Auction Update Review
Forty-eight auctions archived, 5 sales upcoming this week
For the week ended Saturday, December 17th, 48 auctions were archived to the Rare Book Hub Transaction Database; 18 denominated in euros, 7 in British pounds, and 23 in US dollars. Turnover was a robust $29,194,875 as 21,308 lots were offered and 14,782 sold for a 69% success rate. Bidders were both fussy and aggressive.
Christies. Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts, including Americana on December 14th: $9,433,072
Sothebys. English Literature, History, Children's Books & Illustrations on December 13th: $3,425,565
Sothebys. Important Judaica on December 15th: $3,009,125
Heritage Auctions. Animation Art on December 11th: $1,386,702
RR Auction. Autographs and Artifacts - Internet bidstart 11/18 on December 7th: $1,001,088
13 auctions saw total sales exceed 100% of the high estimates of all lots offered in the sale:
Dorotheum . Books and Decorative Prints on December 12th: 168.88%
Keys Fine Arts Auctioneers. Books, Prints on December 12th: 167.70%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Children's and Illustrated Books on December 15th: 152.98%
Henri Godts Books and Prints Auctions. Antiquarian Books on December 13th: 138.55%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Books, Maps and Documents on December 14th: 128.56%
Christies. Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts, including Americana on December 14th: 127.12%
Bonhams. Entertainment Memorabilia on December 15th: 125.90%
Ader. Ancient and Modern Prints on December 7th: 122.41%
Sothebys. English Literature, History, Children's Books & Illustrations on December 13th: 120.89%
Bruun Rasmussen. Prints on December 13th: 118.17%
ALDE. Autograph Letter and Manuscript on December 12th: 109.87%
Bloomsbury Auctions. Fine and Important Books and Works on Paper on December 15th: 107.25%
Artcurial. FROM THE WILLY RONIS SUCCESSION STÉPHANE KOVALSKY COLLECTION on December 13th: 104.84%
13 sales saw at least 80% of their lots sell:
National Book Auctions. Books on December 10th: 100.00%
Heritage Auctions. Comics - Internet bidstart 12/4 on December 11th: 99.62%
Heritage Auctions. Animation Art on December 11th: 98.52%
Heritage Auctions. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 12/4 on December 11th: 98.23%
Aspire Auctions. Fine Art - Prints - Internet Bidstart 12/2 on December 10th: 96.88%
Potter and Potter Auctions. Winter Magic: The Rex Conklin Library and Other Fine Conjuring Collections on December 3rd: 94.82%
Stair Auctioneers and Appraisers. Deck the Halls: December Exposition Auction on December 10th: 93.75%
Bruun Rasmussen. Prints on December 13th: 93.26%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Children's and Illustrated Books on December 15th: 90.32%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Books, Maps and Documents on December 14th: 85.50%
Waverly Auctions. BooksWaverly Rare Books Catalog Auction on December 1st: 84.19%
Christies. Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts, including Americana on December 14th: 81.13%
Sothebys. Important Judaica on December 15th: 80.16%
48 total sales reported this week:
PIASA. Photographs on December 15th: 24.11%
De Baecque and Associes. Ancient and Modern Books - Autographs and Documents on December 15th: 61.27%
Bloomsbury Auctions. Fine and Important Books and Works on Paper on December 15th: 64.53%
Waverly Auctions. BooksWaverly Rare Books Catalog Auction on December 1st: 84.19%
Vermot de Pas. Comic Strips and Original Boards, 3D, Japanese Animation on December 10th: 64.82%
Adams Amsterdam Auctions. Kees van Dongen – His Illustrated Books - and - Fine Art on December 13th: 70.80%
Bonhams. Entertainment Memorabilia on December 15th: 70.20%
Leslie Hindman Auctioneers. Fine Prints on December 14th: 71.90%
Sothebys. Important Judaica on December 15th: 80.16%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Children's and Illustrated Books on December 15th: 90.32%
Dominic Winter Book Auctions. Books, Maps and Documents on December 14th: 85.50%
Artcurial. FROM THE WILLY RONIS SUCCESSION STÉPHANE KOVALSKY COLLECTION on December 13th: 75.61%
Artcurial. Photography on December 13th: 61.97%
Artcurial. Limited Editions on December 12th: 66.30%
Keys Fine Arts Auctioneers. Books, Prints on December 12th: 48.00%
Vermot de Pas. NASA Photographs on December 8th: 41.03%
Ader. Ancient and Modern Prints on December 7th: 73.63%
Bruun Rasmussen. Books on December 13th: 78.46%
Bruun Rasmussen. Prints on December 13th: 93.26%
Christies. Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts, including Americana on December 14th: 81.13%
Henri Godts Books and Prints Auctions. Antiquarian Books on December 13th: 77.33%
Knotty Pine Auction Service. Antique and Estate Book Sale on May 7th: 78.60%
National Book Auctions. Books on December 10th: 100.00%
Jeschke van vliet Buch und Kunstauktionen GmbH. Books, Prints on December 9th: 32.21%
Bloomsbury Auctions. The Sporting and Country Life Sale on December 13th: 51.35%
Sothebys. English Literature, History, Children's Books & Illustrations on December 13th: 64.09%
Mid Hudson Auction Galleries. Contemporary Art, Antiques and Fine Art on December 10th: 59.15%
Guernseys. The Neil Leifer Photographic Collection - Day 2 on December 3rd: 29.17%
Guernseys. The Neil Leifer Photographic Collection - Day 1 on December 2nd: 55.00%
ALDE. Autograph Letter and Manuscript on December 12th: 55.06%
Stair Auctioneers and Appraisers. Deck the Halls: December Exposition Auction on December 10th: 93.75%
Sothebys. Exceptional Exposures: 20th Century Photographs Online - Internet bidstart 11/28 on December 12th: 65.57%
Dorotheum . Books and Decorative Prints on December 12th: 79.23%
Michaans Auctions. December Estate Sale - Books and Prints on December 10th: 37.84%
Aspire Auctions. Fine Art - Prints - Internet Bidstart 12/2 on December 10th: 96.88%
Profiles in History. Animation and Disneyana on December 9th: 66.72%
Knotty Pine Auction Service. Main Ephemera and Book Auction on November 5th: 72.32%
Winter Associates. December Auction - Americana on December 5th: 60.00%
RR Auction. Autographs and Artifacts - Internet bidstart 11/18 on December 7th: 67.53%
Alexander Historical Auctions. Revolutionary War on December 10th: 65.59%
Heritage Auctions. Comics - Internet bidstart 12/4 on December 11th: 99.62%
Clars Auction Gallery. Antique, Art, Jewelry, Asian - Prints, Books on December 11th: 76.47%
Clars Auction Gallery. Asian, Antique, Jewelry, Art - Prints, Books on December 10th: 57.89%
Pierre Berge and Associes. Philippe Zoummeroff on December 9th: 62.50%
Auctionata. Collectibles and Rarities on December 7th: 23.33%
Potter and Potter Auctions. Winter Magic: The Rex Conklin Library and Other Fine Conjuring Collections on December 3rd: 94.82%
Heritage Auctions. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 12/4 on December 11th: 98.23%
Heritage Auctions. Animation Art on December 11th: 98.52%
For the week ahead 5 sales are scheduled:
Mon. Dec. 19th
Bruun Rasmussen. Copenhagen. Prints. 83 lots
Tue. Dec. 20th
Stockholms Auktionsverk. Stockholm. Rare Books, Maps and Manuscripts. 413 lots
Wed. Dec. 21st
Moreshet Auctions. Jerusalem. Judaica, Manuscripts, Holy Texts, letters, Rabbinical letters, Jewish objects, Items from the Land o. 368 lots
Sun. Dec. 25th
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Comics - Internet bidstart 12/18.
Heritage Auctions. Dallas. Movie Posters - Internet bidstart 12/18.
Bruce McKinney
RBH and AE
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Ketterer Rare Books
Auction November 23Ketterer, Nov. 23: L. Feininger, Collection of autograph letters to Alois J. Schardt, 1920-1955. Est: € 150,000-250,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: Flemish book of hours, Ghent-Bruges School around 1480-1500. Est: € 40,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: F. de Wit, Atlas maior, um 1700. Est: € 50,000Ketterer Rare Books
Auction November 23Ketterer, Nov. 23: A. Stieglitz, Camera Work, 48 volumes, 1903-1914. Est: € 60,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: M. Merian & M. Zeiller, Sämtliche Topographien, 21 volumes, 1642-1736. Est: € 50,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: R. Indiana and R. Creely, Numbers, 1968. Est: € 4,000Ketterer Rare Books
Auction November 23Ketterer, Nov. 23: Salerno Breviarium, Latin manuscript on vellum, North Italy around 1470-1476. Est: € 40,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: M. S. Merian, Surinaamsche (&) europische Insecten, 1730. Est: € 30,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: M. Beckmann, Jahrmarkt, Portfolio of 10 signed etchings, 1922. Est: € 25,000Ketterer Rare Books
Auction November 23Ketterer, Nov. 23: Justinianus, Infortiatum, 1475. Est: € 10,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: B. Besler, Hortus Eystettensis, um 1750. Est: € 28,000Ketterer, Nov. 23: J. Gris and P. Reverdy, Au soleil du plafond, 1955. Est: € 3,000 -
Heritage, Nov. 18: Orson Welles. Signed Third Revised Final Draft for Citizen Kane (RKO, 1941). July 16, 1940.Heritage, Nov. 18: Bob Dylan. Autograph manuscript working lyrics to "Man on the Street."Heritage, Nov. 18: Ernest Hemingway. Death in the Afternoon. Inscribed by the author to the daughter of the Spanish Ambassador.Heritage, Nov. 18: Jack London. The Call of the Wild. Inscribed by the author.Heritage, Nov. 18: John Steinbeck. East of Eden. Inscribed by 27 members of the movie cast and crew, including James Dean and Elia Kazan.
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Sotheby’s
Nelson, His Life and His Navy:
The Clive Richards Collection of Letters and Manuscripts
November 18, 2026Sotheby’s
Nelson, His Life and His Navy:
The Clive Richards Collection of Letters and Manuscripts
November 18, 2026Sotheby’s
Nelson, His Life and His Navy:
The Clive Richards Collection of Letters and Manuscripts
November 18, 2026 -
Forum
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
Thursday 19th NovemberForum, Nov. 19: The ‘Saxe-Meiningen Psalter’, in Latin, illuminated manuscript on vellum, [northern France or adjacent southern Netherlands, second half of the thirteenth century]. £30,000 - £50,000Forum, Nov. 19: Crescenzi (Bartolomeo). Nautica mediterranea, 2 parts in 1, second edition, with rare engraved folding map, Rome, Bartolomeo Bonfadino, 1607. £15,000 - £20,000Forum, Nov. 19: Aristotle. [The Works], 10 vol.,, translated by Thomas Taylor, Printed for the Translator... by Robert Wilks, 1807-12. £6,000-8,000Forum
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
Thursday 19th NovemberForum, Nov. 19: Turing (Alan).- Alan Turing's Slide Rule, engraved initials "A.M.T. Noli Hoc Furari", alongside other ephemera, housed in early 20th-century letter box, [mid.1920s-40s]. £6,000-8,000Forum, Nov. 19: Vitruvius Pollio (Marcus). I Dieci Libri dell'Architettura, translated by Daniele Barbaro, Venice, Francesco Marcolini, 1556. £7,000-10,000Forum, Nov. 19: Rowling (J.K.) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, first edition, hardback issue, first printing, Bloomsbury, 1997. £50,000-70,000Forum
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
Thursday 19th NovemberForum, Nov. 19: Tolkien (J.R.R.) The Lord of the Rings, later impressions, each vol. signed by the author, London, George Allen & Unwin, 1957-58. £15,000-20,000Forum, Nov. 19: Gould (John). The Birds of Great Britain, 5 vol., first edition, [1862]-73; plus a presentation copy of Gould's Introduction to the Birds of Great Britain (6). £35,000-45,000Forum, Nov. 19: Galilei (Galileo). Istoria e Dimostrazioni intorno alle Macchie Solari e loro accidenti, comprese in tre lettere scritte all’illustrissimo signor Marco Velseri Linceo, first edition, Rome, 1613. £15,000-20,000Forum
Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper
Thursday 19th NovemberForum, Nov. 19: Gersdorff (Hans von). Feldtbuch der Wund-Arzney, enlarged edition, Strassburg, Hans Schotten, 1540. £20,000-30,000Forum, Nov. 19: Kitchin (Thomas). A New Universal Atlas, first edition with maps in full original hand-colouring, Printed and Published by Robert Laurie and James Whittle, 1796. £8,000-12,000Forum, Nov. 19: Cassas (Louis François). Voyage Pittoresque de la Syrie, de la Phenicie, de la Palestine, et de la Basse Egypte, 2 vol., first edition, [Paris], 1799. £10,000-15,000 -
Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 41. Rare First State of the First Printed Map Devoted to the Arctic (1595) Est. $14,000 - $17,000Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 63. The Largest of the Strada "Leo Belgicus" Editions (1632) Est. $3,250 - $4,000Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 71. Blaeu's Stunning Carte-a-Figures Map of the Americas (1640) Est. $4,000 - $4,750Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 8. Mariette's Rare and Decorative Map of the World Based on the Work of Hondius (1642) Est. $4,750 - $6,000Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 172. 1775 Edition of the Landmark Fry-Jefferson Map of Virginia and Maryland (1775) Est. $12,000 - $15,000Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 46. Doppelmayr's Fine Celestial Chart (1742) Est. $800 - $950Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 212. First Edition Ski Country Map by Pioneer Hal Shelton (1965) Est. $500 - $700Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 732. Ruscelli's Complete Atlas with 69 Maps and Updated Maps of the Continents (1599) Est. $8,000 - $9,500Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 329. Ortelius' Map of Iceland Surrounded by Sea Monsters (1585) Est. $11,000 - $13,000Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 600. Heinrich Bunting's Rare Map of Asia in the Form of a Pegasus (1581) Est. $3,000 - $3,750Old World Auctions (Nov 11): Lot 716. Bible Leaf with Hand-Colored Image of the Adoration of the Magi (1490) Est. $2,000 - $2,300

