Contact us at WeBuyRareBooks@gmail.com or Text Photos (646) 469-1851 for a free evaluation of your old and rare books. Our main gallery is located by appt. at 1050 2nd Ave (@55th) Gallery 90 in the Manhattan Art and Antique Center. We also are opening a second office in San Diego, CA by appt. only. We travel widely and buy nationwide.
In this video, I will show you how I value an early 17th century copy of the famous Malleus Maleficarum or the “Hammer of Witches” I’ll mention a couple sites that dealers use to check the completeness of rare books and look up auction prices which can help provide comparable for rare book appraisals. Feel free to reach out if you would like me to value any of your rare books or manuscripts. You can text photos directly to 6464691851 or email them to webuyrarebooks@gmail.com.
While this blog is primarily devoted to evaluations and appraisals of rare books, I made this video below with tips on some places where one can go today to hunt for and find rare books to buy. If you are a new collector, or want to get into the antiquarian rare book business, take a look.
So, I’m just back from a trip up to Westchester, NY where I bought several boxes of antiquarian volumes that belonged to a prominent lawyer.
One of the volumes fresh out of the box is a copy of Jean Louis de Lolme’s The Constitution of England, or an Account of the English Government; In Which It Is Compared with the Republican Form of Government, and Occasionally with the Other Monarchies in Europe. Printed in London by T. Spilsbury and Sold by G. Kearsley, in 1775.
I love Constitutional law, especially anything printed around that magical year of the American Declaration. This volume was a frequently reprinted (I have had several copies over the years), but it still is an important work that influenced many of the framers of the United States Constitution.
A quick physical inspection of the book (as seen in the photos below) shows that it is bound in it original 18th century marbled boards. Unfortunately, the spine is rather dry and worn, but to its credit, the pages are what we call “uncut” – which is a heartwarming word to rare book dealers and collectors who appreciate original condition.
A quick review of the auction databases on sites such as RareBookHub, reveal a rather depressing state of affairs. A copy of this First English edition sold for $23.50 in 2014 at auction. I have to retype that for emphasis as it is quite unbelievable to type even. $23.50!! Can you imagine an an interesting 18th century work being sold for the price of a few lattes at Starbucks? It shows that not everything old is gold.
The prices of retail copies is a bit more reassuring. On sites like ViaLibri, one can find ranges for the book (or at least similar editions) from about $200-900, depending on the exact edition, condition etc. With that said, there appears to be several copies circulating in commerce, and it is getting harder and harder to sell books of which several copies can be found online at the touch of a few buttons.
This particular copy has some redeeming aspects which I believe raise the value and its desirability – and as a rare book dealer, it is my passion and job to discover and highlight them. First, it has a lovely late 18th century bookplate of CHAINED MONKEYS. That is enough charm to win over my heart. A quick Wikipedia search and wee can se that it is the ex-libris of St Andrew St John, 14th Baron St John of Bletso PC FRS (22 August 1759 – 15 October 1817), an English politician who sat in the British House of Commons from 1780 until 1806 when he inherited a peerage. So, this copy of a influential work belonged to a politician during the year that America wrote her Constitution in 1783. Very cool indeed, but generally even that provenance is not sufficient in the market today to substantially raise the value of the copy – albeit, we are building an interesting story around the book.
However, it gets better. When I read through the inscriptions in ink on the following page, they contain a very unusual and remarkable record: the book appears to have been passed AMONG WOMEN READERS and women readers alone. It contains such jottings in an old hand as “1776 Mrs. Stephenson received this Book Nov 5 || Miss Manley sent this book to Lady Robinson” The list continues for about 15 lines as the book was clearly circulated among the 18th century aristocratic women, who perhaps were keenly interested in Constitutional law given the regular news of the increasingly tumultuous state of affairs in America. The list of names requires additional investigation, but I have not seen a similar list in any book that I can recall handling.
So, overall despite being a relatively common work in commerce, and well represented in various institutions in its many editions, this particular copy is very interesting and unusual. Its boards are a bit dry and the spine could use some restoration, but generally I would say this is a work that I would be able to price in the $500 range and find some institutional interest from a special collections that focuses on women studies or more generally a law library.
If you have any rare books or manuscripts and would like a free evaluation, don’t hesitate to send photos buy email to webuyrarebooks@gmail.com or by text to 646-4691851.
I am a very active buyer of early English books and tracts from the 1500s through the 18th century.
I recently received this interesting 17th century work – Walter Cradock’s “Gospel-libertie: in the extensions limitations of it.”
One of the difficulties of buying a rare book like this from private person or family, is making a fair evaluation and offer. After all, somebody who has inherited a book or library, may not have a full sense of the value of their book or collection. They may also have high expectations- as many people reasonably would for a book that is 370 years old!
In such circumstances, a rare book dealer should try to be as transparent as possible. Usually, one is not dealing with unique works of art, but rather with books – even rare ones – that have nevertheless sold previously and for which their are comparable examples in the auction records. I am always happy to supply such comparables from databases such as Rare Book Hub or the American book prices current etc. for books that are emailed or sent to me.
So, what is this 1648 copy of Gospel-libertie worth? When considering this important question, one has to consider many aspects the book.
1) It’s rare: According to Rare Book Hub, no copy has been offer for sale at auction since it appeared at Sothebys in 1994 (albeit in a group lot for GBP 1,265). That is a plus.
2) It’s interesting: The author, Walter Cradock, was an unflinching advocate of liberty of conscience. Some considered him a Puritan dissenter or a radical troublemaker (who doesn’t like books by troublemakers?). A reading of the work shows he was no doubt influenced by the religious upheaval of the English Civil War as well as the early preaching of the Gospel in the new English colonies. As an early work that promoted religious liberty, it resonates with modern readers. All good.
3) It’s charming: Wrapped in old paper boards and with a 19th century (or earlier) string holding the loose signatures together, it certainly has some vintage charm and visual appeal.
4) Nevertheless, it is (at least for serious collectors) in poor condition. The text block is broken, some pages are detached and internally, it has had its fair share of the ravages of time. Frustratingly, it is also lacking a single page of the table at the end (underscoring the importance of properly ‘collating’ a book and verifying its completeness).
Therefore, despite its intellectual appeal and even the visual authenticity of book that survived great upheavals, it is a book probably only worth $250 or so – and even at that only to the right customer ready to overlook its flaws (something that is as hard to do in the dating world as in the world of selling antiquarian books 😉
If you have an early English book, and you would like a free evaluation, feel free to send photos to webuyrarebooks@gmail.com or text them to 646 469 1851.
— Adam Weinberger, Member ABAA Rare Book Buyer 1510 Lexington Ave 9D NY, NY 10029 (646) 469 1851 Note: By Appointment Only
We recently purchased a lovely copy of Smith’ Antiquities of Westminster published in Folio 1807. Nevertheless, a glance through the auction records reveals very modest prices. Perhaps this is partly explained by a lack of connoisseurship. Years ago, there were more perhaps more appreciative everyday collectors that delved into the nitty gritty of printing history. Indeed, the book is recorded (see plate on p. 48 below) as being the first use of lithography in an English book (cf. Lithography: 200 years of art, history & technique, NY, 1983, p. 224)
The other colored plates below – engraved and hand colored by comparison- also possess a remarkable charm. The shattered specimens of stained glass from St. Stephen’s Chapel have an explosive and modern aesthetic, and are beautifully rendered by John Thomas Smith. The shards, among with wall paintings and sculptures, were discovered during a restoration of Westminster in 1800 that revealed part of a 14th century wall. The author was very eager to record these discoveries for posterity before they were lost again to time.
So, like the glass, it is shattering to see that a copy at auction in 2016 at Dominic Winter only achieved a paltry 84 GBP! (approx $120). This compares to a retail copy on line marked at $1200. That is quite the disparity – a full 1000% between what a copy achieved at auction and what a book dealer (and colleague) is asking for it.
Perhaps, a not unreasonable retail price (if one indeed wishes to sell it within some reasonable time frame) is no doubt somewhere down the middle at $500-600, but still, the beauty of the book and its significance to book illustration and English antiquarianism, does support a retail price at the higher end in my mind.
If you have a fine book with colored plates, I am happy to evaluate it – just send photos to our email address or text them to 646 469 1851. Do kindly remember that the value of colored plates books is very sensitive to condition, and it is best to include photos of any defects such as foxing or browning.
