Record for Edward Curtis at Christie's?

At the rare evening sale of the Kenneth Nebenzahl library at Christie's tonight, a full set of Edward Curtis' The North American Indian, on the very desirable Japan vellum, in exceptional condition took in $2.9 million, including buyer's premium. Hammered down by Francis Wahlgren, international head of books and manuscripts at Christie's, it seems to be a world record for the Curtis work. The estimate was $1 - $1.5 million (a complete set sold for $1.4 million seven years ago).

You can read more about the fascinating history of The North American Indian--and how it plunged its creator into debt and obscurity--in a feature we ran last year.