Potter & Potter to Auction James Bond, Fine Bindings, and Sherlockiana at April Sale

Potter & Potter
Potter & Potter
On April 18, Potter & Potter Auctions will hold a sale in its Chicago gallery featuring a wide variety of fine books perfect for any collection. Special sale highlights will include a large section on James Bond and Ian Fleming, as well as other strong sections on fine bindings, modern first editions, natural world and exploration, and Sherlockiana.
Potter & Potter will also offer an art section that features signed lithographs by Keith Herring and Joan Miró and a signed portfolio by Sean Scully.
The sale starts at 10 a.m. Central and will be both in-person and online. Details may be found here.
To preview highlights, view the April sale slideshow.
First-edition copies of the first installment of the James Bond series, such as this one, are rarely seen at auction. “Casino Royale is the first novel in the James Bond series, and first-editions are quite rare,” said Christopher D. Brink, Fine Books and Manuscripts Specialist at Potter & Potter Auctions. “Only 4,728 copies of Casino were printed and most of them went to public libraries.”
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterAnother rare James Bond find, this copy of Thrilling Cities is an association copy. “This copy is inscribed to Fleming’s personal friend, David Bruce, and his book plate is in the book,” Brink said. “Bruce was an American spy and intelligence officer from whom Fleming took ideas for James Bond.”
Photo Courtesy : potter & PotterThis first deluxe edition of Rubáiyát is No. 22 of 100 copies designed, illustrated, and signed by Elihu Vedder. “This copy features the same block text used in the legendary Sangorski & Sutcliffe jeweled binding for The Great Omar, which was bound for American aboard the Titanic,” Brink said. “The text itself is the exact text in that book, which is the rarest book in the world.”
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterThis copy of Babe Ruth’s Own Book of Baseball is No. 434 of 1,000 signed copies. “There really haven’t been many signed copies of this book up for auction,” Brink said, “and this one was actually signed by Babe Ruth himself.”
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterThough incomplete, this set of 10 out of 20 of volumes from The Botanical Cabinet is associated with Charles Darwin. “The book plate in each volume mentions Sir John William Lubbock, who was a fellow of the Royal Society and a neighbor of Charles Darwin,” Brink said. “Darwin was frequently invited to the family estate and took an interest in Lubbock’s oldest son, also named John, who became a friend, trusted supporter, and was even asked for his opinions and mathematical corrections to On the Origin of Species and Descent of Man. Lubbock and Darwin were also known to share books.”
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterNo. 3 of only 20 sets, this portfolio features eight color aquatint etchings created for Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. “Each is signed by Sean Scully, one of the world’s most renowned artists with permanent collections in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art,” Brink said. This edition of sets has never been offered at auction, as the etchings are usually sold individually.
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterA first-edition copy of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes featuring a misprint will be sold with a first-edition copy of The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes. “These first editions in book form are the cornerstones for any Sherlock Holmes collection,” Brink said.
Photo Courtesy : Potter & PotterFirst-edition copies of the first installment of the James Bond series, such as this one, are rarely seen at auction. “Casino Royale is the first novel in the James Bond series, and first-editions are quite rare,” said Christopher D. Brink, Fine Books and Manuscripts Specialist at Potter & Potter Auctions. “Only 4,728 copies of Casino were printed and most of them went to public libraries.”
Photo Courtsey of Potter & PotterAnother rare James Bond find, this copy of Thrilling Cities is an association copy. “This copy is inscribed to Fleming’s personal friend, David Bruce, and his book plate is in the book,” Brink said. “Bruce was an American spy and intelligence officer from whom Fleming took ideas for James Bond.”
Photo Courtsey of potter & PotterThis first deluxe edition of Rubáiyát is No. 22 of 100 copies designed, illustrated, and signed by Elihu Vedder. “This copy features the same block text used in the legendary Sangorski & Sutcliffe jeweled binding for The Great Omar, which was bound for American aboard the Titanic,” Brink said. “The text itself is the exact text in that book, which is the rarest book in the world.”
Photo Courtsey of Potter & PotterThis copy of Babe Ruth’s Own Book of Baseball is No. 434 of 1,000 signed copies. “There really haven’t been many signed copies of this book up for auction,” Brink said, “and this one was actually signed by Babe Ruth himself.”
Photo Courtsey of Potter & PotterThough incomplete, this set of 10 out of 20 of volumes from The Botanical Cabinet is associated with Charles Darwin. “The book plate in each volume mentions Sir John William Lubbock, who was a fellow of the Royal Society and a neighbor of Charles Darwin,” Brink said. “Darwin was frequently invited to the family estate and took an interest in Lubbock’s oldest son, also named John, who became a friend, trusted supporter, and was even asked for his opinions and mathematical corrections to On the Origin of Species and Descent of Man. Lubbock and Darwin were also known to share books.”
Photo Courtsey of Potter & PotterNo. 3 of only 20 sets, this portfolio features eight color aquatint etchings created for Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. “Each is signed by Sean Scully, one of the world’s most renowned artists with permanent collections in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Museum of Modern Art,” Brink said. This edition of sets has never been offered at auction, as the etchings are usually sold individually.
Photo Courtsey of Potter & PotterA first-edition copy of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes featuring a misprint will be sold with a first-edition copy of The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes. “These first editions in book form are the cornerstones for any Sherlock Holmes collection,” Brink said.
Photo Courtsey of Potter & Potter