Rare Book Monthly

Articles - October - 2025 Issue

Exhibits, Talks and Symposium - Upcoming and Ongoing London, Austin, Philadelphia

London: A free exhibition of 60 books from the Royal College of Physicians Museum is on view through July 23, 2026.

London: A free exhibition of 60 books from the Royal College of Physicians Museum is on view through July 23, 2026.

LONDON

Royal College of Physicians Museum

A BODY OF KNOWLEDGE - 500 Years of Book Collecting

Through July 23, 2026



The Royal College of Physicians Museum, 11 St. Andrews Place, London hosts a new free exhibition 'A Body of Knowledge: 500 years of book collecting at the Royal College of Physicians'. 



The event which runs through July 23, 2026, features 60 rare and early printed books from the RCP Heritage Library and artefacts from the history of printing. It is accompanied by a new site-specific art installation by Catherine James. James' work 'Making visible' foregrounds the contributions of women to the history and composition of the RCP Heritage Library. 



*  View 'A Body of Knowledge' online here 

Visit in person at the RCP at Regent's Park, London. Usual opening hours are Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm. Visitors are advised to check the website in advance for any closure dates.

*  Exhibition events and activities will be listed throughout the run on the RCP Museum website: 

*  Please contact the RCP museum to book a guided tour of the exhibition with an expert guide: 

*  Teaching sessions with rare materials from the RCP collections are also available on request: please contact me directly if you are interested in bringing a student group

 

London: A free exhibition of 60 books from the Royal College of Physicians Museum is on view through July 23, 2026



AUSTIN, Texas

Ransom Center, University of Texas

SNL LIVE FROM NEW YORK - The Lorne Michaels Collection



The exhibit at the Ranson Center based on the archives of legendary television producer Lorne Michaels is ongoing through March 15, 2026. Live from New York: The Lorne Michaels Collection explores his remarkable career, from his early writing on Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In to his pivotal role in shaping Saturday Night Live and beyond. Key moments from SNL's history are highlighted, especially its role in reflecting and shaping societal discourse on politics, culture, and identity. Featuring sketches, behind-the-scenes photos, annotated scripts, and rare materials from SNL, as well as Kids in the Hall, 30 Rock, Mean Girls, ¡Three Amigos!, Wayne's World, and more. This exhibition highlights Michaels's enduring influence on comedy and culture.

This exhibition is guest curated by Steve Wilson. Learn more about the Lorne Michaels Collection here.

 

Television producer Lorne Michaels is shown with Ray Charles in this 1977 photo from the Lorne Michaels Archives at the Ransom Center.


PHILADELPHIA

Penn Libraries - Kislak Center

Exhibit: REINVENTING ARISTOTLE and related Symposium



Reinventing Aristotle at the Penn Libraries Kislak Center from Oct. 3, 2025 to Jan.16 2026 introduces Aristotle as a historical figure who has changed profoundly and unexpectedly over time. The public is invited  to consider “The Philosopher” in his many forms and to reflect on how his life and work have served simultaneously as an inspiration and source of ridicule for many centuries. It is up to us to invent Aristotle for the 21st century — a task best undertaken in dialogue with this colorful history. 

Curated by Lynne Farrington, Director of Programs and Senior Curator of Special Collections, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania Libraries; Hannah Marcus, Professor of the History of Science and Faculty Director of the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard University; Eva Del Soldato, Associate Professor of Italian Studies, University of Pennsylvania. 

A November symposium related to the Aristotle exhibition hosted by the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies announced that registration is open for the 18th Annual Lawrence J. Schoenberg Symposium on Manuscript Studies in the Digital Age this year titled Interpreting the Ancients to be held in person and online Nov. 20-22. This year's symposium centers on the ongoing conversations with antiquity held across the pages of manuscripts, before and after the age of print. Embracing a transnational perspective, speakers will explore how the material media of transmission influenced the reception of ancient authors and contributed to their reinterpretation, reinvention, and rediscovery over the centuries.

All are invited to attend. The symposium will be held in person at the Kislak Center and the Rare Book Department of the Free Library of Philadelphia, with an option to join virtually. Click on the link for more information  registration and program details 

 

An Aristotle exhibit is ongoing at the Kislak Center - Penn Libraries from Oct. 3 through Jan.16, 2026. Register now for a related symposium on Nov. 20-22.

 

Rare Book Monthly

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    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: Manuscrpit from Aboard The Discovery, Signed by George Vancouver. $80,000-$120,000
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    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: Colonial America: The Collection of William Nesheim: Thomas Lechford: Important First-Hand Account of Life in New England. $40,000-$60,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: The First Expanded Edition of Common Sense, Thomas Paine. $30,000-$50,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: California! The Gold Rush Collection of Bruce Maclin: Album of Exceptional California Lettersheets. $20,000-$30,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: California! The Gold Rush Collection of Bruce Maclin: An Exceptional Group of Gold Rush Letters, c. 1849-1850. $20,000-$30,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: Colonial America: The Collection of William Nesheim: Mather's King Phillips War Tract 1639-1723. $15,000-$25,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: Colonial America: The Collection of William Nesheim: The First Contemporaneous Account of the Salem Witch Trials, Cotton Mather. $15,000-$25,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: Poor Richard's Almanack 1749, Benjamin Franklin. $15,000-$20,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: California! The Gold Rush Collection of Bruce Maclin: Fruits of Mormonism by Nelson Slater. $15,000-$25,000
    Bonhams, Oct. 13-23: California! The Gold Rush Collection of Bruce Maclin, Across the Plains in '49 by Emanuel Goughnour. $12,000-$18,000
  • Rare Map, Book, and Autograph Fair
    17 and 18 Oct
    Rare Map, Book, and Autograph Fair
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    Rare Map, Book, and Autograph Fair
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  • Sotheby’s
    By a Lady
    1-15 October 2025
    Sotheby’s, Oct. 1-15: Queen Elizabeth I. A queen’s defense of the realm, and the birth of the British Empire. $500,000 to $700,000.
    Sotheby’s, Oct. 1-15: Vanessa Bell — [Virginia Woolf]. An exceptional encapsulation of the Bloomsbury Group. A striking tile created by Vanesa Bell for her sister, Virginia Woolf, ca. Christmas 1926. $25,000 to $35,000.
    Sotheby’s, Oct. 1-15: Austen, Jane. A long and intimate autograph letter signed ("JA"), to Cassandra Austen. $300,000 to $400,000.
    Sotheby’s, Oct. 1-15: Austen, Jane. “Lines on Maria Beckford,” autograph manuscript signed ("Jane Austen"). $100,000 to $150,000.
    Sotheby’s, Oct. 1-15: [Austen, Jane]. Emma, the extraordinary Edgeworth-Butler copy. $250,000 to $350,000.

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