Our MORE VISIBLE eCatalogues section is officially one year old.
- by Bruce E. McKinney
Our eCatalogues section is officially one year old.
Over the past 25 years we’ve reviewed thousands of printed catalogues. It was good business for the firms submitting their publications and it was good content for us who were building an online media for a market that likes to read about collectible paper.
Paper catalogues probably peaked around 2017 and have declined since. In their place eCatalogues, slowly but surely, have replaced their paper cousins. And in terms of numbers, eCatalogues dwarf our past printed catalogue reviews. Ten was a pretty good month for review. These days it’s about 40 a month and we expect to see eCatalogues to double over the next 12 months.
So far, not many are creating catalogues to coincide with events. When a subject or an anniversary is in the news, we saw some who created 250th Birthday offers. That made sense and we hope they did well. Within their specialties there should be opportunities to create promotional repeating annual events.
As well, on the day-to-day pursuit of sales, it will always come down to the quality of the material and their comparative value.
As paper catalogues are fading, eCatalogues will be part of your future.
Sotheby’s, Oct. 20: Euclid. Praeclarissimus Liber Elementorum in Artem Geometrie, Venice, Ratdolt, 25 May 1482, first edition of the first substantial mathematical work to appear in print, Durazzo copy.
Sotheby’s, Oct. 20: Galilei, Galileo. Sidereus nuncius …, Venice, 1610, first edition of the foundation of modern astronomy.
Sotheby’s, Oct. 20: Kepler, Johannes. Astronomia nova aitiologitos …, Prague or Heidelberg, 1609, first edition, contemporary vellum, the Chasles copy.
Sotheby’s, Oct. 20: Cellarius, Andreas. Harmonia macrocosmica seu atlas universalis et novus ..., Amsterdam, Jan Jansson, 1661, brilliantly handcolored.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: Bible, in English. Fine restoration binding in the style of the Queen’s binders.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: Magnus Hundt, the elder. First edition of one of the earliest printed books with anatomical illustrations.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: Agatha Christie. Cards on the Table. First edition.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Beautiful and Damned. First edition, first printing.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: Isaac Asimov. I, Robot. First edition, presentation copy.
Heritage Auctions, Oct. 14: Bible, in English. Geneva-Tomson-Junius. London: Robert Barker, [colophon 1612]/1611.
Gonnelli: Auction 72 Books, Autographs & Manuscripts October 6th-8th 2026
