Books and Works on Paper

In Rodney Shirley’s monumental study of 'The Mapping of the World… 1472-1700', the very first entry is a simple, circular woodcut known as a ‘T-O’ map, one in which the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa are very simply shown as named segments.

Original French text, translated by Caxton, then illustrated by 1930s engravings

Our regular listing of UK and Irish book auctions.

In a world in which American superhero comics featuring Superman, Batman and other characters regularly sell for substantial six and seven-figure sums, it is really quite refreshing to be reminded of more modestly priced British rarities.

Two very different lots from a November 10 sale held by Dominic Winter (20% buyer’s premium) are noted here.

The undoubted star of the November 24 sale at Tennants (20% buyer’s premium) was the early 15th century folding almanac, or girdle book, that took £95,000.

Copy of ‘most influential work in the history of microscopy’ surfaces in Chicago saleroom.

Single page was used as a promotion for this classic Conan Doyle work.

A single-page letter sent on the day before Steve Jobs’ 19th birthday to a close school friend, Tim Brown, sold for $400,000 (£292,825) in New York.

Modestly estimated at $3000-5000, a richly illustrated manuscript that presents in two finely bound folio volumes a pictorial record of the ‘Costumes et Plantes de L’Hindoustan’ made $80,000 (£58,395) in a New York auction.

A Christie’s New York (25/20/14.5% buyer’s premium) online timed sale achieved six-figure bids for no fewer than eight lots and very high prices for a great many others while running up an impressive and premium-inclusive total of close on $4.75m (£3.45m).

Our regular listing of UK and Irish book auctions.

A live online October 28 sale held by Forum (25/20/12.5% buyer’s premium) attracted a much higher than expected bid for this small and rather browned poster promising that, for one day only, visitors to The ‘Stockton House’ could view not only the preserved head of the renowned bandit Joaquin, but ‘the hand of Three Fingered Jack!’

Edition of Shakespeare’s works from 1663 heads varied selection in Cambridge.

A single-lot sale on October 19 offered an illuminated Ashkenazic prayer book that realised a premium-inclusive $8,307,000 (£6,019,565).

A third selection of 16th and 17th century English books from Fox Pointe Manor was offered by Forum (25/20/12.5% buyer’s premium) on October 21.

Our regular listing of UK and Irish book auctions.

Gary Munson collection delivers a string of rarities sold for record-breaking sums

Our regular listing of UK and Irish book auctions.

Painted with an image of an urn to the front cover of its vellucent binding and with a view of Fountains Abbey in Yorkshire to the rear, the Book of Common Prayer & Book of Psalmes shown below was printed in 1774 by T Wright & W Gill for the University of Oxford.