A copy of the famous photograph showing British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, welcoming the American President, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), on board the British battleship HMS Prince of Wales on the morning of 10 August 1941 is for sale at Bonhams Books, Maps, Manuscripts and Photographs sale in Knightsbridge London on 19 June. It is estimated at £6,000-8,000.

The photograph was taken by the War Office official photographer, Captain William G. Horton, and developed by him on the ship before the conference ended on 12 August.  It is signed by both Churchill and Roosevelt. 

The event depicted took place during the Atlantic Conference held between 9-12 August at Placentia Bay off Argentia, Newfoundland. This was the first time the two wartime leaders had met. The United States was not then a combatant in World War II and, although FDR was himself sympathetic to the Allied cause, the American public was largely hostile to military involvement. Roosevelt and Churchill, who had struck up a warm personal relationship through correspondence, arranged the meeting to discuss the shape of the post-war world. Roosevelt deceived the press into believing he was taking a fishing trip while Churchill, under a news blackout, took the considerable risk of sailing across the Atlantic at the mercy of German U Boats.

The Atlantic conference cemented the relationship between the two men and, in the form of the Atlantic Charter, laid the foundations of the United Nations and determined the fundamental lines along which the world would be organised once hostilities had ended.

In the words of Bonhams Book Department specialist, Simon Roberts, “This is a unique memento of the first of the 12 wartime meetings between Roosevelt and Churchill.  It is, also, arguably the most far-reaching because the decisions taken during the Atlantic Conference led to the Atlantic Charter which provided the foundations of the United Nations when it was formed in 1945. As Churchill commented in The Second World War “It was a great hour to live”. 

The photograph is being sold by William Horton’s grandson together with the menu for the dinner held by Roosevelt for Churchill on 9 August on board his flagship Augusta.

DALLAS - The Amazing Spider-Man proved himself the top hero over the three-day span of Heritage Auctions’ $4+ million May 16-18 Comics Signature® Auction as John Romita, Sr.’s The Amazing Spider-Man #85 Kingpin and the Schemer Cover Original Art (Marvel, 1970) and a CGC-certified 8.0 copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 (Spider-Man’s first appearance) realized identical $71,7000 prices. All prices include Buyer’s Premium.

“Bidding was steady, prices were solid and interest remained strong throughout the auction,” said Barry Sandoval, Director of Auction Operations for the Comics category at Heritage. “Spider-Man and Batman related material, from the comics to the original art, continue to be the mainstay of collectors, with early comic strip and pre-code comic book art also proving quite popular.”

Two pieces of early comic strip and book art stood out in particular when they crossed the block: Al Feldstein original 1952 cover art for EC’s Weird Fantasy #11 - the iconic Bombing of Manhattan artwork, a heart-stopping scene of atomic warfare in this cover based on the yarn, “10th at Noon.” - which realized $65,725, and a fantastic hand-colored George Herriman original Krazy Kat Sunday comic strip original dated June 25, 1922 (King Features Syndicate, 1922), which brought $59,750.

While original comic art provided most of the fireworks in the auction, a significant run of Golden Age Batman titles provided significant ballast the On the comic book side, totaling more than $200,000 altogether and led by a CGC-certified 9.2 copy of Batman #3 (DC, 1940), an issue is notable for its classic cover art and for having the first time Catwoman appeared in costume - which makes this the first appearance of a costumed villainess in all of comics - that realized an impressive $40,332.

Further highlights include, but are not limited to:

Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott Fantastic Four#57 Doctor Doom and Silver Surfer Page 7 Original Art (Marvel, 1966): Realized $53,775.

Dave Gibbons Watchmen #6 "Rorschach Inkblot" Cover Original Art (DC, 1987): From the Shamus Modern Masterworks Collection. Realized $44,813.

John Romita Sr. Marvel Treasury Edition #1 "The Spectacular Spider-Man" Cover Original Art (Marvel, 1974): Realized $44,813.

Frank Miller and Klaus Janson Batman, The Dark Knight Returns #2 Batman and Robin Splash Page 36 Original Art (DC, 1986): Realized $41,825.

Steve Ditko Amazing Spider-Man #12 "Unmasked by Doctor Octopus" Page 14 Original Art (Marvel, 1964): Realized $41,825.

Heritage Auctions is the largest auction house founded in the United States and the world’s third largest, with annual sales of more than $850 million, and 750,000+ online bidder members. For more information about Heritage Auctions, and to join and receive access to a complete record of prices realized, with full-color, enlargeable photos of each lot, please visit HA.com

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Philadelphia, Pennsylvania—May 23, 2013—Library Company Director John Van Horne has announced that he will retire in May 2014 after almost 30 years at the helm. When he took over leadership of the Library Company of Philadelphia in 1985, special collections libraries operated pretty much the way they always had. It was just before the advent of the personal computer, and the Library Company had recently acquired a Wang word processor. Van Horne remembers the first FAX machine arriving in 1987, a clunky affair which cost several thousand dollars and used thermal paper. Since then, the digital revolution has transformed almost every aspect of the research environment, from the electronic catalog and online databases to online access to digitized images of the collections.

Van Horne has presided over this dramatic transformation with attentiveness to the needs of visitors, researchers, and members; a keen instinct for opportunity; and an unwavering reverence for the institution's history and mission.  "This library has been in continuous operation for 282 years.  Benjamin Franklin himself believed that it helped instill in Americans their passion for democratic citizenship. I cannot imagine a more critical task than ensuring that scholars and the public are able to have access these collections and the historical insights they make possible-and that they are preserved for future generations."

Bauman Rare Books announces an exceptional exhibit featuring a collection of rare Bibles and related works produced from the 15th through the 19th century. The exhibit, open to the public, is located within Bauman’s gallery at The Shoppes at The Palazzo in Las Vegas, NV. Entitled “In the Beginning was the Word: The Bible Through the Ages,” the collection includes extraordinarily scarce and important family, pulpit and study Bibles that are fit for a place in any major Biblical collection. According to David Bauman, proprietor and co-founder of Bauman Rare Books, Bibles are among the most popular types of books desired by collectors because they usually have immense historical and sentimental value.

On Friday May 31st, Matthew Haley will be among speakers at the Hay-on-Wye Literary Festival in Wales. He will discuss two aspects of how technology has changed the world of rare books. Within the last fifteen years, book-search web sites like Abebooks and online auctions catalogs have proved a game-changer for this previously localized and often sleepy market. More recently, the printed word appears to have been marginalized by the pixel: digitized library books, ebooks, Kindles and other e-readers seem to dominate the book world. Delving further, it has become apparent that Generation iPad is increasingly keen on antique technology. Vinyl, Polaroid, the steampunk movement and letterpress stationery suggest that the sensuality of pre-digital media still holds an allure, and that the more we read on-screen the more we cherish the feel of a book in our hands.

BOSTON, Mass. — May 22, 2013 — Skinner, Inc. will host an auction of Fine Books & Manuscripts on June 1st in its Boston gallery. The sale will feature a large group of Audubon imperial folio prints of North American quadrupeds, literary firsts, modern first editions, theological works, presidential documents, and a group of fine maps.

Presidential Documents

The auction opens with three documents signed by John Quincy Adams, including a letter written to the American consul in Russia in 1815 (lot 2, estimated between $3,000 and $5,000) that contains a large section on Robert Fulton’s steamship agreement with the Russians; a legal brief drafted early in Adams’s career (lot 1, $400 to $600); and a signed ship’s passport from 1825 (lot 3, $600 to $800).

OAK CREEK, Wisconsin (May 21, 2013) — The 33rd Annual George Wittenborn Memorial Book Award was presented at the annual conference of the Art Libraries Society of North America (ARLIS/NA) held in Pasadena, California April 25-29, 2013. The award was established in 1980 to honor the memory of the premier New York City art book dealer and publisher George Wittenborn. The award is given each year to a North American art publication which represents the highest standards of content, documentation, layout and format in art publishing. One outstanding book published in 2012 was selected to receive the 33rd Annual George Wittenborn Memorial Book Award.

New York, NY, May 21, 2013—The Morgan Library & Museum announced today that it has added nearly 100 of its treasures to the Google Art Project.

The Google Art Project allows for these works—rare books, paintings, sculptures, and manuscripts—to be viewed in exceptional detail. In addition, the Morgan’s 1906 McKim building—an architectural gem comprising Pierpont Morgan’s Library and Study—can be appreciated in exciting new ways.

(New York, May 20, 2013)—Thomas P. Campbell, Director and CEO of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, today announced two appointments in its Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. Peter Barnet, who is currently the Michel David-Weill Curator in Charge of the department, will move into the newly created position of Senior Curator, and C. Griffith Mann, currently Deputy Director and Chief Curator of the Cleveland Museum of Art, will become the Metropolitan Museum’s Michel David-Weill Curator in Charge of the Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. These changes will go into effect on September 1.

Thomas Campbell said, in making the announcement: “Over the past 15 years, Peter Barnet has been a strong leader of his superb staff. Together they have presented an important roster of scholarly exhibitions, made significant acquisitions, and carried out essential upgrades and reinstallations in the medieval art galleries, both in the Met’s main building and at The Cloisters. Having now led The Cloisters into its landmark 75th-anniversary year, Peter has decided to focus on his scholarship, taking on new projects in research, curating, and writing.”