidae, or Family of Humming-Birds.   Gould, John
452 101,600 USD 80,000.00 - 100,000.00   Autograph manuscript, being George Washington's diary entries for a portion of March 1762   Washington, George
453 100,993 EUR 35,000.00 - 55,000.00   La Rivière enchantée.   Foujita, Tsugouharu Léonard ? René Héron de Villefosse
470 96,788 EUR 60,000.00 - 80,000.00   Erotemata. Alphabetum graecum cum multiplicibus litteris. Oratio dominica. Ave Maria. Symbolum Apostolum. Evangelium Johannis. Pythagoras, Aurea verba. Pseudo- Phocylides, Sententiae sive Moralia [en grec et en latin].   Lascaris, Constantinos
471 96,733 GBP 70,000.00 - 100,000.00   A monograph of the trochilidae, or humming-birds [with supplement].   John Gould
479 95,250 USD 35,000.00 - 50,000.00   The only surviving portion of the autograph manuscript of the Sherlock Holmes story, "The Adventure of the Crooked Man"   Doyle, Arthur Conan, Sir
480 95,163 GBP 30,000.00 - 50,000.00   Autograph manuscript lyrics of songs for the album Queen I, c.1971-72   Freddie Mercury
481 95,163 GBP 40,000.00 - 60,000.00   Autograph working lyrics to 'Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy', c.1976   Freddie Mercury
498 93,623 GBP 60,000.00 - 80,000.00   Highly important collection of autograph manuscript working papers, CONSTITUTING THE GREATER PART OF HIS WRITINGS ON CHINESE ASTRONOMY AND INCLUDING MANY OF HIS MOST FAMOUS WORKS AS WELL AS MUCH OF HIS CORRESPONDENCE FROM CHINA, in 12 volumes   Father Antoine Gaubil
             
  62,480,580          

Rare Book Monthly

  • <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper<br>27th March 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Dürer (Albrecht) <i>Hierin sind begriffen vier bücher von menschlicher Proportion,</i> 4 parts in 1, first edition, Nuremberg, Hieronymus Andreae for Agnes Dürer, 1528. £30,000 to £40,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Book of Hours, Use of Rome, illuminated manuscript in Latin, on vellum, 26 fine hand-painted miniatures, 17th century dark brown morocco, [Lyon], [c. 1475 and later c. 1490-1500]. £25,000 to £35,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Brontë (Emily) <i>The North Wind,</i> watercolour, [1842]. £15,000 to £20,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Titanic.- Mudd (Thomas Cupper, one of the youngest victims of the sinking of the Titanic, 1895-1912) Autograph Letter signed on board RMS Titanic to his mother, April 11th 1912. £20,000 to £30,000. <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper<br>27th March 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> [Austen (Jane)] <i>Emma: A Novel,</i> 3 vol., first edition, for John Murray, 1816. £10,000 to £15,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Picasso (Pablo).- Ovid. <i>Les Metamorphoses,</i> one of 95 copies, signed by the artist, Lausanne, Albert Skira, 1931. £10,000 to £15,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> America.- Ogilby (John) <i>America: Being the Latest, and Most Accurate Description of the New World...,</i> all maps with vibrant hand-colouring in outline, probably by an early hand, 1671. £15,000 to £25,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 27:</b> Iceland.- Geological exploration.- Bright (Dr. Richard )and Edward Bird. Collection of twenty original drawings from travels in Iceland with Henry Holland and George Mackenzie, watercolours, [1810]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    27th March 2025
    Forum, Mar. 27: Dürer (Albrecht) Hierin sind begriffen vier bücher von menschlicher Proportion, 4 parts in 1, first edition, Nuremberg, Hieronymus Andreae for Agnes Dürer, 1528. £30,000 to £40,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: Book of Hours, Use of Rome, illuminated manuscript in Latin, on vellum, 26 fine hand-painted miniatures, 17th century dark brown morocco, [Lyon], [c. 1475 and later c. 1490-1500]. £25,000 to £35,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: Brontë (Emily) The North Wind, watercolour, [1842]. £15,000 to £20,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: Titanic.- Mudd (Thomas Cupper, one of the youngest victims of the sinking of the Titanic, 1895-1912) Autograph Letter signed on board RMS Titanic to his mother, April 11th 1912. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum Auctions
    Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
    27th March 2025
    Forum, Mar. 27: [Austen (Jane)] Emma: A Novel, 3 vol., first edition, for John Murray, 1816. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: Picasso (Pablo).- Ovid. Les Metamorphoses, one of 95 copies, signed by the artist, Lausanne, Albert Skira, 1931. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: America.- Ogilby (John) America: Being the Latest, and Most Accurate Description of the New World..., all maps with vibrant hand-colouring in outline, probably by an early hand, 1671. £15,000 to £25,000.
    Forum, Mar. 27: Iceland.- Geological exploration.- Bright (Dr. Richard )and Edward Bird. Collection of twenty original drawings from travels in Iceland with Henry Holland and George Mackenzie, watercolours, [1810]. £20,000 to £30,000.
  • <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>The Library of Barry Humphries<br>26th March 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Beckford (William) [Vathek] <i>An Arabian Tale,</i> first (but unauthorised) edition, Lady Caroline Lamb's copy with her signature and notes, 1786. £2,000 to £3,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Baudelaire (Charles) <i>Les Fleurs du Mal,</i> first edition containing the 6 suppressed poems, first issue, contemporary half black morocco, Paris, 1857. £4,000 to £6,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Beardsley (Aubrey).- Pope (Alexander) <i>The Rape of the Lock,</i> one of 25 copies on Japanese vellum, Leonard Smithers, 1896. £4,000 to £6,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Douglas (Lord Alfred) <i>Sonnets,</i> first edition, the dedication copy, with signed presentation inscription from the author to his wife Olive Custance, The Academy, 1909. £2,000 to £3,000. <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>The Library of Barry Humphries<br>26th March 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Crowley (Aleister) <i>The Works...,</i> 3 vol. in 1 (as issued)"Essay Competition" issue on India paper, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1905-07. £1,500 to £2,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Rodin (Auguste).- Mirbeau (Octave) <i>Le Jardin des Supplices,</i> one of 30 copies on chine with an additional suite, bound in dark purple goatskin, Paris, 1902. £3,000 to £4,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Pellar (Hans) Eight original book illustrations for 'Der verliebte Flamingo' [together with] a published copy of the first edition of the book, 1923. £6,000 to £8,000. <b>Forum, Mar. 26:</b> Cretté (Georges, binder).- Louÿs (Pierre) <i>Les Aventures du Roi Pausole,</i> 2 vol., one of 99 copies, with 2 original drawings, superbly bound in blue goatskin, gilt, Paris, 1930. £3,000 to £4,000.
    Forum Auctions
    The Library of Barry Humphries
    26th March 2025
    Forum, Mar. 26: Beckford (William) [Vathek] An Arabian Tale, first (but unauthorised) edition, Lady Caroline Lamb's copy with her signature and notes, 1786. £2,000 to £3,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Baudelaire (Charles) Les Fleurs du Mal, first edition containing the 6 suppressed poems, first issue, contemporary half black morocco, Paris, 1857. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Beardsley (Aubrey).- Pope (Alexander) The Rape of the Lock, one of 25 copies on Japanese vellum, Leonard Smithers, 1896. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Douglas (Lord Alfred) Sonnets, first edition, the dedication copy, with signed presentation inscription from the author to his wife Olive Custance, The Academy, 1909. £2,000 to £3,000.
    Forum Auctions
    The Library of Barry Humphries
    26th March 2025
    Forum, Mar. 26: Crowley (Aleister) The Works..., 3 vol. in 1 (as issued)"Essay Competition" issue on India paper, signed presentation inscription from the author, 1905-07. £1,500 to £2,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Rodin (Auguste).- Mirbeau (Octave) Le Jardin des Supplices, one of 30 copies on chine with an additional suite, bound in dark purple goatskin, Paris, 1902. £3,000 to £4,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Pellar (Hans) Eight original book illustrations for 'Der verliebte Flamingo' [together with] a published copy of the first edition of the book, 1923. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum, Mar. 26: Cretté (Georges, binder).- Louÿs (Pierre) Les Aventures du Roi Pausole, 2 vol., one of 99 copies, with 2 original drawings, superbly bound in blue goatskin, gilt, Paris, 1930. £3,000 to £4,000.
  • <b><center>Sotheby's<BR>Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s:</b> The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> William Blake | <i>Songs of Innocence and of Experience.</i> Sold: 4,320,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD <b><center>Sotheby's<BR>Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for <i>Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.</i> Sold: 1,920,000 USD <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Machiavelli | <i>Il Principe,</i> a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Leonardo da Vinci | <i>Trattato della pittura,</i> ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP <b>Sotheby’s:</b> Henri Matisse | <i>Jazz,</i> Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR
    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
  • <b><center>Swann<br>Printed & Manuscript African Americana<br>March 20, 2025</center></b> <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 7: Thomas Fisher, <i>The Negro's Memorial or Abolitionist's Catechism,</i> London, 1825. $6,000 to $9,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 78: Victor H. Green, <i>The Negro Travelers' Green Book,</i> New York, 1958. $20,000 to $30,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 99: Rosa Parks, Hand-written recollection of her first meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., autograph manuscript, Detroit, c. 1990s. $30,000 to $40,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 154: Frederick Douglass, Autograph statement on voting rights, signed manuscript, 1866. $20,000 to $30,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 164: W.E.B. Du Bois, <i>What the Negro Has Done for the United States and Texas,</i> Washington, circa 1936. $3,000 to $4,000. <b><center>Swann<br>Printed & Manuscript African Americana<br>March 20, 2025</center></b> <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 263: Susan Paul, <i>Memoir of James Jackson,</i> Boston, 1835. $6,000 to $9,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 267: Langston Hughes, <i>Gypsy Ballads,</i> signed translation of García Lorca's poetry, Madrid, 1937. $1,500 to $2,500. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 274: Malcolm X, Collection from Alex Haley's estate, 38 items, 1963-1971. $4,000 to $6,000. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 367: Solomon Northup, <i>Twelve Years a Slave,</i> Auburn, NY, 1853. $2,500 to $3,500. <b>Swann, Mar. 20:</b> Lot 402: Anna Julia Cooper, <i>A Voice from the South,</i> Xenia, OH, 1892. $2,000 to $3,000.
    Swann
    Printed & Manuscript African Americana
    March 20, 2025
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 7: Thomas Fisher, The Negro's Memorial or Abolitionist's Catechism, London, 1825. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 78: Victor H. Green, The Negro Travelers' Green Book, New York, 1958. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 99: Rosa Parks, Hand-written recollection of her first meeting with Martin Luther King Jr., autograph manuscript, Detroit, c. 1990s. $30,000 to $40,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 154: Frederick Douglass, Autograph statement on voting rights, signed manuscript, 1866. $20,000 to $30,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 164: W.E.B. Du Bois, What the Negro Has Done for the United States and Texas, Washington, circa 1936. $3,000 to $4,000.
    Swann
    Printed & Manuscript African Americana
    March 20, 2025
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 263: Susan Paul, Memoir of James Jackson, Boston, 1835. $6,000 to $9,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 267: Langston Hughes, Gypsy Ballads, signed translation of García Lorca's poetry, Madrid, 1937. $1,500 to $2,500.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 274: Malcolm X, Collection from Alex Haley's estate, 38 items, 1963-1971. $4,000 to $6,000.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 367: Solomon Northup, Twelve Years a Slave, Auburn, NY, 1853. $2,500 to $3,500.
    Swann, Mar. 20: Lot 402: Anna Julia Cooper, A Voice from the South, Xenia, OH, 1892. $2,000 to $3,000.
  • <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> Wit, Frederick de. Atlas. Amsterdam, de Wit, [1680]. CHF 20,000 to 30,000 <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> Merian, Maria Sibylla. Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandelung, und sonderbare Blumennahrung. Nürnberg, 1679; Frankfurt a. M. und Leipzig, 1683. CHF 20,000 to 30,000 <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON. Faust. Ein Fragment. Von Goethe. Ächte Ausgabe. Leipzig, G. J. Göschen, 1790. CHF 7,000 to 10,000 <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> Hieronymus. [Das hochwirdig leben der außerwoelten freünde gotes der heiligen altuaeter]. Augsburg, Johann Schönsperger d. Ä., 9. Juni 1497. CHF 40,000 to 60,000. <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> BIBLIA GERMANICA - Neunte deutsche Bibel. Nürnberg, A. Koberger, 17. Feb. 1483. CHF 40,000 to 60,000 <b>Koller, Mar. 26:</b> HORAE B.M.V. - Stundenbuch. Lateinische Handschrift auf Pergament, Kalendarium französisch. Nordfrankreich (Rouen?). CHF 25,000 to 40,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: Wit, Frederick de. Atlas. Amsterdam, de Wit, [1680]. CHF 20,000 to 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: Merian, Maria Sibylla. Der Raupen wunderbare Verwandelung, und sonderbare Blumennahrung. Nürnberg, 1679; Frankfurt a. M. und Leipzig, 1683. CHF 20,000 to 30,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON. Faust. Ein Fragment. Von Goethe. Ächte Ausgabe. Leipzig, G. J. Göschen, 1790. CHF 7,000 to 10,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: Hieronymus. [Das hochwirdig leben der außerwoelten freünde gotes der heiligen altuaeter]. Augsburg, Johann Schönsperger d. Ä., 9. Juni 1497. CHF 40,000 to 60,000.
    Koller, Mar. 26: BIBLIA GERMANICA - Neunte deutsche Bibel. Nürnberg, A. Koberger, 17. Feb. 1483. CHF 40,000 to 60,000
    Koller, Mar. 26: HORAE B.M.V. - Stundenbuch. Lateinische Handschrift auf Pergament, Kalendarium französisch. Nordfrankreich (Rouen?). CHF 25,000 to 40,000

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