November 2015 | Rebecca Rego Barry

Jim Morrison's "Moby Dick"

Screen Shot 2015-11-02 at 8.16.19 PM.pngSacré bleu! This first American edition of Moby Dick was owned by Jim Morrison, lead singer of The Doors, who died in Paris in 1971 at the age of 27. The book was reportedly removed from the apartment he shared with his long-term girlfriend Pamela Courson after his death. It has since remained with the Courson family. According to Morrison's biographers, the famous vocalist was an avid reader.  

Sadly lacking Morrison's signature or other sign of his ownership, the book does come with a notarized affidavit relating its rock-and-roll provenance. That may not be enough for many book collectors; indeed the book was already offered at auction earlier this year in New York for an estimated $25,000, but it failed to sell.

Any one of Morrison's legion of fans, however, might be inspired to bid when it goes back on the block at Bloomsbury Auctions in London on November 12, estimated at £7,000-10,000 ($11,000-15,000).

H/T to bookseller Simon Beattie for bringing this to our attention.

Image via Bloomsbury Auctions.