Doyle‘s November 25 auction of rare books includes a diverse and inviting array of material in many subject areas. As is usual with our sales, there is a strong component of Americana. This includes maps (several of the Carrington Bowles charts of America are included), as well as manuscript material. This last category includes a wealth of Western Americana, with such intriguing offerings as a fine Custer letter, an album of Pat Garrett’s retained correspondence from his time as a collector of customs at El Paso, Texas, and an exceptional range of material relating to Western outlaws and the frontier. Also included are several intriguing flags, including a cavalry guidon of Civil-War vintage with a presentation to General Grant and his wife Julia. A final component of the Americana section is an extraordinary manuscript that describes the colonization of Venezuela in 1528 by a group of conquistadors associated with the German bankers who had helped underwrite the efforts of Charles the First of Spain in his successful quest to become Holy Roman Emperor.
Early printing in the sale includes two printed Books of Hours produced in Paris during the first decade of the 16th century by Thurman Kerver and Gillet Hardouyin, respectively. A number of interesting 16th to 18th century works on the natural sciences are also included. Among these is a copy of Engelbert Kaempfer‘s rare first treatise on the natural history of Japan, published in Lemgo in 1712. A copy of Cesar Vecellio’s 1590 treatise on costume in the first edition nicely rounds out the section.
Autograph material in the sale includes several pieces by Ernest Hemingway, including a fine typed letter signed to his friend the famed Idaho sporting guide Taylor “Bear Tracks” Williams, with several fine signed photographs from the same source. Also, among the autographs is a fine typed letter signed by Albert Einstein, discussing the writings of the eminent economist Henry George, whose work Einstein admired.
Fine bindings include a copy of the Doves Press Sonnets of Shakespeare, one of 15 copies on vellum, bound by the Doves Bindery; and a magnificent copy of Shelley‘s Prometheus unbound, the first edition of 1820, in a jeweled binding by the famed London binders Sangorski and Sutcliffe. The first portion of a group of private press books that we will be offering over several sales includes a copy of the Cresset Press Apocrypha, one of the 30 copies printed on special paper with a signed suite of all the wood engravings. A small section of illustration art offers two fine Charles Addams drawings, and an early Schulz drawing for Charlie Brown, done in 1953.
A selection of literature, including some fine Samuel Beckett items, rounds out the sale.
Here's a link to it!
Edward Ripley-Duggan Vice-President, Rare Books and Manuscripts Department 212-427-4141, ext 234
DOYLE Auctioneers & Appraisers 175 East 87th Street New York, NY 10128 Doyle.com
Doyle, Nov. 5: The Director's copy of the first edition of Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, inscribed by Beckett. $7,000 to $10,000.
Doyle, Nov. 5: Don McLean's personal test pressing of American Pie before mass production, gifted in 1971. $8,000 to $12,000.
Doyle, Nov. 5: The important and extensive archive of original fashion photographs of model Dorothy Rice, 1945-58. $20,000 to $30,000.
Doyle, Nov. 5: A Charles Adams theater advertisement. $8,000 to $12,000.
Doyle, Nov. 5: A Small Patinated Bronze Bust of Marlene Dietrich. $800 to $1,200.
Doyle, Nov. 5: Marlene Dietrich Studio Photograph. $100 to $200.
Doyle, Nov. 5: The very large and uncommon British Quad for Hitchcock's The Birds. $500 to $800.
Doyle, Nov. 5: An Original Crystal "Sputnik" from the 1966 Met Opera Chandelier. $3,000 to $5,000.
Doyle, Nov. 5: The rare poster from the first American performances of Endgame, 1958. $1,000 to $1,500.
Doyle, Nov. 5: The original Coconut Grove Playhouse poster for Waiting for Godot, possibly unique. $3,000 to $5,000.
Sotheby's Fine Books, Manuscripts & More Available for Immediate Purchase
Sotheby’s: William Shakespeare. The Temple Shakespeare. Housed in Custom Bookcase. $6,365.
Sotheby’s: Frederick Douglass. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, Boston: Anti-Slavery Office, 1845. $14,000.
Sotheby’s: Charles Dickens. A Christmas Carol. London: William Heinemann, 1915. $2,900.
Sotheby’s: F. Scott Fitzgerald. First Edition Set, Including This Side of Paradise, The Great Gatsby, and others. Charles Scribner's Sons. 1920 – 1941. $24,180.
Sotheby’s: Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], John Tenniel. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland First Edition. Macmillan & Co., 1866. $15,000.
Swann Autographs November 6, 2025
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 93: Autograph album containing 29 autograph letters signed by each president from Washington to Coolidge, 1785-1945.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 166: Franz Schubert, Autograph Musical Manuscript, fragment from Die Taucher, 1813.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 111: Thomas Jefferson, holograph plat drawing: map of field near Monticello, 1790s.
Swann Autographs November 6, 2025
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 208: George Sand, Autograph Manuscript Signed, draft of her one-act play, Francia, ca. 1872.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 218: Walt Whitman, Manuscript Signed, draft of three complete poems from Leaves of Grass, 1891.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 8: James Dean, Photograph Signed and Inscribed, still from Giant, 1955.
Swann Autographs November 6, 2025
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 20: John Lennon, Typescript Signed, interview discussing Paul, Linda, and Yoko, 1971.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 215: Mark Twain, engraved portrait Signed, "Mark Twain / SL. Clemens," 1890s.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 81: Vaslav Nijinsky, reproduction of an artwork by Léon Bakst Inscribed and Signed, 1916.
Swann Autographs November 6, 2025
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 73: Malcolm X, The Harvard Crimson Signed and Inscribed: his street address and phone number, 1961.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 11: Lou Gehrig, Photograph Signed and Inscribed, ca. 1939.
Swann, Nov. 6: Lot 153: George Gershwin, Photograph Signed and Inscribed, portrait by Renato Toppo.
![<b>Sotheby’s:</b> Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], John Tenniel. <i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</i> First Edition. Macmillan & Co., 1866. $15,000.](https://ae-files.s3.amazonaws.com/AdvertisementPhotos/cc3f4f98-f195-4049-aca6-329c27fdd27c.png "<b>Sotheby’s:</b> Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], John Tenniel. <i>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</i> First Edition. Macmillan & Co., 1866. $15,000.")
