Caricatures Sell for World Record Prices
Totalling £320,000 at Bloomsbury Auctions
Napoleonic
and Georgian satire was in high demand and making top prices in Bloomsbury
Auctions' sale on Thursday 25th June. The packed-out Maddox Street saleroom saw
competitive bidders pushing prices to new record heights, with 98% of the lots
selling for a total of £320,000, over three times the low estimate.
All lots in Lord Baker of Dorking's opening collection of
Napoleonic Caricatures sold, with many achieving well over estimate. James
Gillray?s iconic The Plumb-pudding in danger, showing Pitt and Napoleon carving
up the globe, sold for £18,600 far exceeding its previous record of £11,950 set
in London, 2002 [Lot 51]. Other record prices included Gillray's set of six
Egyptian Sketches, £10,416 [Lot 8], The Valley of the Shadow of Death, sold for
£4,712 [Lot 68] and Fighting for the Dunghill, sold for £4,340 [Lot 6] both
also by James Gillray.
The second collection of Georgian Social & Political satire from the Property of a Gentleman also saw impressive prices with Robert Seymour's Living Made Easy selling for £8,060 (estimate £1,500-2,000, Lot 123), George Cruikshank's Monstrosities of Fashion achieving £7,688 (estimate £2,000-3,000, Lot 116) and Thomas Rowlandson and George Moutard Woodward's Le Brun, Travested selling for £5,000 (estimate £2,000-3,000, Lot 122).
Rupert Powell, Head of Books and Works on Paper at Bloomsbury Auctions commented after the auction; "Today's sale has shown a resurgence in caricatures from the golden age of satire. We're pleased to see such exceptional prices achieved across the sale for our two vendors, who are of course delighted that their collections have been so enthusiastically received by the market."
All lots in Lord Baker of Dorking's opening collection of
Napoleonic Caricatures sold, with many achieving well over estimate. James
Gillray?s iconic The Plumb-pudding in danger, showing Pitt and Napoleon carving
up the globe, sold for £18,600 far exceeding its previous record of £11,950 set
in London, 2002 [Lot 51]. Other record prices included Gillray's set of six
Egyptian Sketches, £10,416 [Lot 8], The Valley of the Shadow of Death, sold for
£4,712 [Lot 68] and Fighting for the Dunghill, sold for £4,340 [Lot 6] both
also by James Gillray. The second collection of Georgian Social & Political satire from the Property of a Gentleman also saw impressive prices with Robert Seymour's Living Made Easy selling for £8,060 (estimate £1,500-2,000, Lot 123), George Cruikshank's Monstrosities of Fashion achieving £7,688 (estimate £2,000-3,000, Lot 116) and Thomas Rowlandson and George Moutard Woodward's Le Brun, Travested selling for £5,000 (estimate £2,000-3,000, Lot 122).
Rupert Powell, Head of Books and Works on Paper at Bloomsbury Auctions commented after the auction; "Today's sale has shown a resurgence in caricatures from the golden age of satire. We're pleased to see such exceptional prices achieved across the sale for our two vendors, who are of course delighted that their collections have been so enthusiastically received by the market."
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Sotheby's Sale 14 July
The
sale includes: an unrecorded variant of one of the early 8vo editions of
Tyndales New Testament
(1536), a rare copy of the first Bible printed in English is expected to fetch
a £25,000-35,000 at Sotheby's in London. William Tyndale's translation of the New Testament into English
was first bought in Cambridge by its current owner for 25 shillings in the
1960s, from a second-hand book shop. It was printed in 1537; from Tyndale's
first complete Bible, printed in English in 1526.
Works by Charles Darwin and others formerly in the library of Richard Keynes and Quentin Keynes.
Fine ink drawings by E.H. Shepard
A fine collection of first editions by Oscar Wilde and other authors of the 1890s, together with related private press books, from the library of the late Gary E. Prouk and others. Causing some excitement is lot 94. Le Morte Darthur published by Dent in 1893-94. This is one of 300 copies on Dutch hand-made paper from the original parts. Extensively illustrated by Aubrey Beardsley this set of three volumes also has nineteen original drawings. The estimate of £25,000-30,000 is surely low.
The minor poets from the 1890s are offered in multi-book lots. 15 volumes associated with Richard Le Gallienne; 8 volumes associated with Ernest Dowson; 12 autograph letters from Lord Alfred Douglas and, yes, 6 volumes by John Davidson.
Oscar Wilde is extensively featured, from a copy of The Sphinx – how many were printed – to lot 145 which consists of 168 volumes, chiefly comprised of works by and about Wilde. Finally to delight any 1890s collector there are many lots featuring books from the Vale Press.
There is so much more, buy a catalogue or look at the e-catalogue which has additional illustrations from some of the lots.
To view the catalogue click here
Works by Charles Darwin and others formerly in the library of Richard Keynes and Quentin Keynes.
Fine ink drawings by E.H. Shepard
A fine collection of first editions by Oscar Wilde and other authors of the 1890s, together with related private press books, from the library of the late Gary E. Prouk and others. Causing some excitement is lot 94. Le Morte Darthur published by Dent in 1893-94. This is one of 300 copies on Dutch hand-made paper from the original parts. Extensively illustrated by Aubrey Beardsley this set of three volumes also has nineteen original drawings. The estimate of £25,000-30,000 is surely low.
The minor poets from the 1890s are offered in multi-book lots. 15 volumes associated with Richard Le Gallienne; 8 volumes associated with Ernest Dowson; 12 autograph letters from Lord Alfred Douglas and, yes, 6 volumes by John Davidson.
Oscar Wilde is extensively featured, from a copy of The Sphinx – how many were printed – to lot 145 which consists of 168 volumes, chiefly comprised of works by and about Wilde. Finally to delight any 1890s collector there are many lots featuring books from the Vale Press.
There is so much more, buy a catalogue or look at the e-catalogue which has additional illustrations from some of the lots.
To view the catalogue click here
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Total over £2m for Remarkable Fine Books and Manuscripts Auction at Bonhams.
A
remarkable series of highlights has seen an exceptional Fine Books &
Manuscripts auction take a sale total in excess of £2,000,000. The sale, held
at Bonhams on the 24th June, attracted enormous interest from collectors,
dealers and institutions with its unusually rich variety of rare and
unpublished curiosities.
The enduring popularity of E.H.
Shepard was demonstrated as an unusually large artwork by the artist soared to
a price of £36,000. The gouache and pencil work from the beloved illustrator of
Winnie-the-Pooh reproduced one of the most iconic images of the “silly old
bear” from the first edition of A.A. Milne’s classic novel.
A section from the personal library of the late novelist, Anthony Powell also sparked feverish bidding with a series of letters from his close friend, George Orwell selling for a combined total of £103,000. Later the opportunity to own a scarce signed, first edition of Animal Farm would see the volume sell for £92,500. Powell himself had stated that the novel "has the rare distinction of being at the same time an attractive and popular children's book, and a savage and damaging satire on Communism…”
An extraordinary historical archive from the Marxist Central Council of the First International also ignited unprecedented interest selling for £140,500. The papers of Friedrich Engels, acting as the Corresponding Secretary for First International, revealed the day-to-day infighting between the Marxist consortium in London and the Bakuninite factions that were rapidly gaining a stranglehold in Spain and Italy.
Matthew Haley, Head of Books and Manuscripts at Bonhams, said, “This has been an exceptional sale of remarkable highlights and quite possibly one of the best multiple owner sales in recent memory.”
Bonhams are now inviting consignments for November’s Fine Books and Manuscripts auction. For further details visit www.bonhams.com/books or call 0207 393 3810.
The enduring popularity of E.H.
Shepard was demonstrated as an unusually large artwork by the artist soared to
a price of £36,000. The gouache and pencil work from the beloved illustrator of
Winnie-the-Pooh reproduced one of the most iconic images of the “silly old
bear” from the first edition of A.A. Milne’s classic novel. A section from the personal library of the late novelist, Anthony Powell also sparked feverish bidding with a series of letters from his close friend, George Orwell selling for a combined total of £103,000. Later the opportunity to own a scarce signed, first edition of Animal Farm would see the volume sell for £92,500. Powell himself had stated that the novel "has the rare distinction of being at the same time an attractive and popular children's book, and a savage and damaging satire on Communism…”
An extraordinary historical archive from the Marxist Central Council of the First International also ignited unprecedented interest selling for £140,500. The papers of Friedrich Engels, acting as the Corresponding Secretary for First International, revealed the day-to-day infighting between the Marxist consortium in London and the Bakuninite factions that were rapidly gaining a stranglehold in Spain and Italy.
Matthew Haley, Head of Books and Manuscripts at Bonhams, said, “This has been an exceptional sale of remarkable highlights and quite possibly one of the best multiple owner sales in recent memory.”
Bonhams are now inviting consignments for November’s Fine Books and Manuscripts auction. For further details visit www.bonhams.com/books or call 0207 393 3810.
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"Disgraceful" printing
The
first edition of Alice’s
Adventures In Wonderland has gone on display in Oxford to mark the
150th anniversary of the book. The story, by Charles Dodgson under the
pseudonym Lewis Carroll, was first published in June 1865. Experts say the
first edition is “immensely rare” as printing was stopped shortly after
publication.
The book was first printed in Oxford by the Clarendon Press in June 1865, a Bodleian Libraries spokeswoman said. Dodgson requested fifty copies to be bound early for him to inscribe and send to friends. A month later, the book’s illustrator John Tenniel complained about the “disgraceful” quality of the printing. The edition was suppressed, and Dodgson agreed to have the book reprinted in London. He recalled the copies sent out to his friends and sent them to children's homes. The Bodleian’s copy is one of just twenty-three of these original copies to survive.
It is on display alongside the second and third edition of the book and can be seen at the exhibition ‘Printing Alice’ which is at the Weston Library in Broad Street, Oxford.
The book was first printed in Oxford by the Clarendon Press in June 1865, a Bodleian Libraries spokeswoman said. Dodgson requested fifty copies to be bound early for him to inscribe and send to friends. A month later, the book’s illustrator John Tenniel complained about the “disgraceful” quality of the printing. The edition was suppressed, and Dodgson agreed to have the book reprinted in London. He recalled the copies sent out to his friends and sent them to children's homes. The Bodleian’s copy is one of just twenty-three of these original copies to survive.
It is on display alongside the second and third edition of the book and can be seen at the exhibition ‘Printing Alice’ which is at the Weston Library in Broad Street, Oxford.
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Dr Timothy Bolton's Inaugural Western Manuscripts & Miniatures Sale at Bloomsbury Auctions
illustrates the History of Writing and Illuminating Books
With
Dr Timothy Bolton at the helm, the inaugural Western Manuscripts &
Miniatures sale at Bloomsbury Auctions on Wednesday 8th July is a journey
through the history of writing and illuminating books in exactly 100 lots. The
auction, which spans four millennia and a vast swathe of human experience, will
be held at Ely House, 37 Dover Street.
Dr Timothy Bolton,
Head of Western Manuscripts & Miniatures said; "We want to bring the
ownership of these beautiful and fascinating objects to new buyers as well as
the traditional collectors. It is my belief that no private library can call
itself complete without a medieval book on its shelves and no home fully
furnished without at least one illuminated miniature on its walls."
Dr Bolton has been a leading figure in the field of medieval manuscripts for nearly a decade and this, his first sale with Bloomsbury Auctions since leaving Sotheby's, is filled with exceptional works from this specialist area, including a sixth-century fragment of the oldest surviving copy of St. Augustine's writings on the Gospel of John, and a riotously illuminated fourteenth-century prayerbook with boar-hunts, rabbits, dogs and even a kitten dressed as a scholar reading a book in its borders.
In addition, there is a fine cuneiform barrel, made around 1785 BC and listing the glorious achievements of King Sin-Iddinam of Larsak; a ninth-century witness to an otherwise lost Old Testament codex (with parts of Isaiah); an eleventh-century relic list from Merseburg Cathedral; a portable Gradual of the first half of the thirteenth century still in its contemporary binding over seven centuries after it was written; an extremely rare sixteenth-century polyphonic music fragment; and a German language astronomical-medical text with charming miniatures illustrating the zodiac and astronomy on every page.
The auction is accessible to buyers at all price points with both grand and opulent medieval books and miniatures, as well as numerous affordable examples of medieval cuttings and documents, including an entire section of medieval vernaculars (including French, Spanish, Low German, Middle English and Bohemian Czech) each available for a few hundred to a few thousand pounds.
Dr Timothy Bolton,
Head of Western Manuscripts & Miniatures said; "We want to bring the
ownership of these beautiful and fascinating objects to new buyers as well as
the traditional collectors. It is my belief that no private library can call
itself complete without a medieval book on its shelves and no home fully
furnished without at least one illuminated miniature on its walls." Dr Bolton has been a leading figure in the field of medieval manuscripts for nearly a decade and this, his first sale with Bloomsbury Auctions since leaving Sotheby's, is filled with exceptional works from this specialist area, including a sixth-century fragment of the oldest surviving copy of St. Augustine's writings on the Gospel of John, and a riotously illuminated fourteenth-century prayerbook with boar-hunts, rabbits, dogs and even a kitten dressed as a scholar reading a book in its borders.
In addition, there is a fine cuneiform barrel, made around 1785 BC and listing the glorious achievements of King Sin-Iddinam of Larsak; a ninth-century witness to an otherwise lost Old Testament codex (with parts of Isaiah); an eleventh-century relic list from Merseburg Cathedral; a portable Gradual of the first half of the thirteenth century still in its contemporary binding over seven centuries after it was written; an extremely rare sixteenth-century polyphonic music fragment; and a German language astronomical-medical text with charming miniatures illustrating the zodiac and astronomy on every page.
The auction is accessible to buyers at all price points with both grand and opulent medieval books and miniatures, as well as numerous affordable examples of medieval cuttings and documents, including an entire section of medieval vernaculars (including French, Spanish, Low German, Middle English and Bohemian Czech) each available for a few hundred to a few thousand pounds.
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Melbourne Rare Book Week
Melbourne
Rare Book Week began in 2012 as a partnership between ANZAAB, the University of
Melbourne and eight other literary institutions. In 2014, over 40 free events
were held at libraries, literary and historical societies and bookshops
throughout Melbourne, attracting local, national and international visitors.
Melbourne Rare Book Week is now well established in the City of Melbourne’s
calendar.
It is a major attraction for book collectors, librarians and all who have a love of words, print on paper and literary heritage. The event this year will be held from July 16-26 culminating in the Book Fair from July 24-26 in the University of Melbourne’s historic Wilson Hall. It coincides with the biennial University of Melbourne Cultural Treasures Festival and the annual Open House Melbourne.
Admission to all events is free
It is a major attraction for book collectors, librarians and all who have a love of words, print on paper and literary heritage. The event this year will be held from July 16-26 culminating in the Book Fair from July 24-26 in the University of Melbourne’s historic Wilson Hall. It coincides with the biennial University of Melbourne Cultural Treasures Festival and the annual Open House Melbourne.
Admission to all events is free
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