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“Of all creatures that breathe and move upon the earth, nothing is bred that is weaker than man”: exceptionally rare sixteenth century printing of Homer's Odyssey in Latin
HOMER. TRANSLATED BY RAPHAELLO MAFFEI,.
Odissea Per Raphaelem Volaterranum in Latinum Conversa (The Odyssey of Homer translated by Raphael of Volterra in Latin).
Rome: Per Lacoubum Mazochium, 1510.
One of the earliest Latin translations of Homer's epic poem, translated from the Greek by Roman Hellenic scholar Raphaello Maffei (Raphael of Volterra). Quarto, bound in contemporary vellum, rebacked, woodcut titles and printer's device to the title page and at end of text. From the library of Robert R. Dearden, Jr. of Philadelphia with his bookplate to the front panel. American bibliophile and author Robert R. Dearden was known for his extensive rare bible collection with a focus on early editions of American Bibles. He authored the book The Guiding Light on the Great Highway (1929), elaborately illustrated with photographs…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 88060
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First Edition Of the author's Masterpiece Blood Meridian; Inscribed by Cormac McCarthy to Longtime Friends
MCCARTHY, Cormac.
Blood Meridian, or The Evening Redness in the West.
New York: Random House, 1985.
First edition of the author's fifth novel and masterpiece. Octavo, original half red cloth. Association copy, warmly inscribed on the front free endpaper, "For John & Lanelle With much love Cormac." The recipients were close friends of McCarthy during his time spent in Knoxsville, Tennessee. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Richard Adelson. Jacket painting by Salvador Dali. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 144532
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WASHINGTON APPOINTS FIRST SURVEYOR GENERAL: Rare manuscript document appointing Simeon De Witt as the first surveyor general; signed by President George Washington
WASHINGTON, George.
George Washington Signed Appointment of the First Surveyor General.
Philadelphia: May 13, 1796.
Rare manuscript document boldly signed by George Washington as the first President of the United States of American appointing the first Surveyor General of the United States. One page, oblong quarto, manuscript document in a secretarial hand on vellum, Philadelphia, 13 May 1796, signed at the conclusion, "G. Washington" and countersigned by Timothy Pickering, Secretary of State. With paper presidential seal, docketed on verso, creased from folding. Trained in surveying as a youth, Simeon De Witt (1756-1834) gained early distinction making maps for George Washington during the Revolution, ultimately becoming Geographer and Surveyor of the Continental Army. After the war,…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 145490
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“THE FATHER OF MODERN DEMOCRACY”: First edition in English of Aristotle's Masterpiece Politiques, or Discourses of Government
ARISTOTLE,.
Politiques, or Discourses of Government.
London: Adam Islip, 1598.
Rare first edition in English of one of the world’s most important and influential political texts, “the most valuable work on that branch of philosophy that has descended to us from antiquity.” Small folio, bound in full leather, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, front and rear panels. In near fine condition, bookplate, small name to the title page, small paper repair to the first few pages. First editions are exceptionally rare.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 138658
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THE FIRST ILLUSTRATED EDITION OF ULYSSES: SIGNED BY JAMES JOYCE AND HENRI MATISSE
JOYCE, James and Henri Matisse.
Ulysses.
New York : Limited Editions Club, 1935.
First illustrated edition of Joyce’s landmark Ulysses, one of only 250 examples signed by James Joyce in pen and Henri Matisse in pencil, with 26 illustrations by him, one of the 20th-century’s most desirable illustrated books, combining the work of two great modern artists. Large quarto, original gilt-stamped pictorial brown cloth, original slipcase. In fine condition with the rare original slipcase which is in good condition and original glassine jacket. With an introduction by Stuart Gilbert. An exceptional example, most rare in this condition and in the seldom seen glassine jacket.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 140072
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First Edition of Jack Kerouac's Satori in Paris; Inscribed by Him to His Brother-in-law Tony Sampras
KEROUAC, Jack.
Satori In Paris.
New York: Grove Press, 1966.
First edition of Kerouac's penultimate novel. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, "Tony's copy- signed by his brother man Jacky Kerouac." The recipient, Tony Sampras was the youngest brother of Kerouac's wife, Stella. Tony and Kerouac were close, Kerouac called Tony two days before his death and the On the Road scroll was left to him by Stella in her will. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Kuhlman Associates. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare and desirable signed and inscribed, especially with such an association.
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 128912
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"Nothing in bronze or stone could be a more perfect image than this statue of the living Washington": Fine bronze bust of George Washington after the famed Houdon bust of 1785
HOUDON, Jean-Antoine. [George Washington].
Jean-Antoine Houdon George Washington Bronze Bust.
Fine bronze bust of George Washington, after the famed Houdon bust of 1785 which is considered the most accurate depiction of Washington. Bronze, mounted on a marble pedestal. French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon was revered for his life-like portrayals of numerous notable eighteenth-century philosophers, inventors, and political figures including Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Napoléon Bonaparte, and George Washington. In 1784, the Virginia General Assembly commissioned a statue of George Washington "to be of the finest marble and the best workmanship," necessitating a European craftsman. The Governor of Virginia gave the responsibility of selecting the artist to Thomas Jefferson,…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 123102
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“THE GREATEST HISTORICAL WORK EVER WRITTEN”: Rare complete first edition set of Edward Gibbon's Masterpiece The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; with a rare first edition, first issue of Vol. I; from the library of legendary aviator Steve Fossett
GIBBON, Edward.
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
London: Printed for W. Strahan; and T. Cadell, 1776-1788.
Rare full first edition set, first state of volume one, of Gibbon's landmark work of historiography with three engraved folding maps by Kitchin of the Western and Eastern Roman Empire and of Constantinople and frontispiece portrait of Gibbon. Quarto, 6 volumes bound in three quarter calf over marbled boards with gilt titles and tooling to the spine. Vol. I: undated engraved portrait frontispiece by Hall after Joshua Reynolds, 12pp. contents, x4 and a4 are cancels, errata leaf; Vol. II: full-sheet folding map of the Eastern Roman Empire by Thomas Kitchin dated 1 January 1781 bound before p.1, half-sheet map of…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 129094
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Rare Carl Sagan Archive including twenty notes and letters signed by him; from the collection of Sagan's Executive Assistant Shirley Arden
SAGAN, Carl. [Shirley Arden].
Carl Sagan Archive.
c. 1974-1985.
Extensive archive of papers, letters, notes, magazines, articles, press kits and portfolios containing the work of Carl Sagan, including twenty letters and notes signed by him and some additionally by his wife Ann Druyan. From the collection of Sagan's Executive Assistant, Shirley Arden, who was instrumental in Sagan's success and handled all travel arrangements and publications in his most illustrious years which saw the Viking landings on Mars, the Cosmos television series, and the Voyager mission. Sagan's biographer, Keay Davidson, used many of the documents in Arden's archive as sources for his 1999 biography: Carl Sagan: A Life. Ann and…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 115521
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Samuel Johnson Pratt's Family Secrets; from the library of President George Washington; with a small note in his hand tipped in
PRATT, Samuel Johnson. [George Washington].
Family Secrets: By Mr. Pratt. Volume III. [From the Library of George Washington].
London: Printed for T.N. Longman, Paternoster-Row, 1798.
Octavo, bound in full contemporary calf with a burgundy morocco spine label lettered in gilt, gilt ruling to the spine. Vol. III of the original five volumes. Tipped in to the pastedown is a small clipped note in the hand of George Washington which reads, "with the said" and the bookplate of Benjamin Lincoln Lear. The set in which this volume originated was listed in a manuscript by Washington's private secretary Tobias Lear titled 'Catalogue of Books received from Washington' and bears the bookplate of Lear's son Benjamin Lincoln Lear. Tobias Lear served as Washington's personal secretary from 1784 until…
Price: $30,000.00 Item Number: 139518
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"direct observational evidence of the validity of the Big Bang theory": rare silver gelatin galaxy spectra annotated by influential American astronomer Edwin Hubble
[HUBBLE, Edwin].
Edwin Hubble Annotated Virgo and Ursa Major Cluster Spectra.
Two rare silver gelatin galaxy spectra annotated by influential American astronomer Edwin Hubble, offering proof of Hubble's law and direct observational evidence of the validity of the Big Bang theory. Mounted on cardboard, one spectrum reveals the recessional velocity of the Virgo Cluster with Hubble's pencil annotations on the verso, "NGC 4473 Virgo Cluster Velocity = 2,000 kilometers per second." The second shows the recessional velocity of Ursa Major with Hubble's annotations, "Ursa Major Cluster velocity = 15,000 kilometers per second." In showing that the Ursa Major Galaxy Cluster (located at a distance of about 78 million light years away…
Price: $28,500.00 Item Number: 126281
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"For my darling Hilary - My God ---- Can you even believe it --- Isn't it wonderful - Oh Hilary - I love you Kay and Me Eloize": First Edition, Association Copy of Eloise; warmly Inscribed by author Kay Thompson to Illustrator Hilary Knight
THOMPSON, Kay. Illustrated by Hilary Knight.
Eloise: A Book For Precocious Grown Ups.
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1955.
First edition of the sensational first book in Kay Thompson's immensely popular Eloise series. Quarto, original publisher's cream pictorial cloth, pictorial endpapers, illustrated with drawings by Hilary Knight. Association copy, inscribed by the author, Kay Thompson, to the book's illustrator, Hilary Knight on the front free endpaper, "For my darling Hilary - My God ---- Can you even believe it --- Isn't it wonderful - Oh Hilary - I love you Kay and Me Eloize." In an interview with Sam Irvin, the recipient, American artist and illustrator Hilary Knight declared, "Eloise never would have happened as a book had it…
Price: $28,500.00 Item Number: 149560
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“To Miss Brown with many thanks for her help in bringing out this book": First Edition of Why England Slept; Inscribed by Kennedy to His Father's Secretary and Who Transcribed this Work
KENNEDY, John F.
Why England Slept.
New York: Wilfred Funk, Inc, 1940.
First edition of John F. Kennedy's first book. Octavo, original red cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Miss Brown with many thanks for her help in bringing out this book Best wishes Jack Kennedy." The recipient, Mona Brown was a personal assistant and secretary to Joseph Kennedy for seven years, a period of time which included his ambassadorship to the United Kingdom. She was part of the Kennedy household's innermost circle and spent a considerable amount of time with the Kennedy children, especially young Jack and Kathleen. She transcribed Why England Slept for…
Price: $28,500.00 Item Number: 82340
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“He felt all at once like an ineffectual moth, fluttering at the windowpane of reality, dimly seeing it from outside": First Edition of Philip K. Dick's Ubik; Signed by Him
DICK, Philip K.
Ubik.
Garden City: Doubleday & Company, Inc, 1969.
First edition of one of Philip K. Dick's most acclaimed novels. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Philip K. Dick on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with light rubbing. Jacket design by Peter Rauch. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 98978
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"THE LAST COLLECTION OF FRANKLIN'S WRITINGS TO APPEAR IN HIS LIFETIME": First edition of Benjamin Franklin's Philosophical and Miscellaneous Papers
FRANKLIN, Benjamin.
Philosophical and Miscellaneous Papers. Lately written by B. Franklin, LL. D. Fellow of the Royal Society of London; Member of the Royal Academy of Sciences at Paris; President of the American Philosophical Society at Philadelphia.
London: Printed for C. Dilly, in the Poultry, 1787.
First edition of the last collection of Franklin's writings to appear during his lifetime; a major collection of his political, philosophical and scientific writings, a second volume of which was planned but never published. First issue with page 25 mispaginated "52." Octavo, bound in full contemporary tree calf with elaborate gilt tooling to the spine, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt, gilt Greek key ruling to the front and rear panels. With four copper-engraved folding plates including diagrams of the Franklin stove and the earliest published map of the Gulf Stream. In very good condition. Armorial bookplate and early…
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 125345
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William Paley's The Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy; General William Tecumseh Sherman's Copy
PALEY, William [William Tecumseh Sherman].
The Principles of Moral and Political Philosophy.
New York: Collins, Keese, & Co, 1839.
Later edition of this classic book on moral and political philosophy; used by William Tecumseh Sherman while a cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point. Octavo, original calf. General Sherman and his son's bookplates to the front pastedown. Intentionally scratched with "S" multiple times on the front panel by General Sherman. Inscribed by Sherman as a cadet on the front flyleaf, "Sherman Nov. 1st/39." The date indicates that Sherman was in his third year at the academy upon signing this book. While at West Point, Sherman excelled academically, described by fellow cadet William Rosecrans as "one of…
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 145971
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"One of the 100 best books of any kind of the 20th century": First Edition of the author's Masterpiece The Origins of Totalitarianism; Inscribed by Hannah Arendt
ARENDT, Hannah.
The Origins of Totalitarianism.
New York: Harcourt Brace, 1951.
First edition of this masterpiece, by one of the most important and influential thinkers of the twentieth century. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed and dated by Hannah Arendt on the front free endpaper. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Exceptionally rare and desirable signed.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 147887
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First Edition of William Faukner's Soldiers' Pay; In the Original Dust jacket
FAULKNER, William.
Soldiers’ Pay.
New York: Boni & Liveright, 1926.
First edition of Faulkner's first book in the rare first state dust jacket with An American Tragedy as the first of five titles listed on the rear jacket panel. Octavo, original cloth. Bookplate, near fine in an exceptional dust jacket with light toning and wear. From the library of Virginia bibliophile and historian Christopher Clark Geest with his bookplate. Housed in a custom clamshell box. Scarce in this condition.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 89328
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First Editions of Each Novel By William Faulkner; Finely Bound by The Harcourt Bindery
FAULKNER, William.
The Complete Novels of William Faulkner. [Soldier’s Pay, Mosquitos, Sartoris, The Sound and the Fury, As I Lay Dying, Sanctuary, Light in August, Pylon, Absalom, Absalom!, The Unvanquished, The Wild Palms, The Hamlet, Go Down Moses, Intruder in the Dust, Requiem For a Nun, A Fable, The Town, The Mansion, The Reivers].
New York: Various Publishers, 1926-1962.
First editions of each novel by the Nobel Prize-winning author. Octavo, 19 volumes, bound in full morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt stamped signature to the front panel, gilt inner dentelles stamp-signed by the Harcourt Bindery, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. In fine condition. An exceptional set, rare and desirable.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 142531
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"SHE WANTS LIFE TO BE EASY AND FULL OF PLEASANT REMINISCES": FIRST EDITION OF ZELDA FITZGERALD'S SAVE ME THE WALTZ; IN THE RARE ORIGINAL DUST JACKET AND WITH AN ORIGINAL PAINTING SIGNED BY HER WITH HER INITIALS
FITZGERALD, Zelda.
Save Me The Waltz.
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1932.
First edition of Zelda Fitzgerald’s only novel, a semi-autobiographical account of her life and marriage to F. Scott Fitzgerald. Octavo, original cloth. Laid in is a card with an original gouache painting of a flower painted by Fitzgerald and signed by her with her initials, "Z S.F." Zelda began painting while on holiday in Rome and Capri with Scott in 1924, where they received the proofs of The Great Gatsby. In 1932, while being treated at the Phipps Clinic at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, she had a burst of creativity which produced Save Me the Waltz as well as…
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 137264
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"REDESIGNING THE SHAPE OF HISTORY AUGUSTINE WOULD DOMINATE WESTERN THOUGHT FOR THE NEXT MILLENNIUM": RARE FIRST EDITION IN ENGLISH OF AUGUSTINES CITIE OF GOD
SAINT AUGUSTINE,.
Of the Citie of God: With the Learned Comments of Jo. Lod. Vives. [The City of God].
London: George Eld, 1610.
Rare first edition in English of Augustine's monumental work. Translated by John Healey. Folio, bound in full contemporary brown calf, gilt titles to the spine, rebacked. Large woodcut printer's device on title (McKerrow 375). Decorative woodcut head-pieces and decorative and woodcut initials, including three twelve-line initials. In very good condition, ownership signature on title page dated 1790, stamp and bookplates on front endpapers, later endpapers. First editions are rare.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 149448
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"To President William H. Taft with the highest appreciation of Booker T. Washington": First edition, association copy of The Story of the Negro; inscribed by Booker T. Washington to William Howard Taft as his advisor in the first year of Taft's presidency
WASHINGTON, Booker T. [William Howard Taft].
The Story of the Negro: The Rise of the Race from Slavery and The Negro as a Freeman.
New York: Doubleday, Page & Company, 1909.
First edition, association copy of Booker T. Washington's significant history of Americans of African descent, inscribed by him to William Howard Taft as his advisor in the first year of Taft's presidency. Octavo, two volumes, original publisher's red cloth with gilt titles to the spine, top edge gilt, tissue-guarded photographic frontispiece portrait of Booker T. Washington by George G. Rockwood. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper of in the year of publication and first year of Taft's presidency in volume 1, "To President William H. Taft with the highest appreciation of Booker T. Washington Tuskegee,…
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 149850
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"It's the best book we've had... There was nothing before. There has been nothing since": FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE OF MARK TWAIN'S ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN; IN EXCEPTIONAL CONDITION
TWAIN, Mark. [Samuel L. Clemens].
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Tom Sawyer’s Comrade).
New York: Charles L. Webster and Company, 1885.
First edition, first issue of Mark Twain’s masterpiece, a justifiable contender for the title of "the Great American Novel" and arguably "the most praised and most condemned 19th-century American work of fiction" (Legacies of Genius, 47). Octavo, original publisher’s gilt and black stamped pictorial green cloth, with 174 illustrations by Edward W. Kemble. Contains all of the agreed upon first issue points for the clothbound book: page 9 with “Decided” remaining uncorrected (to “Decides”); page 13, illustration captioned “Him and another Man” listed as on page 88; page 57, 11th line from bottom reads “with the was,” instead of “with…
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 149190
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"One Of The Most Important Books Of The Twentieth Century": First American Edition Of Karl Poppers The Open Society; Signed By Him
POPPER, Karl R.
The Open Society And Its Enemies.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1950.
First American edition of Popper's magnum opus. Octavo, original black cloth. Boldly signed by Karl Popper on the front free endpaper. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. First editions are rare and desirable signed.
Price: $28,000.00 Item Number: 137328
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First edition of Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird; with an autograph note signed by her
LEE, Harper.
To Kill A Mockingbird.
Philadelphia & New York: J. B. Lippincott Company, 1960.
First edition of one of the most important American novels of the 20th century which had an initial first printing of 5,000 copies and went on to earn Harper Lee the 1961 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Octavo, original half cloth. With an autograph postcard signed by and entirely in the hand of Harper Lee laid in. Addressed to Stewart Richardson, Executive Editor of Doubleday & Company, the postcard reads in full, "Monroeville, Ala. September 5, 1970 Dear Sandy: No, I didn't receive galleys on James Purdy's - but I'd like to. They're probably sitting in New York somewhere. I'll be…
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 139543
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Rare collection of correspondence between C.S. Lewis and his PhD student Anthony Colin Spearing; including an autograph letter signed by and entirely in the hand of C.S. Lewis
LEWIS, C.S. [Anthony Colin Spearing].
C.S. Lewis and Anthony Spearing Autograph Correspondence Collection.
Rare collection of correspondence between C.S. Lewis and his PhD student Anthony Colin Spearing including an autograph letter signed by and entirely in the hand of C.S. Lewis. Folio, the collection includes the original composition of Spearing's 1957 English Tripos essay: "The Translation of English Verse (An Essay with some Specimen Translations)" which he sent to Lewis for edits and contains Lewis' marginal notes; two pages of critical notes entirely in Lewis' hand on his Magdalene College Cambridge letterhead containing 28 numbered notes and suggestions for edits to the Spearing's composition; an autograph letter signed and entirely in the hand…
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 134067
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First Edition of Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead
RAND, Ayn.
The Fountainhead.
Indianapolis and New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, 1943.
First edition of Rands’s breakthrough work and her first major literary success. Octavo, original cloth. Very good in a very good first-issue first issue dust jacket with light restoration to the extremities, contemporary inscription to the front free endpaper. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. A very sharp example.
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 142040
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"As art it is perfection" (Dostoevsky); Rare First Russian Edition Of Tolstoys Masterpiece Anna Karenina
TOLSTOY, Leo. [Count Lyof N Tolstoi].
Anna Karenina.
Moscow: T. Ris, 1878.
First edition in Russian of Tolstoy's masterpiece. Octavo, 3 volumes, bound in three quarters calf, gilt titles, raised bands. Housed in a custom box. In near fine condition. First editions in Russian are rare.
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 126365
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“Hate is a lack of imagination": First Edition of Graham Greene's The Power and the Glory; In the Rare Original Dust Jacket
GREENE, Graham.
The Power and the Glory.
London: William Heinemann, 1940.
First edition of Greene's masterpiece. Octavo, original yellow cloth. Near fine in the rare original dust jacket with light shelfwear. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. An exceptional example.
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 130369
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“THE GREATEST HISTORICAL WORK EVER WRITTEN”: Rare complete first edition set of Edward Gibbon's Masterpiece The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire; with a rare first edition, first issue of Vol. I
GIBBON, Edward.
The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.
London: Printed for W. Strahan; and T. Cadell, 1776-1788.
Rare complete first edition set, including the rare first state of volume one, of Gibbon's landmark work of historiography. Quarto, 6 volumes bound in full contemporary mottled calf, with morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, gilt ruling to the spine in six compartments within raised bands, gilt turn-ins, three engraved folding maps by Kitchin of the Western and Eastern Roman Empire and of Constantinople. First edition, first issue of vol. 1 with errata uncorrected, [one of 500 copies], half-titles (that in vol. 1 a tipped-in later facsimile), 3 folding engraved maps, engraved portrait frontispiece after Reynolds and vol. 1 *a4-*b2…
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 144594
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A fine set of the works of Theodoretus; Each Beautifully Painted on the front and back of each panel
Opera Omnia. Ed. Jac. Sirmond (Volumes 1-4), and J. Garnier (Volume 5).
Paris: Sebastian and Gabriel Cramoisy, 1682-84.
A fine set of the works of Theodoretus, Bishop of Cyrus, beautifully painted on each panel. Quarto, five volumes, bound in full 17th-century vellum, both covers on each volume fully painted with a scene from the life of Christ, gilt titles and tooling to the spine, brown and black morocco lettering pieces. The first four volumes were edited by J. Sirmond and were published in 1642. The fifth volume, not published until 1684, was completed by Sirmond's fellow Jesuit Garnier and contains an auctarium, comprising fragments of commentaries and sermons and some additional letters, together with Garnier's five learned but…
Price: $27,500.00 Item Number: 140490
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Rare partial document signed by George Washington in 1799 regarding the sale of land; signed by him eleven months before his death on December 14, 1799
WASHINGTON, George.
George Washington Signed Partial Document.
January 21, 1799.
Rare partial document signed by George Washington on January 21, 1799, eleven months before his death on December 14, 1799. Octavo, the partial manuscript document reads, "I do acknowledge that this is the Platt referred to in the Deeds made for the Lands of George Mercer." Signed by Washington, "Go. Washington" and countersigned by three witnesses. Accompanied by a typed letter signed by Dorothy Twohig, editor-in-chief of the The Papers of George Washington which reads in part, "The note on Mercer explains Washington's involvement in the whole affair which started before the Revolution. After the war Washington tried to extricate himself from…
Price: $27,000.00 Item Number: 142623
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First editions of Louisa May Alcott's Little Women, Little Women Part Second, and Little Men; each in the original publisher's emerald green cloth
ALCOTT, Louisa May.
Little Women or Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy. [with] Little Women or Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy Part Second. [with] Little Men: Life at Plumfield with Jo’s Boys.
Boston: Roberts Brothers, 1868-1871.
First editions of Louisa May Alcott's "outstanding achievement of 19th-century American literature” together with its sequels. Octavo, three volumes, original publisher's emerald green gilt decorated cloth, each volume illustrated with tissue-guarded frontispiece and three plates; those in the first part of Little Women were created by the author’s sister, May. First issue of Little Women with all points including Little Women priced at $1.25 in terminal advertisements, one of 2,000 copies printed with 250 sets of sheets shipped to England for issue by Sampson, Low; Part Second is first edition, early-state, with notice about Part First on page [iv] and with “Handy…
Price: $26,000.00 Item Number: 149518
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First Edition of The Scots Musical Museum; Inscribed by the national poet of Scotland Robert Burns
JOHNSON, James [Editor]; Robert Burns [Contributor].
The Scots Musical Museum, Humbly Dedicated to the Catch Club. Instituted at Edinr. June 1771.
Edinburgh: James Johnson, 1787 and 1790.
First edition, first issue of this influential collection of traditional folk music of Scotland. Octavo, two volumes comprised of volumes one and three out of six, bound in full contemporary calf with gilt ruling to the spines, vignettes to the title pages, engraved throughout with musical stanzas. Presentation copy, inscribed by Robert Burns on the title page of volume one, "To Mr. Whyter from Robt. Burns" and on the verso of the title page of volume three, "Remember me! Ro. B." Robert Burns contributed some 200 songs, new or adapted to the successive volumes of The Scots Musical Museum. In good…
Price: $26,000.00 Item Number: 147856
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Rare First Edition of The Education of Henry Adams; One of only 40 Examples
ADAMS, Henry.
The Education of Henry Adams.
Washington: Privately Printed, 1907.
Rare first edition, one of only 40 copies printed of this classic work. The text of Education was not made commercially available until 1918, following the author's death, when it was published by Houghton Mifflin. In 1919 it was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and the Modern Library named it as the best non-fiction book published in English since 1900. BAL 32; Reese Narratives of Personal Experience 2 ("certainly one of the great American biographies"). In near fine condition. Housed in a custom clamshell box.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 140067
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Rare Original Goldfinger Dust Jacket Design Printing Proof; signed by Dust Jacket Designer Richard Chopping and from his personal collection
CHOPPING, Richard. [Ian Fleming].
Goldfinger. [Original Richard Chopping Signed Printing Proof].
Rare original progressive color printing proof for the iconic dust jacket design of Ian Fleming's Goldfinger, designed by Richard Chopping. Chopping's copy, retained for his personal collection and signed by him in the lower right corner. One page on archival printer's paper, this is the magenta ink progressive plate proof (printed using one of four plates combined to create the final full color image). The seventh novel in Fleming's bond series, Goldfinger was the second book with a dust jacket designed by Richard Chopping, the first being From Russia, With Love. Chopping would design all subsequent James Bond dust jackets…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 124559
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"Dedicated to the millions of persons who are a part of the nonviolent revolution": First Edition, First Printing of The SCLC Story; signed by Martin Luther King, Jr. and containing one of the earliest appearances of his I Have a Dream Speech
KING, Jr. Martin Luther. Editor's note by Ed Clayton.
The SCLC Story in Words and Pictures.
Atlanta, Georgia: Southern Christian Leadership Conference, 1964.
First edition, first printing of The SCLC Story containing one of the first appearances in print of Martin Luther King Jr.'s I Have a Dream Speech. Quarto, original illustrated wrappers as issued, illustrated with photographs including a full-page photograph of King, photographs of the officers, executive board, regional, and secretarial staffs of the SCLC. Signed by Martin Luther King, Jr. on the front panel, "Best Wishes Martin Luther King." With a letter of provenance that relays that the magazine was signed at an event where King spoke in Atlanta in 1964 and that it may have been first obtained when…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 141073
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First Edition of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Vegetable; Inscribed by Him to Legendary Actor and co-founder of Goldwyn Pictures Edgar Selwyn and in the rare original dust jacket
FITZGERALD, F. Scott.
The Vegetable: Or, From President To Postman.
New York : Charles Scribner's Sons, 1923.
First edition of what Fitzgerald called, "undoubtedly the best thing I have ever written." Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Dear Mr. Swelwynn (sic)- Here's the new version of the play. Sincerely F. Scott Fitzgerald." The recipient, prominent figure in American theatre and film in the first half of the 20th century. An actor, playwright, director and producer on Broadway, he founded a theatrical production company with his brother, Archibald Selwyn, and owned a number of Selwyn Theatres in the United States. He transferred his talents from the stage to motion pictures,…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 134567
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First Editions of Each of F. Scott Fitzgeralds Works; Finely Bound by The Harcourt Bindery
FITZGERALD, F. Scott.
The Works of F. Scott Fitzgerald. This Side of Paradise, Flappers and Philosophers, Tales of the Jazz Age, The Beautiful and Damned, The Vegetable, The Great Gatsby, All the Sad Young Men, Taps at Reveille, Tender is the Night, The Last Tycoon.
New York: Charles Scribners, 1920-1941.
First edition, first printings of each of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s works. Octavo, 10 volumes, bound by full green morocco by the Harcourt Bindery, gilt titles to the spine, raised bands, gilt ruled to the front and rear panels, inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, twin rule to turn ins, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. F. Scott Fitzgerald signature on the front panel of each volume. In fine condition. An exceptional set.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 139788
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Rare First Edition of Henry Hazlitts Classic Economics In One Lesson; Inscribed by Him to Fellow Journalist Benjamin Stolberg
HAZLITT, Henry.
Economics In One Lesson.
New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1946.
First edition of the author’s seminal work. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author to fellow journalist and close friend on the front free endpaper, "To Ben Stolberg with warm regards Harry Hazlitt." Stolberg worked as editor of The Bookman, as well as a columnist for leading newspapers, such as the New York Times and the New York Herald Tribune. Both he and Hazlitt were contributors to The New York Times. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a few closed tears. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. A nice association copy of a book…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 41012
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Karl Polanyi's landmark work Origins of Our Time: The Great Transformation; Inscribed by Him to Peter and Doris Drucker
POLANYI, Karl [Peter F. Drucker].
Origins of Our Time: The Great Transformation.
London: Victor Gollancz Ltd, 1946.
First edition, early printing of Polanyi's landmark work, which many consider to be one of the twentieth century’s most incisive and prophetic works of scholarship. Octavo, original cloth. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, "To Peter and Doris With Love Karl." The recipients, Peter Drucker and his wife Doris were close friends and colleagues of Polyani. Born in Budapest, Polanyi moved to Vienna, where he met Drucker while he worked as senior editor of The Austrian Economist. In July 1940, the President of Bennington College, Robert Leigh, wrote to the publisher W.W. Norton, asking him to…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 118455
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“Sometimes, I feel the past and the future pressing so hard on either side that there's no room for the present at all": First Edition of Brideshead Revisited; Signed by Evelyn Waugh
WAUGH, Evelyn.
Brideshead Revisited.
London: Chapman and Hall, 1945.
First edition of Waugh's masterpiece. Octavo, original cloth. Boldly signed by Evelyn Waugh on the title page. Waugh issued a pre-publication edition of the novel in a run of 50 copies. These were printed and specially bound to distribute among friends for Christmas and to solicit any revisions. Several changes were made as a result of his friends' comments, including suggested alterations by Fr. Martin D'Arcy, Cyril Connolly, and Nancy Mitford. A letter from Graham Greene, Waugh's friend and recipient of one of the 50 copies had indicated that Waugh may have only inscribed 19 of the 50 copies (Jeffrey…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 145489
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"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns": Vladimir Nabokov's masterpiece Lolita; signed by him with an original drawing of a butterfly
NABOKOV, Vladimir.
Lolita.
New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1955.
First edition, early impression of Nabokov's lyrical masterwork. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed by Vladimir Nabokov on the half-title page with an additional drawing of a butterfly. An accomplished lepidopterist, Nabokov only included butterfly drawings in books presented to those especially important to him. Near fine in a near fine price-clipped dust jacket. Author photograph by Maclean Damcron. Housed in a custom clamshell box. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 137049
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"Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December; And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor": First appearance in print of Edgar Allan Poe's The Raven; In the Rare Original Wrappers
POE, Edgar Allan.
The Raven. [In The American Review: A Whig Journal of Politics, Literature, Art and Science. No. II February, 1845.
New York: Wiley and Putnam, 1845.
First appearance in print of The Raven, one of the most famous and recognizable poems ever written, which Poe considered his finest poem, calling it “the greatest poem that was ever written.” Octavo, original wrappers. In keeping with the policy of The American Review which required that poems be published anonymously or with a pseudonym, the poem, which appears on page 143 is credited to 'Quarles.' In very good condition. Rare in the original wrappers.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 136274
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"Don't try to comprehend with your mind. Your minds are very limited. Use your intuition": A Wrinkle In Time; Signed by Madeleine LEngle
L'ENGLE, Madeleine.
A Wrinkle In Time.
New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1962.
First edition of the author's Newbery award-winning novel. Octavo, original half cloth. Boldly signed by Madeleine L'Engle in a contemporary hand on the title page. Accompanied by an autograph black and white photograph of Madeleine L'Engle. Near fine in the rare original jacket without the Newbery sticker to the front panel, which is near fine, name to the half-title page, price-clipped. Jacket design by Ellen Raskin. An exceptional signed first edition.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147616
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Scarce first edition and only printing of Martin Luther King and The Montgomery Story; signed by both Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King
HASSLER, Alfred and Benton Resnik. [Martin Luther King Jr.; Coretta Scott King].
Martin Luther King and The Montgomery Story: How 50,000 Negroes Found a New Way to End Racial Discrimination.
Nyack, N.Y: The Fellowship of Reconciliation, [1957].
First and only edition of this highly influential and historic comic book used to teach the tactics and power of nonviolent resistance during the Civil Rights Movement. Quarto, original pictorial wrappers, the text is presented as a graphic novel illustrated in color. Boldly signed by Martin Luther King on the front panel, "Best Wishes Martin L. King" and additionally signed by Coretta Scott King. With annotations in blue pen noting that King signed the book in 1958 and Coretta in 1985. Illustrated by Sy Barry, text by John Duffy. In very good condition. Very rare. Copies of the original comic…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 138337
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"I am convinced that invisible & intelligent beings exist who say that they are the spirits of dead persons": rare collection of eight unsigned handwritten manuscripts by Arthur Conan Doyle; containing notes on seances and Spiritualism
CONAN DOYLE, Arthur.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Handwritten Manuscript Collection on Seances and Spiritualism.
c. 1920s.
Rare archive of eight unsigned handwritten manuscripts by Arthur Conan Doyle containing notes on seances and Spiritualism, totaling eleven pages on nine sheets, most undated but circa 1920s. Eleven pages on nine sheets, autograph manuscript ranging in size from 3.5 inches by 5 inches to 8.25 inches x 10.5 inches. For many of his later years, Doyle intensely pursued his interest in paranormal phenomena, and by the end of World War I he identified himself as a Spiritualist, believing in a spirit world and the ability to communicate with those beyond the grave. He established the specialized Psychic Bookshop in 1925, devoted entirely to the sale of spiritualistic and…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 146985
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Rare first edition of one of the earliest chess manuals; Pietro Carrera's Game of Chess
CARRERA, Pietro.
Il Gioco De Gli Scacchi Di D. Pietro Carrera Diviso in Otto Libri. (The Game of Chess).
Militello: Giovanni de' Rossi, 1617.
Rare first edition of one of the early chess manuals, and the first book printed in Militello at Prince Francesco Branciforte's private press. Octavo, bound in full contemporary vellum with ink titles to the spine, large engraving of the Branciforte coat of arms opposite the dedication page, woodcut illustrations throughout the text. In near fine condition. First editions are of exceptional rarity, with only three appearing at auction in the past 90 years.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 96172
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First Edition of Atomic Energy for Military Purposes; Signed by J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, Norris E. Bradbury, the Director of Los Alamos National Laboratory and Henry D. Smyth
SMYTH, Henry DeWolf. [J. Robert Oppenheimer].
Atomic Energy for Military Purposes: The Official Report on the Development of the Atomic Bomb Under the Auspices of the United States Government, 1940-1945.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1945.
First edition of the full text of Smyth's official report on the development of the atomic bomb. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated. Boldly signed by J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb, Norris E. Bradbury, the Director of Los Alamos National Laboratory, and Henry D. Smyth, the author. Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery. Founded over a century ago in 1900, the Harcourt Bindery is the oldest and largest traditional bindery in America exclusively devoted to fine traditional leather bookbinding by hand. Rare and desirable.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 143097
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"AND FOR ALL I KNOW HE IS SITTING THERE STILL, UNDER HIS FAVORITE CORK TREE, SMELLING THE FLOWERS JUST QUIETLY" exceptionally rare FIRST EDITION, advance review copy OF THE STORY OF FERDINAND; signed by both Robert Lawson and Munro Leaf
LEAF, Munro; Illustrated by Robert Lawson.
The Story of Ferdinand.
New York: The Viking Press, 1936.
First edition, first printing, advance review copy of Munro Leaf’s beloved children’s classic, one of the most popular and enduring children's books ever published. Octavo, original half tan cloth, pictorial endpapers, illustrated by Robert Lawson. Signed by both the author and illustrator opposite the title page, "Robert Lawson" "and Munro Leaf." From the library of American publisher Charles C. Fleming with a memorandum on his Whittet Printing Co. letterhead to the front free endpaper, stamped "Received Sep 23 1936 C.C.F." indicating that the book was received in the month of publication which is stated on the copyright page. The first…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147285
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“An artist's only concern is to shoot for some kind of perfection, and on his own terms, not anyone else's”: Franny and Zooey; Inscribed by J.D. Salinger
SALINGER, J.D.
Franny and Zooey.
New York: Little, Brown, and Company, 1961.
First edition, second printing of Salinger's third book. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by Salinger in his cursive hand on the front free endpaper to a personal friend, "Oke, Stop over sometime, JDS 8/26/61." While Salinger was known for his reclusive behavior with regard to the spotlight of the international press, he did have close relations with the local townspeople around his New Hampshire home, who respected his privacy. This inscription shows the authentic nature of those relationships. Affixed to the verso of the front panel and front free endpaper are three newspaper clippings regarding Salinger's reputation as a…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 88131
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"OF EXCEPTIONAL RARITY": 1814 FIRST EDITION OF THE FIRST HEBREW BIBLE PUBLISHED IN AMERICA; In Contemporary Binding
VAN DER HOOGHT, Everardo.
Biblia Hebraica, Secundum Ultimam Editionem Jos. Athiae, a Johanne Leusden, Denuo Recognitum, Recensita Variisque Notis Latinis Illustrata, ab Everardo Van Der Hooght. Editio Prima Americana, Sine Punctis Masorethicis.
Philadelphia: Printed by William Fry for Thomas Dobson, 1814.
Very rare first edition of the first Hebrew Bible published in America. Octavo, 2 volumes, bound in full contemporary calf, including half-titles and front and rear blanks, as well as scarce publisher's notice in volume one (not found in all examples); Van der Hooght's four leaf Preface bound in at front of second volume, morocco spine labels. In very good condition. An exceptionally clean example, most rare and desirable in contemporary binding.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147438
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Rare first complete edition in English of Cervantes' masterpiece The History of Don Quixote; Thomas Shelton's famed first English translation bound in full crimson crushed levant morocco by Riviere & Son
CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, Miguel de. Translated by Thomas Shelton.
The History of Don-Quichote. The First Parte and The Second Part of the History of the Valorous and Witty Knight-Errant, Don Quixote of the Mancha.
London: Printed for Edward Blount, 1620.
Exceedingly rare first complete edition in English of Cervantes' masterpiece comprised of a second edition of the first part and first edition of the second part. Small quarto, bound in full crimson crushed levant morocco by Riviere & Son, gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, triple gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges gilt, engraved headpieces, tailpieces and initials. Engraved title pages and printed title page to the second part supplied in exact facsimile from the copy in the British Museum. No…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 139832
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“I’ve just had the happiest day of my life": Royal Companion of Honour Appointment: Presented to Friedrich von Hayek by Queen Elizabeth II and signed by her
HAYEK, Friedrich von [F.A.]. [Queen Elizabeth II].
Royal Companion of Honour Appointment: Presented to Friedrich von Hayek by Queen Elizabeth II.
Original Royal Companion of Honour Appointment presented to Friedrich von Hayek by Queen Elizabeth II. One page, with the Royal Companion of Honour Seal stamped in the upper right corner. Signed by Queen Elizabeth II at the head of the appointment, "Elizabeth R." In fine condition.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 100139
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First Edition of Eric Carles Classic Work The Very Hungry Caterpillar; Signed By The Author With A Drawing of a Caterpillar
CARLE, Eric.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar.
Cleveland: World Publishing, 1969.
First edition, first printing of Carle's most recognizable work (with the complete number line 1-5 on the copyright page and A3450 on the rear board). Oblong quarto, original illustrated boards. Signed by Eric Carle on the title page with an original drawing of a caterpillar. Near fine in a very good price-clipped dust jacket with $3.91 on the bottom flap, clipped on the top as usual with a few small stains, small ownership inscription to the front free endpaper. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box. Signed first editions are exceedingly rare.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 133755
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Secretary of State William P. Rogers 'Pen that Ended the Vietnam War'
ROGERS, William P. [Richard Nixon].
Secretary of State William P. Rogers’ Pen Used to Sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement.
Paris: January 27, 1973.
The original pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to sign the Vietnam Peace Agreement, ending the Vietnam War, Paris, 27 January 1973. Sheaffer fountain pen with 14 karat gold tip, housed in an adjustable gold pen holder, wooden base, brass hardware including etched plaque. The plaque reads, "To the Association of the Bar of the City of New York / Pen used by Secretary of State William P. Rogers to Sign the Viet-Nam Peace Agreements / Paris January 27, 1973." During his tenure as Secretary of State under President Nixon, William P. Rogers was involved in multiple matters…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 145329
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“Solitude produces originality, bold & astonishing beauty, poetry": First Edition of Der Tod in Venedig; Inscribed by Thomas Mann to close friend and confidant Ernst Bertram
MANN, Thomas.
Der Tod in Venidig [Death in Venice].
Berlin: S. Fischer, Verlag, 1913.
First trade edition of one of the greatest novellas of the twentieth century. Octavo, original publisher's quarter vellum over marbled boards. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "An Ernst Bertram in herzlicher Wertschatzung Thomas Mann" (To Ernst Bertram in heartfelt appreciation Thomas Mann). One of the best possible association copies, as Bertram was Mann's closest friend from the late 1900s through the 1930s, when their politics separated them. Bertram was deeply influential on Mann's thinking and literary direction during the time when he was somewhat artistically lost and suffered his own writer's block. It was…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 98970
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“I've got the key to my castle in the air, but whether I can unlock the door remains to be seen": Rare FIRST EDITIONS OF BOTH PARTS OF LITTLE WOMEN, IN ORIGINAL CLOTH
ALCOTT, Louisa May.
Little Women and Little Women, Part the Second.
Boston: Robert Brothers, 1868-69.
First editions of both volumes of Alcott's most coveted work. Octavo, two volumes in the original green cloth with gilt titles and decorations to the spine and front panel, each volume illustrated with four plates including frontispiece; those in the first part created by the author’s sister, May. Little Women is first issue with all points including Little Women priced at $1.25 in terminal advertisements. Little Women, Part Second is mixed state. Both volumes are in near fine condition with light rubbing to the extremities, contemporary inscription to volume one. Housed in a custom half morocco and chemise clamshell box.…
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 147420
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“Dilemma of civilized man; body mobilized, but danger obscure": First Edition of Philip K. Dick's The Man in the High Castle; Signed by Him
DICK, Philip K.
The Man in the High Castle.
New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1962.
First edition of Philip K. Dick's Hugo Award-winning novel. Octavo, original cloth. Bodly signed by Philip K. Dick on the front free endpaper. Fine in a near fine dust jacket with a touch of shelfwear. Jacket design by Robert Galster. Photograph by Arthur Knight. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box made by the Harcourt Bindery. Rare and desirable signed.
Price: $25,000.00 Item Number: 99635