Collectables

Just being old is no longer enough. True, most of the collectable maps that change hands in the market are of some considerable age. Many were printed by hand using techniques which changed little between the 1470s and 1830s. Tim Bryars reports...

Old cookery books are more than simply receptacles of food history. They speak of technological change, the availability and discovery of ingredients that came with the expansion of the known world and how the social standing of the cook or chef changed over time. They are also very much in collecting vogue.

As Pom Harrington, chairman of 'Firsts: London’s Rare Book Fair', puts it, “the key challenge today is how do we get the new generation of buyers who have bought from the internet to come away from the screen and see the book first hand in the marketplace”.

In the wake of more high-profile book thefts, the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers is tackling head-on the sometimes thorny issue of provenance.

A selection of highlights that dealers are taking to upcoming fairs.

Welcome to the fourth annual supplement produced by Antiques Trade Gazette showcasing the world of rare books and works on paper. We are again delighted to be the sole sponsor, showing our heartfelt commitment to our industry.

A selection of highlights appearing at upcoming auctions.

ATG's pick of items sold recently at books and works on paper auctions.

Forthcoming buying opportunities in the UK and around the world.

In US collecting circles the ‘Anson-Ewing Burke Ale poster’ is spoken of in hushed tones. When an example was sold by New Jersey baseball memorabilia specialist Robert Edwards Auctions for $188,000 in 2008, it was described as the best-preserved of only three known. More recently in February another was sold for $96,000 at Heritage Auctions in Dallas.

Intricate representation labelled as a Royal Navy vessel has French prisoner-of-war origin.

MADAM – I take great issue with the recent letter on Penny Farthings written by Peter W Card (ATG No 2391).

Collections from two former British prime ministers – Sir Harold Wilson and Margaret Thatcher – sold out at auction in the same week.

MADAM – I believe I can shed some light on the story regarding the Gilbert Rae’s embossed tin sign (Letters, ATG Nos 2389 & 2391) – also pictured below.

Nick McConnell of McConnell Fine Books is among the exhibitors at Firsts: London’s Rare Book Fair (see Books Supplement in this edition). He worked from shops in London before moving to the Kent coast, close to Canterbury.

Discoloured, stained and in a crudely restored old binding, a scarce hunting work of 1704 was sold for a much higher than expected £1400 at a recent Hansons (20% buyer’s premium) sale.