Connecticut — AntiquarianAuctions.com in the US, Sale #4: Photographs, Albums and Archives, featuring the Gaeta-Gouey Collection. Preview: on now. The auction runs from Thursday 8th October until Thursday 15th, ending at 2.30pm EST.

Included in the Gaeta-Gouey collection are a fresh-to-the-market selection of photographs amassed over the past twenty-five years by Danny Gaeta of John Bale Books and Denis Gouey of And Books Too. Included are images from the mid-19th century to the present day. This selection offers proof that a collector's soul is to be found within every great dealer. Relatively modest estimates do not mean mediocre photography when the decision to add to the collection has been made by individuals with the ability to recognize quality wherever it may lurk!

The sale, of over 220 lots, includes:

Lot 4. A photobook with original letter from the photographer: Artist’s Model by John EVERARD. London:1958. Cloth, dust-jacket. Sixth impression: a nice copy.[With:] A 1p. typed letter to ‘Dear Tony’ [Esther Anthony] signed, dated ‘22nd January, 1947’.

Lot 62 a Daguerreotype of a painting of a painter painting a painting.

Lot 91 an important archive: the work of Spencer Lionel ADAMS, featuring glass slides prepared for him by T. ENAMI of Japan.

Lots 156 & 157. Cole WESTON. [Two C-print photographs], signed and dated 1980, and 1994 respectively.

Lot 158 MAILLER & MAYEROWITZ. An inscribed photobook from the author (photographer) to the dedicatee. & An original large format C-print from Mayerowitz. (2).

Lot 175 Amedee VIGNOLA Le Document Photographique, Serie II. Prias: 1906. 13 original mounted photographs of female nudes ith their original envelope

Lot 186 The Railroad Camera Club. [A selection of photographs from the 1930s and 1940s of Locomotives], approximately 320 photos and RPPCs.

Lots 216-221. An important selection of the work of Robert F. SHEEHAN (1922-1969) presented in six separate lots, offering some perspective on this important photographer.

In addition, worth a closer look: [China] rare photos documenting Baron von Huenefeld’s 1928 flight; [Folk Art] Cigar Store Indian cabinet card; Generous lots of vernacular images (cabinet cards, CDVs, tintypes, etc); Cyanotypes; important Waterbury, Ct., photo collection; Bicycles, golf, baseball images; signed celebrity photos (Boris Karloff, Bob Hope, Count Basie, etc); letters and large photo of Rosalind Russell; numerous albums; numerous Daguerreotypes and other cased photos; WWII photo lots (including David Duncan); Yale – Skull and Bones cabinet card; early publication on French Embroidery.

Dallas, TX – Charles Schulz’s Peanuts made its comic-strip debut on Oct. 2, 1950. Seventy years and one day later, that Boy Named Charlie Brown topped Heritage Auctions’ European Comic Art event when an original Easter-themed Sunday strip from April 1968 sold over the weekend for $62,500. Apropos, perhaps, for this uniquely American creation often put on shelves alongside Sartre and Beckett.

The Oct. 3-4 sale realized $1,596,546 as more than 2,100 bidders from around the globe participated in an event highlighted by original works from creators ranging from Moebius to Alex Raymond, Philippe Druillet to Jack Kirby, Milo Manara to Jamie Hewlett.

Truly, a global who’s who of what’s what throughout the medium’s storied history.

“Our third European sale was a roaring success,” said Joe Mannarino, Heritage Auctions’ New York-based Director of Comics and Comic Art. “The breadth of participation was gratifying and demonstrated the massive appeal of popular culture around the world.”

The sale was largely assembled by Olivier Delflas, Heritage Auctions' European-based Consignment Director for Comics & Original Arts. That, said Mannarino said, “enabled us to focus on a wider array of items. As a result, comics and comic art from European artists and Disney and animation offerings surpassed our expectations.”

Traditionally, Heritage Auctions’ Comic and Comic Art events have focused largely on American creators doing superhero work, only some of which was featured in this sale. Instead, our European Comic Art event looked beyond the usual suspects to some of the visionaries often unnoticed amid the capes and cowls.

For proof, look no further than Philippe Druillet’s first page to 1982’s Salammbô Carthage No. 2, which sold Oct. 3 for $40,000. That is an extraordinary piece, which appeared the pages of Métal Hurlant and Pilot, that at once pays homage to Gustave Flaubert’s novel and transcends it.

But a hero did dominate the sale nonetheless: British creator Jamie Hewlett’s beloved Tank Girl.

For this event, Heritage Auctions offered his Tank Girl: The Odyssey No. 1 in its entirety – which was divided up into several lots that, all told, realized more than $100,000. It comes as no surprise that the iconic cover to that DC/Vertigo title from 1995 realized $20,000.

Two Flash Gordon newspaper strips from 1940 were also star attractions in the event, made more notable by the fact they came from the family of creator Alex Raymond. From August 12, 1940, a Flash Gordon strip topped with a Jungle Jim adventure realized $42,500. And a July 7, 1940, Flash Gordon strip – featuring our hero in a red suit emblazoned with a yellow lightning bolt, perhaps as homage to the Golden Age Flash Jay Garrick – wasn’t far behind at $40,000.

It does not surprise that Milo Manara’s variant cover to Spider-Woman No. 1 realized $37,500. This controversial piece by the renowned creator of erotic art caused quite the uproar when it was released only six years ago. Its popularity only proves the fine line between infamy and immortality.

Jean Giraud, known to most as Moebius, was an unequivocal star of the event, as evidenced by the high prices realized for several of his acclaimed works, beginning with the $32,500 paid for Page 27 of 1980’s Blueberry La Longue Marche Tome 19. From one year earlier came Moebius’s splash page from the legendary serialized story Le Garage Hermétique (or “The Airtight Garage”), which originally appeared in Métal Hurlant No. 39 and sold Oct. 3 for $31,250. And his 1994 collaboration with filmmaker Alejandro Jodorowsky, Griffes D'Anges, sold for $22,500 – 15 times its pre-sale estimate.

Other highlights include:

Page 23 from Maurice Tillieux’s Une Enquête de Gil Jourdan: La Voiture Immergée No. 3 (1960) sold for $30,000.

The cover to Special Marvel Edition No. 1 (1971), by Marie Severin, Joe Sinnott, and Sam Rosen realized $27,500.

Will Eisner’s cover to The Spirit Magazine No. 36 (1982) sold for $23,125.

Richard Corben’s complete one-page story “Duel of the Titans” from 1967’s Squa Tront No. 4 sold for $17,500.

Another European Comic Art event is already scheduled for March. Said Mannarino, as lots are being gathered for this upcoming sale, “We only expect this category to continue to grow.”

New York – Sotheby’s is pleased to announce the full offerings from its online sales of American Manuscripts & other Property from the Collection of Elsie and Philip Sang, open for bidding through 14 October, and Fine Books and Manuscripts, Including Americana, open for bidding through 15 October. Highlights of works on offer will open for exhibition by appointment in Sotheby’s New York galleries.
 
AMERICAN MANUSCRIPTS & OTHER PROPERTY
FROM THE COLLECTION OF ELSIE AND PHILIP SANG
 
The five-part sale of “Highly Important American Historical Documents, Autograph Letters, and Manuscripts” from the Elsie O. and Philip D. Sang Foundation, which extended from April 1978 to December 1981, was a watershed event in American collecting. This month, another group from the Sang Collection will appear at auction, featuring presidential letters and documents, first ladies, music, and a historical miscellany.
 
Philip Sang was a dedicated collector, always supported by his wife, Elsie, who developed a deep appreciation and understanding of the primary documents that filled their home. Sang graduated from the Illinois Institute of Technology and developed several business interests, particularly in pharmaceuticals. However, Sang relied on another business—Goldenrod Ice Cream—to ease his way into correspondence with the offices of various dignitaries, including several presidents.
 
The selection is led by a momentous Abraham Lincoln letter rediscovered – the President thanks a schoolboy on behalf of “all the children of the nation” for his efforts to ensure "that this war shall be successful, and the Union be maintained and perpetuated." (estimate $700/100,000). President Lincoln was remarkably accessible, and was inundated by letters, requests, and petitions. While most were dealt with by his small office staff, a letter from an immigrant in Brooklyn dated 2 September reached Lincoln’s desk, during his 1864 reelection campaign. The author of the letter, John J. Meier, proudly explained that three generations of his family supported Lincoln in his determination to end slavery and preserve the Union. Meier also referenced the Reverend Henry Ward Beecher’s antislavery Plymouth Church, which served as a station on the Underground Railroad and where Lincoln himself twice worshipped. Meier enclosed $5 on behalf of his son James, noting that he had been “saving up his pennies” in order that he might “help the sick and wounded of our brave boys, fighting for the glorious cause of truth and freedom” as he is “not yet old enough to fight.” Lincoln was famously indulgent of all children, and this letter from James Meier’s father must have appealed to him as it shared his own view that in the prosecution of the War, the preservation of the Union and the elimination of slavery were two sides of a single coin. Lincoln drafted a reply to thank the boy, which extensively quoted the boy’s original letter to his father, and the reply was sent to Meier, senior, on 6 September.
 
FINE BOOKS AND MANUSCRIPTS, INCLUDING AMERICANA
 
Bringing together rare and unique property across a range of subjects, including Americana, cartography, travel, and literature, the sale features two highly important pieces of Americana, led by an autograph letter signed by Richard Henry Lee—the congressional delegate who introduced the resolution that the American colonies “are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States … absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown”—to George Washington, informing him of his unanimous election in the Senate to the office of the Presidency (estimate $400/600,000). Dated 6 April 1789, Lee’s congratulatory missive he acknowledges George Washington's singular contribution to "render independent" the government that he is about to head. When the results of the Electoral College were tallied, Washington had secured a vote from every elector, and his fellow Virginian, Richard Henry Lee, hurriedly sent him this letter with the news. Washington's ambivalence about becoming the chief executive is well known, but it was belied by his willingness to serve. The very office of presidency owes much to the character of Washington – his fame as the steady hero of the Revolution, his manifest lack of personal ambition, and his determination not to profit from public service won him a reputation unapproached by any other American of his day.
 
Also on offer is a partially printed document signed, in which President Abraham Lincoln extends his blockade of Confederate ports to include Virginia and North Carolina (estimate $300/500,00). In this order to Secretary Seward to affix the Seal of the United States to his proclamation of the blockade, Lincoln deleted Maryland from the list of proscribed states – perhaps securing Maryland’s ostensible loyalty to the Union for the duration of the rebellion. The present document put the full blockade into effect and placed the Union at war with the Confederacy.

Dayton, OH – Recognizing the power of literature to promote peace and reconciliation, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation today announced the finalists for the 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize in fiction and nonfiction.
 
Inspired by the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords that ended the war in Bosnia, The Dayton Literary Peace Prize is the only international literary peace prize awarded in the United States. The Prize celebrates the power of literature to promote peace, social justice, and global understanding.
 
Margaret Atwood, whose critically acclaimed fiction, poetry, and nonfiction have offered prescient warnings about the political consequences of individual complacency, will receive the 2020 Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke Distinguished Achievement Award, named in honor of the noted U.S. diplomat who negotiated the Dayton Peace Accords.
 
The full list of finalists can be found below and at www.daytonliterarypeaceprize.org.
 
“From the pandemic to Black Lives Matter protests to a looming election that could redefine the country, the events of 2020 have laid bare deep fault lines in America’s foundation -- economic disparity, racism, misogyny -- which are explored by many of the books on this year’s finalist list,” said Sharon Rab, Chair of the Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation. “But just as importantly, the books set outside the U.S. reveal how as a global power, our fault lines reach far beyond our borders. They show us how our political choices can affect individuals all over the world, and remind us at a critical moment in our history that we all have a duty to engage in deciding the direction the country will take.”
 
The 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize fiction finalists are
 
    •    10 Minutes, 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak, Bloomsbury. The latest novel from internationally renowned writer and speaker Elif Shafak recalls the life of a murder victim during her dying moments. Born into a religiously oppressive tradition in Turkey, the protagonist escapes to Istanbul and finds beauty and light amid the darkness of the city’s sordid sex trafficking industry. Her chosen family brings her story to a buoyant and breathtaking conclusion, celebrating the power of friendship in our darkest times.
 
    •    Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli, Knopf. In this emotionally resonant, fiercely imaginative, and utterly timely novel, an artist couple set out on a road trip with their two children in the heat of summer. The bonds between them begin to fray as a larger crisis plays out on the news: thousands of kids trying to cross the southwestern border into the United States but getting detained—or lost in the desert along the way. Told from multiple points of view and blending texts, sounds, and images, Lost Children Archive is an astonishing feat of literary virtuosity.
 
    •    The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri, Ballantine. This unforgettable novel puts human faces on the Syrian war with the immigrant story of a beekeeper and his wife. When war destroys their home and kills their son, the pair set out on an epic journey to Britain, encountering chaotically crowded refugee camps, life-threatening sea crossings, and smugglers eager to exploit them. Ringing with authenticity, this beautifully crafted novel reveals the triumph of spirit when the world becomes unrecognizable.
 
    •    The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, Doubleday. In this bravura follow-up to the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning New York Times bestseller The Underground Railroad, Colson Whitehead brilliantly dramatizes another strand of American history through the story of two boys sentenced to a hellish reform school in Jim Crow-era Florida.
 
    •    The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman, Simon & Schuster. Set in Berlin in 1941, this sweeping novel follows three unforgettable young women -- one of them a golem sworn to protect the youngest. In a world where evil and death lurk at every turn, we meet remarkable characters who take us on a stunning journey of loss and resistance, relying on their own courage and love to survive.
 
    •    We Cast a Shadow by Maurice Carlos Ruffin, One World/Random House. In a near-future Southern city plagued by fenced-in ghettos and police violence, a father considers taking his biracial son to a clinic where he can get his lips thinned, his skin bleached, and his nose narrowed. Evoking Ralph Ellison, Franz Kafka, and Vladimir Nabokov, this electrifying, hallucinatory novel is at once a keen satire of surviving racism in America and a profoundly moving story of a father who just wants his son to thrive in a broken world.
 
The 2020 Dayton Literary Peace Prize nonfiction finalists are
 
    •    Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do by Jennifer Eberhardt, Penguin. In her first book, social psychologist and MacArthur “Genius” award recipient Dr. Jennifer Eberhardt presents her groundbreaking and often shocking research and data demonstrating how our unconscious biases powerfully shape our behavior, leading to racial disparities from the classroom to the courtroom to the boardroom. Showing that all people are vulnerable to racial bias, even if they are not racist, Eberhardt reminds us that racial bias is a human problem--one that all people can play a role in solving.
 
    •    Grace Will Lead Us Home: The Charleston Church Massacre and the Hard, Inspiring Journey to Forgiveness by Jennifer Berry Hawes, St. Martin’s Press. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jennifer Berry Hawes provides a definitive account of the tragic 2015 massacre at the Mother Emanuel AME church in Charleston, South Carolina and its aftermath. With unprecedented access to the grieving families and other key figures, Hawes offers a nuanced and moving portrait of the events and emotions that emerged in the wake of the shootings, creating a unforgettable and deeply human portrait of grief, faith, and forgiveness.
 
    •    Know My Name: A Memoir by Chanel Miller, Viking. In the wake of her sexual assault behind a dumpster on the Stanford campus in 2015, Chanel Miller was known only as a  victim. Here she shares the full story of her trauma and recovery, turning the focus from the perpetrator, where such stories are often centered, to the critical but much less common work of revealing the truth of survivors, whose suffering is so often silenced and unseen. Miller’s unflinching, emotionally honest memoir is a testament to the power of words to heal and effect change.
 
    •    Our Man: Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century by George Packer, Knopf. Bestselling author George Packer, who knew Holbrooke personally, vividly relates the saga of one of the most legendary and complicated figures in recent American history, set amid the rise and fall of U.S. power from Vietnam to Afghanistan. Drawing from diaries and papers, Packer paints a portrait of personal ambition, idealism, and hubris that parallels the postwar United States.
 
    •    Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe, Anchor. From award-winning New Yorker staff writer Patrick Radden Keefe comes a stunning, intricate narrative about a notorious killing in Northern Ireland and its devastating repercussions. Tinged with immense sadness, the book never loses sight of the humanity of even those who committed horrible acts in support of what they believed in.
 
    •    What You Have Heard is True: A Memoir of Witness and Resistance by Carolyn Forché, Penguin Random House. Forché, one of the most gifted poets of her generation, was 27 when she was invited by a mysterious stranger to travel with him to El Salvador in the late 1970s, when the country was on the brink of war. Forty years later she recounts the experience in a devastating, lyrical, and visionary memoir of a being pursued by death squads, sheltering in safe houses, and engaging with horror in order to help others. This is the powerful story of a woman’s radical act of empathy and a poet's journey toward social consciousness.
 
A winner and runner-up in fiction and nonfiction will be announced on October 28, 2020. Winners receive a $10,000 honorarium and runners-up receive $5,000. This year's winners will be announced on October 28, 2020. A ceremony honoring the winners will take place in spring 2021 due to the pandemic.
 
Finalists will be reviewed by a judging panel of prominent writers including Anne Fadiman (The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down), Hua Hsu (A Floating Chinaman: Fantasy and Failure Across the Pacific), Diane Roberts (Tribal: College Football and the Secret Heart of America), and Brando Skyhorse (The Madonnas of Echo Park).
 
To be eligible for the 2020 awards, English-language books had to be published or translated into English in 2019 and address the theme of peace on a variety of levels, such as between individuals, among families and communities, or between nations, religions, or ethnic groups.

Presidents of ILAB’s 22 national associations held their first virtual meeting on 1st October 2020, addressing issues arising from the global pandemic as well as re-electing Sally Burdon to serve as ILAB President for a second term.

Mario Giupponi (Italy) was elected as new Vice-President and two new members, Eberhard Köstler (Germany) and Angus O’Neill (UK) were welcomed into the committee.

Robert Schoisengeier (Austria) and Michael (Oscar) Graves-Johnston (UK) are leaving the committee after 4 years.

Sally Burdon of Asia Bookroom Canberra, Australia, has been part of the ILAB committee since 2014, served as Vice-President from 2016 – 2018 and was elected ILAB President in 2018.

“It is a great honour to be elected President of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers for a second term. I am very grateful to my colleagues in the rare book trade for the trust they have put in me to represent the trade internationally for another term. Although the focus in ILAB is frequently on the president, in reality, the work is done by the whole committee, Executive Secretary Angelika Elstner, the National Association Presidents and others who work on ILAB projects. I am aware how very fortunate I am to work with a committee of such particular talent, integrity and commitment.

I am delighted to report that Italian bookseller Mario Giupponi was elected Vice President of ILAB yesterday. Mario has led ALAI, the Italian rare booksellers association, through sometimes difficult times, with care and wisdom. It is also a very great pleasure to welcome German autograph and manuscript dealer Eberhard Koestler and British bookseller Angus O'Neill to the ILAB Committee. Both of these dealers are highly capable, intelligent and experienced people who will serve the trade very well.

The ILAB committee has enacted a number of changes in the past 31 months which we intend to consolidate during the term of this new committee. We will also be launching a new website, and most importantly, in 2021 the ILAB Missing Books Register. This site will replace the current Stolen Books Database. Featuring up to date listings the new Missing Books Database will more closely address the needs of librarians, collectors, and law enforcement. ILAB is very committed to stopping theft and forgery of rare books and associated materials on paper worldwide. We see the ILAB Missing Books Register as a very important step towards doing this. More information will be issued on this important new resource will be issued in the first months of 2021.”

Mario Giupponi of Studio Bibliografico Benacense in Riva del Garda, Italy has been a bookseller for over 30 years, specialising in 16th to 19th century books in Italian and in French, mainly in the field of history and travel. He is fluent in French, German, English and Spanish besides his mother tongue Italian, very familiar with the continental book trade and was fundamental in re-establishing the Italian rare book fairs in Milan, Turin and Parma. “I am very honoured to participate in the activities of the ILAB Committee as Vice-President and to work alongside my international colleagues. I hope to make a significant contribution to the work that awaits us.”

Eberhard Köstler and Angus O’Neill joined the committee.

Eberhard Köstler (Köstler Autographen & Bücher, Germany) started his career in the auction business and set up his own autograph and manuscript business in 2000. He was president of the German Antiquarian Booksellers Association, VDA from 2006-2012 and for no less than 30 years the organiser of the annual German antiquarian bookselling seminar. After many years on the board of the German association, he is now keen to commit time for the international community.

Angus O’Neill of Omega Bookshop, UK has been an independent bookseller since 1982 and a member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association, ABA since 1989. He served as president of the ABA from 2017-2019 and played a key role in a number of political campaigns against trade hindering legislations.

In further elections the presidents confirmed the remaining committee in their roles: Stuart Bennett (ILAB General Secretary), Rob Shepherd (Treasurer), Anne Lamort and Pavel Chepyzhov.

Gonzalo Fernandéz Pontes who served as ILAB President from 2016 – 2018 was elected at this year’s Presidents Meeting as President of Honour. He thanked his international colleagues: “I started my work for ILAB in 2008, organizing the ILAB Congress and Book Fair in Madrid which was a great success. I had the opportunity to meet many people, some of them became friends over the years but what really matters and remains is a pleasant memory of all events and persons. I would like to thank Sally Burdon for her support as Vice-President during my presidency and the entire committee during that time. Thank you for this honour which I will keep with pride and responsibility for the rest of my life.”
 
ILAB Committee 2020
 
President: Sally Burdon (Australia)                                                                                 
Vice President: Mario Giupponi (Italy)                                                                           
Treasurer: Rob Shepherd (UK)                                                                                            
General Secretary: Stuart Bennett (US)
 
Members:
Pavel Chepyzhov (Russia)
Anne Lamort (France)
Eberhard Köstler (Germany)
Angus O’Neill (UK)

New York — Fine Photographs will come to auction Thursday, October 22 at Swann Galleries. The sale brings to market excellent photographs from the collection of Evelyne Daitz, noteworthy portfolios, and a strong selection of vernacular photography.

An offering of the Estate of Evelyne Daitz, a pioneering gallerist who worked with Lee Witkin, forms a cornerstone of the auction, with Manuel Álvarez Bravo’s Platinum Portfolio, 1981, complete with 10 platinum prints ($25,000-35,000); the complete 1923–48 Edward Weston portfolio with nine silver prints and one dye-transfer print printed by Cole Weston ($15,000-25,000); and The First Apeiron Portfolio, 1951–72, printed 1973, complete with 18 silver prints with works by Paul Caponigro, Ralph Gibson, Emmet Gowin, Danny Lyon, Duane Michals, George Tice, Jerry Uelsmann, Minor White, and many more. Prints include Margaret Bourke-White’s warm-toned silver print 24 Hour Worker, U.S.S.R., 1930–32 ($6,000-9,000), Barbara Kasten’s 1980 Polaroid Construct III-A ($4,000-6,000), and Ralph Steiner’s American Rural Baroque, silver print, 1930, printed 1970s ($2,000-3,000).

Yousuf Karsh’s rare portfolio Karsh—Fifteen Portraits, complete with stunning oversized silver prints of prominent figures, including his images of Ernest Hemingway and Winston Churchill, leads the sale at $40,000 to $60,000. Highlights for both the new collector and the seasoned aficionado include the deluxe edition of Álvarez Bravo’s Fotografías, 1945, signed twice and inscribed by Álvarez Bravo, with three vintage photographs ($25,000-35,000); and Man Ray’s 1931 Électricité portfolio with 10 photogravures after his rayographs ($20,000-30,000).

Photographs of note feature Paul Outerbridge, Jr.’s tricolor carbo print Sandwiches on Tray, circa 1938 ($15,000-25,000); Josef Koudelka’s silver prints Czechoslovakia, 1968, printed 1990s ($12,000-18,000), and Portugal, 1976, printed 1990s ($15,000-25,000); and Richard Misrach’s Golden Gate Bridge, 2.24.00, 6:50 A.M., oversize chromogenic print, 2000 ($18,000-22,000); as well as two elegant Alma Lavenson silver prints: Shadowed Wall, Biltmore Hotel, Santa Barbara, 1929 ($15,000-25,000), and Rigging, 1932 ($10,000-15,000).

Documentary photographs, especially many of those made during the Great Depression, remain deeply relevant and are among the most important and potent works produced by American practitioners. The sale will feature: a strong array of FSA photography, including a custom case with 11 of Walker Evans’s iconic 1930s ferrotyped silver prints documenting the effects of the Great Depression throughout the United States ($12,000-18,000); a 1936-40 portfolio of Arthur Rothstein’s photographs complete with 10 silver prints, printed circa 1981 ($4,000-6,000); and a binder with 56 vintage prints and 23 press prints, 1937–42, printed 1930s–70s ($10,000-15,000); images by Dorothea Lange and Civil Rights photography, with iconic images by Leonard Freed.

The Big Apple has inspired photographers for generations. Practitioners such as Berenice Abbott have helped form the way we see this American metropolis with images like Pennsylvania Station Interior, New York City, oversize silver print, 1936, printed 1980 ($4,000-6,000), Fifth Avenue Houses, Nos. 4, 6, 8, silver print, 1936, printed 1974 ($4,000-6,000), and Union Square West, Nos. 31–41, silver print, 1938 ($4,000-6,000); while Helen Levitt and Weegee documented the lives within it with Levitt’s N.Y. (children on stoop), silver print, circa 1940 ($2,000-3,000), and N.Y. (children with a broken mirror), silver print, circa 1945, printed 1970s ($4,000-6,000), as well as Weegee’s The Flower Peddler, Near the Old Metropolitan Opera House, silver print, 1941, printed 1980s ($2,000-3,000), and “Whistler’s Mother,” Arts Ball, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, New York, silver print, circa 1948 ($2,000-3,000).

The Parisian je ne sais quoi is alive with light, love, and humor in a series of photographs from this iconic city. Nighttime photography, kissing couples, and more by Robert Doisneau, Willy Ronis, and others form the heart of this section. Highlights include a complete portfolio with 15 of Doisneau’s iconic humanist photographs with images from 1945–72 and printed in 1979 ($15,000-25,000); and Ronis’s Les Amoureux de la Bastille, silver print, 1957, printed 2001 ($3,000-4,500).
           
A dynamic and large section of vernacular photography includes portraits of artists and other cultural figures, train travel and track construction, magnificent travel albums and imagery from China and Africa, industrial documentary albums, memorable food albums, and rock ‘n roll. The sale will also feature a strong selection of prize-winning photojournalism, a series of composites describing the lunar phases and surfaces of the Moon by Adolf Voigt and Hans Giebler ($2,500-3,500), and postcards from the 1913 Armory Show ($6,000-9,000).

Limited previewing (by appointment only) will be available from October 19 through October 21, to be scheduled directly with the specialist in advance and conforming to strict safety guidelines. Swann Galleries staff will prepare condition reports and provide additional photographs of material on request. Advance order bids can be placed with the specialist for the sale or on Swann’s website, and phone bidding will be available. Live online bidding platforms will be the Swann Galleries App, Invaluable, and Live Auctioneers. The complete catalogue and bidding information is available at www.swanngalleries.com and on the Swann Galleries App.
 
Additional highlights can be found here.

Chicago — Potter & Potter Auctions' signature late summer event had a distinctly carnival atmosphere, attracting bids and interest from around the world. When the hammer fell silent after a day of competitive bidding, 94 lots realized $500-999; 56 lots scored $1,000-$4,999; and five lots made $5,000+. Prices noted include the company's 20% buyer's premium.

Huge, outrageous, and eye-catching circus and sideshow banners represented several of the top lots in this sale.
•    Lot #278, a c. 1930s/40s sideshow banner, Cavalcade of Wonders. Freaks Past & Present, was estimated at $6,000-9,000 and made $28,800 - a new world's record for a banner of this type. It measured over 20 feet wide and 90" high and depicted a snake charmer, magician, three-legged man, tattooed man, Ubangi “savages,” frog boy, little people, fire-eater, and a sword swallower, among others.
•    Lot #280, a c. 1960 sideshow banner for the famous three-legged man, Frank Lentini, punted to $3,120. This 93" x 118” unsigned example featured the performer dressed as a football player at the center of the canvas, inside a decorative frame.  
•    Lot #244, a mid-20th century Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey “Greatest Show on Earth” entrance banner, was estimated at $250-350 and traded hands at $3,120 - more than 12 times its low estimated. This 36 x 125” blue canvas banner painted in white was from the collection of Carl “Pop” Haussman.

Specialty collections and archives related to the entertainment industry also generated spirited bidding and results.
•    Lot #236, ten scrapbooks and other ephemera owned and kept by sword swallower Sandra Reed, sold for $3,600. This collection included images, clippings, and publicity materials and was an extensive record of her career, travels, and employers of the 1970s.
•    Lot #241, “Pop” Haussman’s collection of signed circus performer photographs from the 1950, was estimated at $1,500-2,500 and realized $4,320. This archive was presented in 13 albums filled with c. 442 signed and/or inscribed photographs. These 13 volumes were from an archive that originally spanned 34 volumes.
•    Lot #518, a letterhead collection from the early to late 20th century, was estimated at $500-1,000 and delivered $4,080. It included several hundred examples of letterhead from different circuses, Wild West shows, amusement companies, carnivals, and performers, and was organized alphabetically.
•    Lot #525, a collection of c. 200 snapshots of 20th century American carnival attractions, was estimated at $300-500 and soared to $4,080. These amateur photos included haunted castles and “dark rides”; vehicles and exhibits of famous and interesting automobiles; sideshow attractions; monstrosities and oddities; wax museums; band organs; carnival rides; motordromes and motorcycle “hell drivers”; and more.

Haunting photographs documenting people, places, and things from long ago caught the interest and imagination of enthusiasts at this sale.
•    Lot #231, Diane Arbus' Group Portrait at Hubert’s Museum, came into focus at $12,000. This c. 1965 image on Agfa marked paper featured the talent Congo the Jungle Creep; Woogie, Princess Wago; Woogie’s husband, Charles Lucas; Russian midget Andrew Ratouchett; Manzini the Strong Man; and Harold Smith, the Water Glass Musician.  
•    Lot #492, ten photographs of late 19th/early 20th century circus trains and carnival midways, sold for $1,560 - more than five times its low estimate. This small grouping included a Sells Brothers rail car with advertising and vignettes and a family at Atlantic City in 1927.
•    Lot #363, four c. 1910s/20s tattooing photographs taken in Paris made $1,560 - nearly four times its high estimate. These photos included a man’s tattooed body, a man’s Last Supper tattoo, and a tattooist with a subject, tattoo flash board to his right.  

Circus related apparatus and merchandise - especially stage worn costumes - insured this auction was dressed for success.
•    Lot #304, a sequined purple ringmaster's jacket attributed to Joe Pon, ringmaster of Circus Vargas, was estimated at $125-225 and brought $840. This piece was from the collection of William Biggerstaff, who acquired many of Pon’s costumes in 1984.
•    Lot #299, a c. 1970s circus performer's shimmering silver robe decorated with rhinestones, sequins, and felt, was estimated at $50-150 and made $600. It was produced by Circus Creations of Daytona Beach, FL and sold with two identical robes.  
•    Lot #322, a traveling trunk containing 19 juggling items - including wooden pins, faux fruit, and wooden blocks - was estimated at $125-225 and hit the road at $840.

Posters, broadsides, and other promotional entertainment ephemera spanning two decades rounded out this sensational sales event.
•    Lot #211, a trio c. 1960s of Soviet / USSR offset litho circus posters were estimated at $70-100 and sold for $510.
•    Lot #376, a c. 1880s, eight page courier folio for P.T. Barnum Greatest Show on Earth, was estimated at $100-200 and made news at $1,080. This rarity was illustrated with engravings including Jumbo’s skeleton, a “congress of giants,” and other attractions.
•    Lot #154, an original poster advertising Adam West’s appearance as Batman at the State Fair Coliseum, was estimated at $250-350 and traded hands at $2,400. This poster was produced in 1967; no other copies of it have been traced at auction.

According to Gabe Fajuri, President at Potter & Potter Auctions, "The record price achieved in this auction proves that interest in the unusual has never been stronger. We're not only delighted with the results of the auction, we've already been fielding calls from collectors who want to consign to next year's circus, sideshow and oddities auction."

Amsterdam — There are old Bibles, and there are beautiful Bibles. In their newest auction theme, Catawiki have found a clutch of Bibles that fit into both categories. With the oldest work having been printed in 1493, and the newest mid 19th century, there is a wide variety of dates and expected prices.

Dallas TX – A suite of 26 serigraphs on paper depicting each letter in the English language by Russian-born French artist Erté is among the top draws in Heritage Auctions’ Erté Art & Design Online Auction Oct. 23.

The auction will be Heritage Auctions’ second online auction dedicated to the art and design of Erté, one of the most prolific and iconic makers of the 20th century. The first, which was held in February 2020, amassed $163,751 in sales. So popular was the first sale, which included nearly 100 lots, that consignments have soared for the sequel: the October event includes 146 lots ranging from original and editioned works on paper to bronze sculptures to decorative objects.

“Our second Erté Art & Design auction builds on the momentum of our first, offering an even wider array of lots that each embody his elegant style Poiret and collectively demonstrate the breadth and depth of his extensive oeuvre,” said Samantha Robinson, Junior Specialist of Decorative Arts. “This online auction dedicated to Erté, the only of its kind, will be a destination for established and aspiring collectors of his work.”

The Alphabet Suite in original portfolio box (26 plates), 1976 (estimate $5,000-7,000) features 26 serigraphs on paper plates depicting contortionist figures forming the 26 letters of the English alphabet, each editioned No. 32 of 350 and signed by the artist. Each of the 26 plates is unframed and offered in the original portfolio box.

As if to complement the Alphabet Suite, the event also includes a Numerals Suite with original portfolio box, 1980 (estimate: $2,000-3,000) that is editioned No. 30 of 350 and signed by the artist. While each plate is individually framed, the lot is accompanied by the original portfolio box.

The event also includes a large assortment of bronze sculptures, including but not limited to:
    •    The Wave, 1988 (estimate: $2,000-$3,000)
    •    Spider Web, 1989 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)
    •    Daydreams, 1989 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)
    •    Amazon, 1985 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)
    •    Hera, 1989 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)
    •    Zeus, 1989 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)

Other highlights of the event include:
    •    Eleven Letters from the Alphabet Suite, 1976 (estimate: $2,000-4,000)
    •    An Aventurine (State II)14K Gold, Aventurine, and Mother of Pearl Necklace, circa 1980 (estimate: $2,000-3,000)
    •    A Trois Femmes Patinated and Partial Gilt Bronze Bowl, 1990 (estimate: $1,500-2,000)
    •    An Original Set Design Drawing (estimate: $1,500-2,500)

For images and information on all lots in the auction, visit HA.com/15155.

New York – Christie’s Fine Printed Books & Manuscripts Including Americana auction opens for bidding online October 1-16 during Classic Week, a marquee series of sales. Leading the sale is an very rare broadside announcing the first National Thanksgiving in 1777, the first appearance of this broadside at auction in nearly a century (estimate: $500,000-800,000).