Letter

Ahead of a very busy period for the trade, we kick off our guide to the events coming up with a London fair marking the 250th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence.

Two choice British documents emerged across two different sales at Amherst, New Hampshire firm RR Auction (25% buyer’s premium).

A letter written by Florence Nightingale in which she discusses the creation of the Red Cross and the Geneva Convention is being sold by Sworders.

The Red Barn Murder of 1827, which occurred in the tiny rural village of Polstead, Suffolk was the biggest crime story of the era.

Henry VIII, King of England 1509-47 was not a happy man on July 14, 1539, it seems.

Eighteen letters written by Beatrix Potter to an antiques dealer between 1933-43 come for sale in Nottingham this month.

Books from a routine call proved disappointing until a first edition Dracula loomed into view

An extremely rare survival from the nine-day reign of Lady Jane Grey, one of the more dramatic episodes in English history, came to market on February 25.

A collection of nine letters from Winnie the Pooh author AA Milne sold at Derbyshire saleroom Irita Marriott (24% buyer’s premium) had been passed down through the family of Vincent Seligman and his wife Barbara, who were lifelong friends of the author.

Peter Harrington Rare Books of London brings a letter by Mario Puzo, author of The Godfather, written to Francis Ford Coppola to Rare Books LA (February 21-22).

For more than 40 years I have owned a bundle of 18th and 19th century Scottish family letters.

A musket ball-riddled handkerchief of a Royal Navy captain cut down at the Battle of Trafalgar stood out at a London sale, but it was a letter to his eight-year-old daughter also retrieved from his pocket that added a particularly poignant touch.

A rare collection of personal correspondence from fell walker, author and illustrator Alfred Wainwright (1907-91) walked away to a new owner in a timed online sale that ended on September 7.