AbeBooks’ most expensive sales in December
January 3rd, 2008 by Richard Davies

Here are AbeBooks’ 10 most expensive sales for December 2007. Clearly some of these ended up as very special Christmas presents for a few lucky people.

1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling - $7,434A fine signed first edition of the fifth installment of everyone’s favourite teenage wizard.

2 Eloise Set by Hilary Knight and Kay Thompson - $7,200

First editions of Eloise, Eloise in Paris, Eloise at Christmastime, Eloise in Moscow and Eloise Takes A Bawth. Each is signed by Hilary Knight. A beautiful signed set of these classic children’s books

3 On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection by Charles Darwin - $6,170

Fourth edition, the first edition was published in 1859. One of the most influential books ever printed.

4= Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne - $5,500

A fine first edition first printing of Milne’s famous children’s story in original green publisher’s cloth. Illustrated by E. H. Shepard.

4=Andrew Wyeth by Richard Meryman - $5,500

The holy grail of books about this American realist painter. A first edition, No. 65 of 300 limited edition copies signed by Wyeth.

4= Golf Architecture: Economy in Course Construction by Dr. Alister Mackenzie - $5,500

Book on designing golf courses by Dr. Mackenzie, who designed Cypress Point in California, Royal Melbourne in Australia and was one of the greatest golf course architects that ever lived.

7 A Guide to Modern Cookery by Escoffier - $5,124

One of the world’s great cookbooks, a 1907 first edition signed by the author and inscribed to Sarah Morgan, who worked at the Cavendish Hotel in London

8 Pompeii Mosaics and paintings by various authors (11 volumes) - $5,122

Rome 1990/1999 Institute of Encyclopedia Italiana. Complete pictorial and written documentation of the ancient city of Pompeii.

9 Memoirs of My Nervous Illness by Daniel Paul Schreber - $5,042A 1955

English edition translated from the original German edition with an introduction by Ida [Wertheimer] Macalpine and Richard [Alfred] Hunter. Dedicated and signed by Ida. This book details the most famous first person account of madness

10 Maisons de Campagne des Environs de Paris by Victor Petit - $5,000

Architecture and Landscape Design in Paris (circa 1860). A very good copy with 50 striking chromolithograph plates of small country houses with plans below the images. Illustrated by Victor Petit.