New York — “With over an over 80% sell through rate, and with 16 of the top 17 lots selling to collectors, Swann Galleries’s Thursday, October 15, Rare & Important Travel Poster auction definitively showed that the market, and specifically private collectors, has remained robust and competitive,” noted Nicholas D. Lowry, Swann president and specialist for the annual sale.

The auction delivered seven artists records, including the top lots of the sale. John Held, Jr.’s 1925 bird’s-eye view of Nantucket, which earned $21,250 over a $6,000 to $9,000 estimate; and Paul George Lawler’s ad for travel to Hawaii via San Francisco created for Pan Am airlines, which also brought $21,250. The midcentury modern design New York / Fly TWA, 1956, earned David Klein a new artist record at $12,500. Rare posters by Michael Rudolf Wening and Seaverns W. Hilton brought attention from collectors. Wening’s Siam / Beautiful Bangkok / The Jewel City of Asia, circa 1920s, earned a record at $9,375, and Hilton’s Lewis and Clark / Northern Pacific, 1920, at $6,250. Additional records were earned by Charles W. Holmes and Miles W. Sater.

The auction resulted in two discoveries with Frank Lemen’s previously unattributed circa-1952 design for Bermuda, which sold for $1,000, and the unsigned The Palisades of the Hudson / New York Central Lines, circa 1930s, which earned $5,750 and was attributed to Anthony Hansen after research found the image in the New York Central Line’s 1931 calendar with Hansen’s name attached.

Additional highlights included winter scenes by Emil Cardinaux: Zermatt / Matterhorn Schweiz, 1908, which realized $11,875, and Winter in der Schweiz, 1921, which brought $11,875. Powerful train images featured Leslie Ragan’s The New 20th Century Limited, 1939, at $16,250, and Pierre Fix-Masseau’s Exactitude, 1932, at $10,625.

“Some speculate that the inability for people to travel given the pandemic has raised the profile of Travel Posters in particular, but I believe that material of exceptional quality and rarity will always be eagerly competed for. And with over 13 world record prices achieved, it appears that the market bears that theory out,” concluded Lowry.

The house is currently accepting quality consignments for the spring 2021 season. For the house’s most up-to-date auction schedule please visit swanngalleries.com.

Additional highlights can be found here.

Dallas, TX – A note written in 1636 by the man who solved the riddle of human circulation and reproduction while serving as personal physician to King Charles I. A missive from 1880 by “the father of microbiology” to a colleague about cholera and “the hot virulence caused by the flight of pigeons.” A letter from the doctor who pioneered modern abdominal surgery. And a dispatch from the professor who, in 1839, gave tuberculosis its name.

Heritage Auctions’ Manuscripts event, to be held online Nov. 12, is rife with circular letters, correspondence, documents and ephemera signed by men and women about whom libraries’ worth of histories have been written. They range from Mary Queen of Scots to George Washington, Abraham Lincoln to Bugsy Siegel, Steve Jobs to Nelson Mandela. Princes and princesses, presidents and Supreme Court justices, generals and foot soldiers, authors and artists, inventors and dictators – their private missives and public pronouncements available in this sale often helped shape the modern world and our understanding of it.

There are more than 600 lots in this event inscribed by earth-shakers and the music-makers – among them, extraordinarily offerings from composers Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Schubert, whose writings seldom come to market. In his missive, Beethoven requests the return of his “piano trio in B-flat,” and offers that it “will be returned within a few days together with the violin sonata in G.” Schubert’s letter, to a friend, declines a lunch invitation.

“It’s the first we’ve handled of each composer,” says Sandra Palomino, Heritage Auctions’ Director of Historical Manuscripts. “They’re that rare.”

But at a moment when headlines abound about science under siege, this sale, too, reminds us that what is has always been.

Offered here, from a single collection assembled by a collector in South Florida, are the writings of physicians, professors, surgeons and naturalists whose work was misunderstood or misinterpreted in its day but ultimately hailed as groundbreaking, live-saving, world-altering.

The Oct. 2, 1636, letter from William Harvey, in Latin, was written during his service as Charles I’s physician, and comes only eight years after he published Exercitatio Anatomica de Motu Cordis et Sanguinis in Animalibus (An Anatomical Study of the Motion of the Heart and of the Blood in Animals), in which he “explained how the heart propelled the blood in a circular course through the body,” according to the BBC. Harvey’s discovery was hailed in England, the news outlet wrote, “although it was greeted with some skepticism on the Continent.”

Louis Pasteur’s letter of Oct. 30, 1888, concerns cholera – for which he created the first vaccine while battling the so-called germ theory denialists who wrongly insisted that bacteria were the result of disease and not the cause of it. Pasteur’s missive makes mention, too, of André Chantemesse, noted for his work in ending typhoid fever. And there is reference to Etienne-Jules Marey, a pioneer in the field of cardiology (and cinematography!).

There is also a Pasteur-penned postcard addressed to an unknown recipient on May 18, 1886. In this brief, moving communiqué Pasteur pleads for a young Russian boy who had been bitten by a rabid dog; he offers to pay for the boy’s medical expenses, as his parents were too poor to pay for his care.

Also found in this sale is a cache of letters from a trio of medical innovators: from Johann Lukas Schönlein, who gave tuberculosis its moniker (previously, it was known solely as consumption); Theodor Billroth, the Austrian surgeon regarded as the father of modern abdominal surgery; and Morell Mackenzie, the British physician who pioneered laryngology in the United Kingdom.

“All of these men were pioneers,” says Palomino. “They weren’t necessarily trusted in their time. But, of course, all became revered in their fields.”

New York –– Poster Auctions International’s Rare Posters Auction #82 on Sunday, November 15th will feature masterpieces and rarities from over two centuries of poster design. Top artists include Cappiello, Chéret, Haring, Mucha, Steinlen and Toulouse-Lautrec.

The auction will be on view to the public October 30-November 14; the auction will be held live in PAI’s gallery at 26 West 17th Street in New York City and online at posterauctions.com, beginning promptly at 11am Eastern time.

Jack Rennert, president of Poster Auctions International, Inc., said, “In a year with so much upheaval, I am pleased to return to some sense of normalcy with our upcoming auction—and the catalogue is back. As always, collectors can expect to find a range of masterful works, including highly sought-after items and beloved images.”

The auction will begin with two sections of travel posters for the United Kingdom and Italy – a perfect balm for current travel restrictions. Major works include William H. Barribal’s 1925 Bridlington (est. $8,000-$10,000), G. Stanislaus Brien’s Moonlight Bathing on the East Coast (est. $7,000-$9,000), Aurelio Craffonara’s 1931 Genua (est. $1,200-$1,500), and Marcello Dudovich’s circa 1930 Padova (est. $1,400-$1,700).

The War & Propaganda collection includes poignant and powerful designs from World Wars I and World War II, as well as hand-painted posters from the Vietnam War. Highlights include James Montgomery Flagg’s 1917 designs I Want You for U.S. Army (est. $7,000-$9,000) and Wake Up, America! (est. $5,000-$6,000), as well as Fred Spear’s ca. 1917 Enlist (est. $3,000-$3,500).

As always, posters for bicycles, aviation, and automobiles are featured. Notable works include Edward Penfield’s circa 1895 Orient Cycles (est. $7,000-$9,000), William H. Bradley’s 1896 Victor Bicycles / Overman Wheel Co. in the larger format (est. $20,000-$25,000), the anonymously designed 1906 Automobiles de Dion Bouton (est. $3,500-$4,000), Georges Rochegrosse’s 1907 Exposition Décennale de l’Automobile (est. $5,000-$6,000), Ernest Montaut’s 1909 Première Exposition Locomotion Aérienne / Grand Palais (est. $7,000-$9,000), and Aldo Mazza’s 1910 Milano Circuito Aereo Internazionale (est. $10,000-$12,000).

Nearly 40 iconic and rare works will be available from the inimitable Leonetto Cappiello. Classics include the circa 1906 Automobiles Charron Ltd. / Puteaux (est. $5,000-$6,000), the circa 1910 Cinzano Vermouth (est. $6,000-$8,000), the 1929 Parapluie-Revel (est. $3,000-$4,000), and the 1929 La Menthe-Pastille (est. $10,000-$12,000). His rarest works include Fumez le Globe (est. $5,000-$6,000) and Eau Minérale des Abatilles from 1926 (est. $4,000-$5,000).

From Alphonse Mucha, 21 decadent Belle Époque works will be up for bidding. His best and most beloved works include the 1896 Salon des Cent / XXme Exposition (est. $12,000-$15,000), the 1896 Job (est. $17,000-$20,000), the 1894 Gismonda / Théâtre de la Renaissance (est. $20,000-$25,000), and an uncommon variant of the 1897 Têtes Byzantines (est. $20,000-$25,000). Rarities will be on offer too, including Figures Décoratives, a signed pencil and gouache drawing from 1904 (est. $14,000-$17,000), and the 1903 Northeast Bohemia Fair (est. $14,000-$17,000).

On offer will be several important works from Théophile-Alexandre Steinlen: a rare variant of his most famous design, Chat Noir / Réouverture from 1896 (est. $20,000-$25,000); the charming 1894 Lait pur Stérilisé (est. $12,000-$15,000); and the only known copy of Nestlé’s Swiss Milk, from 1895, with text promoting the printer G. Gerin Fils (est. $17,000-$20,000).

An Art Nouveau collection wouldn’t be complete without Toulouse-Lautrec, whose works define the grit and glamour of Fin-de-Siècle France. His first lithograph—and his most revered work—will be up for grabs: the two-sheet Moulin Rouge / La Goulue from 1891 (est. $250,000-$300,000). Two designs for Aristide Bruant show the performer’s magnitude: the 1892 Ambassadeurs (est. $50,000-$60,000) and the 1894 Eldorado (est. $70,000-$90,000). Further hallmarks of Lautrec’s career include the 1892 Reine de Joie (est. $60,000-$70,000); the rare, before-text version of Elles from 1896 (est. $25,000-$30,000); the 1895 May Belfort, signed and numbered with the cat remarque (est. $50,000-$60,000); and the 1894 P. Sescau / Photographe, also with remarque (est. $80,000-$100,000).

Fans of Art Deco will take delight in Lucian Bernhard’s 1914 Manoli Dandy (est. $4,000-$5,000), Emil Cardinaux’s 1921 Sommer in der Schweiz (est. $2,500-$3,000), A. M. Cassandre’s 1931 Triplex (est. $20,000-$25,000), Olsky’s 1928 Chapeaux Mossant (est. $3,500-$4,000), and René Vincent’s 1918 La Vie Parisienne : Maquette (est. $3,000-$4,000).

For those who prefer Modern and Contemporary designs, options abound. Fifteen whimsical works from Keith Haring will be available, including his 1984 Swatch / World Breakdance Championship (est. $1,200-$1,500), the circa 1986 Pop Shop (est. $1,400-$1,700), and his iconic 1989 Act Up / Ignorance = Fear (est. $1,200-$1,500). Career defining works from Milton Glaser include his indelible 1966 Dylan (est. $1,000-$1,200) and his 1967 Mahalia Jackson (est. $2,500-$3,000). And four works from the ultra-imaginative Tadanori Yokoo will mesmerize collectors, including his 1996 Lucky God (est. $1,200-$1,500) and 1978 Kyotomo / Some no Kimono (est. $800-$1,000).

Public viewings will be held daily from October 30-November 14. For more information and to order the catalogue, visit www.posterauctions.com. You may call the gallery at (212) 787-4000.

Jack Rennert, president of Rennert’s Gallery / PAI, is the world’s foremost authority on rare original poster art, and is the author of over a dozen books on the subject, including the catalogue raisonée for the “father” of modern French poster art, Leonetto Cappiello.

Basel, Switzerland — Dr. Jörn Günther Rare Books AG comes to TEFAF Online New York in November (1st - 4th) with Epistres d’Ovide, a stunning edition of Ovid’s Epistulae Heroides, translated into French by Octovien de Saint-Gelais. The gallery is excited to exhibit with TEFAF New York for its inaugural online fair and is pleased to present this extraordinary, museum-quality manuscript.

This unique text combines myths from Ancient Rome and the life of the 15th-century French court in a luxury presentation copy, intended for Anne de Bretagne, Queen of France. With eight full-page illuminations in exquisite colour, the Master of the Chronique scandaleuse brings to life the pathos of Octovien de Saint-Gelais’ translation, as well as Ovid’s influential source text.

Betrayal and heartbreak are central to this manuscript’s narrative. Not only do the women of mythical history berate their absconding husbands and lovers within the text, but the item itself was given to a queen whose husband, King Charles VIII, was a known adulterer.

With three French compositions by Saint-Gelais or François Robertet following the five Ovid translations, this manuscript is an intriguing exercise in collaboration between the truly ancient and the medieval French translator and illuminator. Chosen for its expansive storytelling and beautiful detail, the Epistres d’Ovide adds a flash of royal colour to TEFAF Online New York.

Though the stories which Ovid references are not new, taken from previous poems or well-known legends of Greece and Rome, he expertly crafts the voices of these heroines in order to tell their side of the story.

These figures of myth and legend are linked to the real world of Anne de Bretagne, who, featured in the final three French compositions that follow Ovid’s, is presented as a feminine tour-de-force, denying the men around her the right to exalt one woman above the rest.

The narrative of this manuscript is expansive. Not only is the Roman source text a treasure trove of mythical history and gender politics, but the translation and the three added poems provide a story in themselves. Anne de Bretagne’s presentation as a figurehead with a strong, peace-keeping voice would have allowed a young queen to view herself as the agent of her own Fate, not just a heroine abandoned on the shore, her life dictated by the men around her.

Los Angeles — As Edgar D. Mitchell boarded the Apollo 14 he knew that if the mission was successful he would be just the 6th man to walk on the Moon. Boarding the aircraft with him, in his personal bag, lay copies of the King James Bible. Upon touchdown on 5 February 1971 they became the first scripture and published work to land on the Moon. The extremely rare Lunar Bible – which is mounted and framed in a gold and enamel setting – measures just 4.1 square centimeters, with all 1,245 pages of the King James bible condensed and printed on a single microfilm square. Eleven of the bibles were authenticated by Edgar Mitchell and the Rev. John M. Stout, a NASA information scientist and the director of the Apollo Prayer League, of which only seven remain in circulation. A copy of the ‘Lunar Bible’, as it became known, will be offered as part of Bonhams History of Science and Technology sale on November 5 in Los Angeles. It has an estimate of $20,000-$30,000.
 
Astronaut Edward White II, prior to his death in the tragic fire that killed all three crew members on the Apollo 1 mission, told the press that he hoped to carry a Bible to the Moon. This goal resonated with the Rev. John M. Stout, who, along with his family, founded the Apollo Prayer League in 1968 in memory of the Apollo 1 casualties. Their first act was to start the Lunar Bible initiative – the mission statement of which read ‘to pray for the safety of the astronauts and the skill of NASA employees who built the rockets they would fly’. The core mission however was ‘most importantly to land the bible on the Moon’. They placed the good books onboard Apollo 13 (1970) however it failed to land. So it wasn't until February 5th, 1971, when Antares, Apollo 14’s Lunar Module, touched down that the bible finally reached the Moon.
 
Bonhams specialist in Books and Manuscripts L.A., Adam Stackhouse said: ‘We are very excited about offering the ‘Lunar Bible’ as part of our History of Science sale. This is a physical embodiment of a rare part of our recent history where breakthrough scientific innovation and religious faith converged in their shared quest to uncover the truth of our lived reality. This lot has profound significance not only to space collectors, but also to religious communities’.
 
Other highlights Include:
 
    •    A Highly Important Darwin Manuscript- An exceptional manuscript lead for The Descent of Man, articulating the central theme, and differing markedly from the published text. The culmination of Darwin’s theory of evolution, The Descent of Man demonstrates that all human beings are members of a single species. Darwin’s most important and original contribution to the issue of human evolution testifying to the unity of the human species and explaining the basis for mankind’s variegated races. This leaf is a critical resource for our understanding of the historical development of Darwin’s argument in The Descent, as well as the general development of his theory of evolution. It is estimated at $250,000-$350,000
 
    •    Lumière Cinematograph Motion Picture Camera – The Lumière brothers were the first to develop a consistent working system for capturing and projecting moving pictures on celluloid. They patented their camera, the Cinématographe, in 1895 and made their first film with it, Sortie de l'usine Lumière de Lyon, that same year. The first 10 examples of their camera were produced that year but these were prototypes that weren’t sale. It was in 1896 that they were available to the public and the present example comes from that batch of 240 produced, numbered 10-250. Only about 450 total examples of this model were known to have been produced before the design was altered in 1898. It is estimated at $70,000-90,000.
 
    •    5 offprints, including some from ‘Dialectica’, written by the Austrian-born mathematician, logician and philosopher, Kurt Gödel. Considered one of the greatest logicians since Aristotle, Gödel was close friends with Albert Einstein due to their time spent together at the Institute for Advance Study at Princeton. The one-of-a-kind documents are inscribed and signed, by Gödel, to the economist Oskar Morgenstern who was one of the founders of game theory. It has been said that Einstein, growing weary of his own work, only attended the institute to have the privilege of walking home was Gödel such was the Austrian’s intelligence. It is estimated at $40,000- $60,000.
 
    •    Texas Instruments “Cal-Tech” prototype hand-held calculator. An important step along the way to the current state of microelectronics. The ‘Cal-Tech’ calculator was the first widely marketed consumer product to use integrated circuit boards. This prototype is one of only two in existence – the other is in the Smithsonian museum in Washington D.C. The hand-held calculator had a major impact on the public’s acceptance of the integrated circuit much like the pocket radio pushed the acceptance of the transistor. There is a linear path from this prototype to the iPhone in your pocket today.  It is estimated at $30,000-50,000.
 
    •    Gemini 133P Trainer Is a remarkable system used to train the Gemini astronauts at the Manned Spacecraft Center in Houston. Essentially a duplicate of the display panels and instruments found inside the Gemini spacecraft, Project Gemini was NASA's second human spaceflight program, which started in 1961 and concluded in 1966. Its objectives were to practice and perfect all of the techniques necessary for a Moon landing, therefore paving the way for the Apollo Project. It is estimated at $20,000-30,000.

Stansted Mountfitchet, England — For almost all of its existence, John Foxe’s (1517-87) ecclesiastical history, Actes and Monuments, has been known simply as the Book of Martyrs.

Published early in the reign of Elizabeth I, an era when the official religion had changed four times in less than 30 years, Foxe’s powerful Protestant polemic with its narrative of the martyred English, Bloody Mary and the enemy overthrown helped to frame the popular consciousness for over 400 years. English xenophobia and the fear of harbouring citizens bearing allegiance to foreign powers is anchored here.

Following its first printing by John Day in 1563, edition followed edition. However, it is those copies published within the author’s lifetime which today command a premium.

The copy of Actes and Monuments included in Sworders’ Books & Maps sale on October 23 is from the last of the four lifetime editions. This 1583 version was expanded by Foxe to include his commentary on the St Bartholomew's Day Massacre (the wave of Catholic mob violence, directed against the Huguenots in 1572) titled ‘Discourse of the Bloody Massacre in France' and other shorter pieces.

Running to 2300 pages, two volumes and 150 illustrations, copies were commonly chained beside the Great Bible  in cathedrals, churches and guild halls to be read and cited by ecclesiastical and common folk alike. Sworders’ copy from a private collection in Hertfordshire, shows signs of extensive use but retains most of the famous woodcuts. The estimate is £2,000-3,000

New York – Sotheby’s is honored to announce that we will auction 1,000+ works from the collection of the late American businessman and philanthropist Ira A. Lipman and his wife Barbara K. Lipman.

Works from the Lipman Collection spanning fine art, jewelry, watches, books and manuscripts, decorative arts and more will be sold throughout a series of auctions across fall 2020 and spring 2021. The sales begin this month in New York with important works from Lipman’s extensive collection of prints and editions: Henri Matisse’s Jazz, one of the most important art books of the 20th century, will highlight the Important Prints & Multiples Evening Sale on 22 October, while a rare group of prints by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec known as his Elles series will feature in the livestreamed Impressionist & Modern Art Evening Sale on 28 October.
 
Sotheby’s will also present a dedicated online auction of prints from the Lipman Collection this November, and a dedicated sale of Lipman’s remarkable collection of printed and manuscript Americana, which will highlight our Americana Week sales in January 2021.

IMPORTANT PRINTS & MULTIPLES EVENING SALE
22 October 2020
 
Sotheby’s offerings from the Lipman Collection begin with a complete edition of Henri Matisse’s Jazz from 1947 – one of the most seminal and groundbreaking artist books of the 20th century (estimate $400/600,000). While living in Venice from 1943-44, Matisse was unable to paint or draw as freely as he once had due to his ailing health, and consequently returned to the cut-out technique he developed years prior, in preparation for his iconic mural commissioned for the Barnes Foundation in Pennsylvania. Dubbing the process as ‘drawing with scissors’, the artist used large shears to create cut-outs, which became a new medium unto themselves and laid the groundwork for a new chapter of his artistic output that would define his later career.

Chicago – Hindman's auction of The Library of Gerald and Barbara Weiner realized more than $1.2M, achieving a strong sell-through rate of 87%. Following the success of a record-setting 2019 for the Books and Manuscripts department, this auction once again exceeded expectations.

“We are proud to have had the opportunity to handle this fine collection.  A diverse group of books and manuscripts found very strong results in last week’s sale, a sign of the strength of the auction market in the category” said Gretchen Hause, Hindman’s Director and Senior Specialist in Fine Books and Manuscripts.

The auction was led by a first edition of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (lot 40), which sold for $112,500 against a presale estimate of $60,000-80,000.  The copy contained an autographed note, signed by Darwin in the third person to an unnamed recipient. Hindman has continued to see enormous success for Darwin’s works after setting the world auction record for the very fine Mellon-Garden copy of the Origin, sold in 2019.

Highlights include a copy of William Shakespeare’s Fourth Folio and a copy of the Kelmscott Press’s Works of Geoffrey Chaucer. The Fourth Folio (lot 209), printed in 1685, was the last edition of Shakespeare’s plays published in the 17th century. Estimated at $60,000-80,000 the work sold for $81,250. The Kelmscott Chaucer (lot 69), the supreme achievement of the Kelmscott Press, in a fine 20th-century vellum binding by Peter Franck, commissioned by Philip Duschnes, realized $75,000 against a presale estimate of $60,000-80,000.

Another highlight was an autographed letter from J.R.R. Tolkien to George Sayer regarding the manuscript and publication of The Lord of the Rings (lot 222). Tolkien requests that Sayer return his copy of the manuscript and describes George Allen & Unwin’s desire to publish the work after it had been rejected by nearly every major British publisher, including Tolkien’s own publisher, Collins. The letter reads in part, “Can you still put me up?...I could come any time after the 18th that is suitable to you and your wife. The earlier the better for me since G. A. & U. are now clamouring to reconsider the Lord of the Rings, so that the sooner you have finished it – I could not leave you in the middle of the third book for all the publishers in the world, and anyway I greatly desire to hear your opinions at the end – the better for me in that regard.”  The extraordinary letter realized more than seven times its presale estimate, ultimately selling for $35,840 against an estimate of $4,000-6,000.

African Americana, offered in a separate session, performed exceptionally well as demand has continued to rise in this category. A copy of Martin Luther King Jr.’s Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? (lot 266) sold for $8,125 against a presale estimate of $3,000-5,000. This first edition presentation copy was inscribed by King on the front free endpaper. Also highlighted in this session was a typed letter signed from Malcom X to author Alex Haley from 1964 (lot 267), one of a series of responses to the editorial, "The Lesson of Malcolm X" published by the Saturday Evening Post on September 12, 1964.

The Fine Books and Manuscripts Including Americana auction was held at Hindman’s Chicago saleroom on October 8, 2020 with bidders participating by absentee, telephone and four online bidding platforms. The department will hold their final sale of 2020 in two sessions, on November 12-13, at Hindman’s Chicago saleroom.  The first session of the auction features fine selections of incunabula, Renaissance printing, literature, and printed and manuscript Americana including American prints. The second session, to be held Friday November 13th, includes a fine selection of livres d’artiste, and features the fine Edward Gorey collection of Thomas J. Barrett.

Hindman is now welcoming consignments for the department’s spring auctions. For more details and to see full results for the auction, please visit HindmanAuctions.com.

Boston – The first-ever Boston Virtual Book Fair, to be held November 12-14, 2020, will launch with an all-day Paid Preview on Thursday, November 12. Online programming on Friday and Saturday, November 13 and 14, will feature curator Marylène Altieri exploring the culinary collection at Harvard’s Schlesinger Library, including the papers of famed chef Julia Child; Nicole Aljoe, director of the Africana Studies Program at Northeastern University, sharing her latest research around a recently discovered mysterious 19th century text by Chloe Russell, “A Woman of Color of the state of Massachusetts, also commonly termed the Old Witch, or Black Interpreter” at the Boston Athenaeum; Boston-based scholars/curators Allison Lange and Theo Tyson discussing the Women’s Suffrage Movement from the perspective of its visual representation; and The Ticknor Society’s popular Collectors’ Roundtable.

The 44th Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair (reimagined as the Boston Virtual Book Fair in 2020) is the annual fall gathering for book lovers and collectors, featuring the top selection of items available on the international literary market. Hosted by the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America and the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers, this three-day virtual marketplace will feature 150+ booksellers from around the globe!   
 
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12
 
11AM-7PM EST  Paid Preview, Tickets are $50. Available at www.abaa.org/vbf.
 
Be the first to browse and shop 150+ dealers at the Boston Virtual Book Fair. An alluring treasure trove awaits seasoned collectors as well as new visitors. The event will showcase the finest in rare and valuable books, illuminated manuscripts, autographs, ephemera, political and historic documents, maps, atlases, photographs, fine and decorative prints, and much more.
 
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 13
 
1PM EST: Julia Child and Company: Culinary Delights at the Schlesinger Library

Marylène Altieri, Curator of Published and Printed Materials
Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America,
Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University
 
Julia Child’s voluminous and fascinating papers are just one of several collections of prominent women in the world of food at the Schlesinger Library. Their papers are nestled in comprehensive collections of cookbooks, culinary periodicals, product pamphlets, and menus that give depth and context to the record of their achievements. Schlesinger’s broader mission to document the lives of women in America further enhances their meaning and provides researchers with unparalleled resources. Marylène will introduce you to the range of these materials, with perhaps some timely recipes thrown in!
 
3PM EST: The Curious Case of Chloe Russell’s “The Complete Fortune Teller and Dream Book”
 
Nicole N. Aljoe, PhD
Director of Africana Studies Program, Department of Cultures, Societies, & Global Studies
Associate Professor of English & Africana Studies, Northeastern University
 
This talk will explore an intriguing text held in the Boston Athenaeum. Titled The Complete Fortune Teller and Dream Book, it purports to be written by Chloe Russell, “A Woman of Color of the state of Massachusetts, also commonly termed the Old Witch, or Black Interpreter.” Dated around the turn of the 19th century, the text is a puzzle for scholars. Russell is documented as owning a home in Boston’s West End and was alternatively listed as a washerwoman and cook; she is not now known to have written anything else. The text itself, an interesting compilation of astrology and superstitions around choosing a mate, might have been reprinted from elsewhere. The talk will share some of the unique aspects of this surprising text that facilitate speculation about its possible occasion for publication.
 
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 14
 
1PM EST: Historical Artifacts and the Myths of the Women’s Voting Rights Movement
 
Dr. Allison Lange
Associate Professor of History, Wentworth Institute of Technology, Boston
Curator of the suffrage exhibitions at Massachusetts Historical Society and Schlesinger Library
                                                          
Theo Tyson
Polly Thayer Starr Fellow in American Art and Culture at the Boston Athenaeum
Curator of the (Anti)Suffrage exhibition
 
Dr. Lange and Theo Tyson will discuss the Women’s Suffrage Movement from the perspective of its visual representation, from books and prints to books, posters and photographs. The discussion explores the ways that historical artifacts established many of the popular myths of the women’s suffrage movement, many created by the activists themselves.  
 
3PM EST: The Ticknor Society Collectors’ Roundtable

The Ticknor Society sponsors an annual roundtable of collectors at the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair, and this year’s participants include Heather O’Donnell (founder of Honey & Wax Booksellers of Brooklyn), Erika Hapke (Bernett Penka Rare Books of Boston), and Peter X. Accardo (Programs and Public Service Librarian, Houghton Library).

 
ABOUT THE FAIR
 
The 2020 Boston Virtual Book Fair kicks off with an all-day Paid Preview on Thursday, November 12, 11AM-7PM, and requires purchase of a $50.00 ticket. It will be an exclusive opportunity to get a first look at items for sale. The Fair opens, free to the public, at 11AM on November 13 and will run 24 hours a day online at abaa.org/vbf until November 14 at 7PM. For more information and tickets for the Paid Preview, visit abaa.org/vbf.
 
Collectors can virtually peruse the booths of every exhibitor in the Fair or quickly visit their favorite dealers, hosted in an easy-to-navigate online version of the traditional book fair booth. A search feature allows visitors to quickly browse by category, dealer, or keyword—with each item featuring a brief description, condition, and price—and they can contact dealers directly to learn more about the items for sale. Each exhibitor will showcase up to 50 of their most interesting and significant pieces, creating a remarkable and diverse selection of items from around the world. Fresh items will be available throughout the weekend as dealers continually restock their virtual booths.
 
Whether just browsing or buying, the Fair offers something for every taste and budget—books on art, politics, travel, gastronomy, and science to sport, natural history, literature, fashion, music, and children’s books—all appealing to a range of bibliophiles and browsers. From the historic and academic, to the religious and spiritual, from the exotic to everyday—the Fair has offerings in every conceivable genre and subject. Attendees have the unique chance to view rare and historic museum-quality items, offered by some of the most prestigious participants in the trade.
 
With the Fair hosted completely online, everyone around the globe can attend the Boston Virtual Book Fair, one of the oldest and most respected antiquarian book shows in the U.S.

Dallas, TX – Heritage Auctions’ Rare Books event, held Oct. 15-16, was an absolute success thanks to one of the most spectacular works of the 16th century and some of the most significant authors of the 20th century. And a few mystery guests even made some noteworthy appearances during the sale.

Over the course of four thrilling sessions spread over two days, almost 1,300 bidders spent $2,287,797 on highly coveted tomes, many of which came from the celebrated assemblage of mystery book publisher, dealer and collector Otto Penzler. Even more books from Penzler’s shelves will be made available during three online sessions to be held Dec. 5-7 – many, from authors seldom seen at auction.

“What we saw during this sale was inspiring,” said James Gannon, Heritage Auctions' Director of Rare Books. “We weren’t necessarily surprised by the results, because a majority of the books in Otto’s collection are the best-known examples in the very best condition with just gorgeous dust jackets. We knew the market was there, based on results from parts I and II of the Penzler sale. But a lot of the authors in this event were relatively new to the auction market – as will many of those to be featured in part IV.”

The Astronomicum Caesareum of Petrus Apianus, dedicated to the Emperor Charles V in 1540, realized $325,000 to become the event’s top lot. This comes as no surprise given its status as “the most spectacular contribution of the book-maker's art to sixteenth-century science,” in the words of Owen Gingerich, Harvard University’s Professor Emeritus of Astronomy.

So few copies of this richly hand-painted folio have survived 480 years, especially in this remarkable condition. And the copy sold Oct. 15 continued to surprise right until it reached the auction block, as experts discovered 29 original silk threads and eight tiny seed pearls, each measuring 1 mm, among the rotating volvelles.

A first edition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit or There and Back Again from 1937 realized $60,000. Close behind at $55,000 was a first edition of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

But from Penzler’s collection came some of the event’s biggest surprises and delights.

An inscribed first edition of Earl Derr Biggers' 1925 The House Without a Key – the very first entry in the Charlie Chan mystery series – opened bidding late Friday at $4,600. But bidders fought mightily over this copy, eventually driving its final price up to $50,000, more than 12 times its pre-auction estimate. It wouldn’t be the last time seldom-seen titles from Penzler’s shelves made their mark during this event.

In fact, a short time later there was yet another heated round of bidding over the first-ever mystery novel by Ellery Queen, 1929’s The Roman Hat Murder. This signed first edition opened bidding in the low four figures. But admirers of Frederic Dannay and Manfred Bennington Lee – the writers behind the Queen pseudonym – tussled over the tome until it, too, reached an astonishing realized price of $40,000. A first edition of the very first Nero Wolfe mystery, Rex Stout’s 1934 Fer-De-Lance, wasn’t far behind at $31,250.

A first edition of Queen’s The Egyptian Cross Mystery, published in 1932, sold for $25,000. That was 25 times its original estimate.

But it wasn’t only well-known titles by renowned writers that pushed this event past the $2.2-million mark, For instance, an extraordinarily rare first edition of John Dickson Carr's The Mad Hatter Mystery from 1933 opened bidding at $2,800. But a protracted scramble drove the final price to $17,500, more than 17 times its original estimate.

And on and on the event went – one highlight after another. And it was no mystery why.

“Otto’s name in the industry is as much a mainstay as some of the best-known mystery and detective fiction authors,” said Gannon. “Having something from his personal collection is probably a highlight of many current mystery and detective fiction collectors.”

For a complete list of titles and prices realized from the Oct. 15-16 Rare Books Signature Auction Featuring Otto Penzler Mystery Fiction Part III, register for free at HA.com and see here.