Signed & Autographed Books
Signed or Autographed Books for Sale Online
Raptis Rare Books carries a variety of rare and antique books including many signed or autographed books. If you’re looking for a particular piece of work with an authentic signature, you’ve come to the right place. Browse our collection of autographed books here & contact us for any questions!
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"You are one of the most special people to me, and you have meant so much to my life": Exceptionally Rare collection of original Harper Lee drawings, paintings and letters with a first edition of To Kill A Mockingbird in the scarce first issue dust jacket; inscribed by Lee to close colleague and friend Charles Weldon Carruth
LEE, Harper.
To Kill a Mockingbird. Original Harper Lee Drawing, Painting and Letter Collection.
Philadelphia & New York: J.B. Lippincott Company, 1960.
First edition of perhaps the most important American novel of the 20th century, inscribed by Harper Lee to a close college friend and with a scarce archive of drawings and letters exchanged between the two. Octavo, original green cloth backed brown boards, titles to spine in gilt. Association copy, inscribed by Harper Lee to close University of Alabama college friend, Charles Weldon Carruth, “To my dear friend Charles, with love always — Harper Lee.” In the fall term of 1945, Lee and Carruth both enrolled in a Shakespeare course taught by one of the University of Alabama’s most famous faculty members, Hudson Strode, who directed the school’s theatre troupe and taught several courses in theatre and creative-writing. At the University of Alabama, Lee contributed a regular column to the campus newspaper, ‘Caustic Comments for Crimson White’, as well as many articles to the university’s humor magazine, Rammer Jammer, of which she became editor in chief in 1946. Lee ultimately dropped out of college before graduation and moved to Manhattan in 1949 to pursue writing as a career; Carruth later moved to New York City as well, where he worked as a radio producer before becoming a writer and editor for the Catholic News. Near fine in the rare first-issue dust jacket which is in very good condition.
Accompanied by an exceptionally rare archive of pencil and ink drawings sketched by Lee of Carruth, caricatures drawn by her while attending Strode’s Shakespeare courses, an original acrylic portrait by Lee of Carruth inscribed by her on the verso “From Nelle Lee, Dec 25, 1952”, and three letters written by Lee to Carruth regarding her thoughts on her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama.
Measuring 8 inches by 10 inches on ruled sheets of paper, the 11 drawings, four of which are signed by Lee “NLee”, include 5 realist studies of Carruth in various poses and six captioned caricatures in ink depicting him as Shakespearean leads including: a portrayal of Shylock as a pawn shop owner and “Money Lender Extraordinaire: Easy Loans – Pound of Flesh Compounded Semi-Annually”, King Lear standing on the cliffs of Dover with a price tag (“$3.98”) hanging from his cloak, Hamlet standing on a diving board with Yorick’s skull and a bloody knife hidden behind his back (performed at the “Old Vic”), Julius Caesar smoking a pipe while “contemplating the infinite”; Othello towering over an angel and devil; Cassius dripping dry outside the Roman baths where “you must have a ticket before you bathe”, Malvolio, “the impatient one,” crossing his legs while “waiting to go to the jakes”, and Carruth dressed as an unidentified female character with Carruth’s note, “Fall Quarter/ Univ. Ala 1945”. Additionally included is a caricature of Professor Strode wearing the breeches and curly-toed shoes of a court jester with his book “Timeless Mexico” in one hand and Yorick’s skull in the other, signed “Nelle Lee” and dated “11/8/45.”
Showcasing not only the depth, but also the length of Lee and Carruth’s friendship, the three letters include a letter written by Lee to Carruth in 1991 regarding his retirement, “My beloved Charlie, I can’t think of anyone to whom these words apply more — in your work, in your life — ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant.’ …You are one of the most special people to me, and you have meant so much to my life.” Two years later, in January 1993, the second letter thanks him for a “…lovely Christmas remembrance and, farther back, your memoir of Winston County [Alabama, where Carruth was born].” Despairing the changes occurring in her hometown, she continues, “You remember the Faulknerian prophecy — the Snopeses shall inherit the earth? They’ve already taken over Monroeville … they are trying to turn Harper Lee into a tourist attraction like Graceland or Elvis.” She goes on to discuss the restoration of the Old Courthouse, and remarks that she “nearly had a fit” after seeing a billboard featuring a mockingbird, describing it as “in indescribable taste” and “a fraud on the public”. “[They] say they are doing this to honor me. What they are doing … [is] embarrassing me beyond endurance … So keep an eye out for a small place that will hold 10,000 books … is near grocery stores & hospitals, and you! … We can look at each other and celebrate our longevity.” Signed by Lee as the Queen Victoria, “Your unamused but loving, Victoria R & I.” Lee often gave herself nicknames when signing letters: “Francesca da Rimini,” one of Dante’s damned, when she felt hopeless; “E. Bouverie Pusey,” the Anglican theologian, when she got worked up about some finer points of theology; and “Victoria R/I”—the Queen Empress Victoria—when she felt royal and moody.
A remarkable collection offering unprecedented insight into the education, broad talents, unique sense of humor, and deep personal thoughts regarding the reception of the most important work of one of America’s most respected and enigmatic writers.
Price: $100,000.00 Item Number: 1115260
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Rare Civil War Era Carte-de-visite of Robert E. Lee; Signed by Him
LEE, Robert E.
Robert E. Lee Signed Carte-de-Visite.
Rare Civil War era carte-de-visite portrait of General Robert E. Lee in uniform, boldly signed “RE Lee”. In fine condition. Quadruple matted and framed. The entire piece measures 19 inches by 17 inches.
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 103675
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Rare Signed Photograph of Howard Hughes
HUGHES, Howard.
Howard Hughes Signed Photograph.
Silver gelatin photograph signed and inscribed by Howard Hughes standing with his H-1 racing airplane. It was in this Hughes H-1 aircraft, designed by Hughes himself with Richard Palmer, that the aviator broke the world airspeed record in 1935 and the transcontinental airspeed record in 1937. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 15.25 inches by 13.25 inches. Signed and inscribed photographs of Hughes are rare.
Price: $8,200.00 Item Number: 102564
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"I can do business with Mr. Gorbachev": Photograph of Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev Signed by Both
THATCHER, Margaret and Mikhail Gorbachev.
Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev Signed Photograph.
Black and white photograph of Mikhail Gorbachev and Margaret Thatcher standing outside 10 Downing Street. Boldly signed by both, “M. Gorbachev” and “All good wishes Margaret Thatcher.” The photograph measures 8 inches by 10 inches. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 14 inches by 16 inches. Rare and desirable signed by both Gorbachev and Thatcher.
Price: $4,500.00 Item Number: 103468
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"Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success": Photograph of Henry Ford; Signed by Him
FORD, Henry.
Henry Ford Signed Photograph.
Photograph of Henry Ford, boldly signed by him. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 16.25 inches by 14.25 inches.
Price: $3,200.00 Item Number: 102482
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Signed Photograph of Presidents Herbert Hoover and Harry S. Truman
HOOVER, Herbert & Harry S. Truman.
Signed Photograph of Presidents Herbert Hoover & Harry S. Truman.
1946.
Photograph of Presidents Herbert Hoover & Harry S. Truman, signed by both Presidents. Double matted and framed, the entire piece measures 11.25 inches by 9.5 inches. Rare and desirable signed by both Hoover and Truman.
Price: $2,600.00 Item Number: 102878
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"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind": Photograph of Neil Armstrong; Signed by Him
ARMSTRONG, Neil.
Neil Armstrong Signed Photograph.
Original color photograph of Neil Armstrong, boldly inscribed by him. Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 15.25 inches by 13.25 inches.
Price: $2,500.00 Item Number: 101188
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"Congratulations on a century of achievement": Photograph of Neil Armstrong; Signed by Him
ARMSTRONG, Neil.
Neil Armstrong Signed Photograph.
Original color photograph of Neil Armstrong, boldly inscribed by him, “To ___ ____ _____- Congratulations on a century of achievement Neil Armstrong.” Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 15.25 inches by 13.25 inches.
Price: $2,250.00 Item Number: 117575
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Bobby Jones Signed Photograph
JONES, Bobby (Robert Tyre Jones.
Bobby Jones Signed Photograph.
Black and white photograph of Bobby Jones swinging a wood on the fairway. Boldly inscribed by Jones in his earlier signature, “For Art With best wishes Robert T. Jones, Jr.” Double matted and framed. The entire piece measures 16.25 inches by 18.25 inches.
Price: $2,200.00 Item Number: 102464
