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Forum Auctions: Online: Modern Literature
Auction Reports
| Auction Name | Online: Modern Literature | Total Sales (GBP) | 66,230.50 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auction Date | April 23, 2026 - April 23, 2026 | Low Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 40,370.00 |
| Sale Number | #42326 | High Estimate of Lots Sold (GBP) | 57,030.00 |
| Total Lots | 200 | ||
| Sold Lots | 192.0 | Low Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 41,720.00 |
| % of Lots Sold | 96.00% | High Estimate of All Lots (GBP) | 58,880.00 |
| Unsold Lots | 8 | Total Sales as a % of High Est. | 112.48% |
Top twenty-five by sale price
| Lot Number | Author Name | Book Title | Year Published | Estimate | Actual Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 141 | Fleming Ian | Diamonds are Forever |
1956 | GBP 800.00 - 1,200.00 | GBP 2,286.00 |
| 132 | Eliot T.S. | A Song for Simeon |
1928; 1927; ND | GBP 150.00 - 200.00 | GBP 1,778.00 |
| 101 | Christie Agatha | The Secret of Chimneys |
1925 | GBP 600.00 - 800.00 | GBP 1,524.00 |
| 110 | Conrad Joseph | The Ni__er of the "Narcissus." Preface |
1902 | GBP 500.00 - 700.00 | GBP 1,397.00 |
| 82 | Amis Kingsley | Lucky Jim |
1953 | GBP 400.00 - 600.00 | GBP 1,270.00 |
| 15 | Capote Truman | In Cold Blood |
[1965] | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 1,206.50 |
| 49 | Mitchell Margaret | Gone with the Wind |
1936 | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 1,016.00 |
| 118 | Dahl Roald | Boy |
1984 | GBP 600.00 - 800.00 | GBP 1,016.00 |
| 148 | Ford Ford Madox | The Good Soldier |
1915 | GBP 600.00 - 800.00 | GBP 1,016.00 |
| 133 | Eliot T.S. | Four Quartets |
1944; 1931; 1962 | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 952.50 |
| 187 | Heaney Seamus | Beowulf |
1999 | GBP 300.00 - 400.00 | GBP 889.00 |
| 95 | Burgess Anthony | A Clockwork Orange |
1962 | GBP 750.00 - 1,000.00 | GBP 825.50 |
| 107 | Churchill Sir Winston Spencer | The Story of the Malakand Field Force |
1898 | GBP 600.00 - 800.00 | GBP 825.50 |
| 120 | Dahl Roald | [Collected Works for Children] |
1991 | GBP 500.00 - 700.00 | GBP 762.00 |
| 162 | Fowles John | Wormholes |
1998 | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 762.00 |
| 57 | Priestley J.B.; Rattigan Terence | Dangerous Corner |
1932; 1933; 1938 | GBP 150.00 - 200.00 | GBP 698.50 |
| 154 | Fowles John; Brukoff Barry; Rushdie Salman; Osborne John; Browne Sir Thomas | The Enigma of Stonehenge |
1980; 1995; 1991; 1924 | GBP 150.00 - 200.00 | GBP 698.50 |
| 1 | Albee Edward | The Zoo Story and the Sandbox |
1960; 1966; 2002 | GBP 750.00 - 1,000.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 64 | Simon Neil | God's Favourite |
1975; 1978; 1979 | GBP 300.00 - 400.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 79 | Adams Douglas | The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy series |
1979; 1980; 1984; 1992 | GBP 300.00 - 400.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 144 | Fleming Ian | For Your Eyes Only |
1960; 1961; 1957 | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 159 | Fowles John | A Maggot |
1985 | GBP 200.00 - 300.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 186 | Heaney Seamus | Keeping Going |
1993; 2005 | GBP 300.00 - 400.00 | GBP 635.00 |
| 62 | Shawn Wallace | My Dinner with Andre |
1983; 1985; 1996 | GBP 150.00 - 200.00 | GBP 584.20 |
| 134 | Eliot T.S. | Geoffrey Faber 1889-1961 |
1961 | GBP 150.00 - 200.00 | GBP 584.20 |
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Sotheby’s
Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone
25 June – July 7Sotheby’s, July 7: Ludwig van Beethoven. Autograph sketches for the overture "Die Weihe des Hauses", op.124, [1822], UNPUBLISHED. £150,000 to £200,000.Sotheby’s, July 7: Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice, 1813, first edition, 3 volumes, contemporary half calf. £50,000 to £70,000.Sotheby’s, July 7: Walt Whitman. Leaves of Grass, Brooklyn, 1855, first edition, first issue, original green cloth, the Doheny copy. £50,000 to £70,000.Sotheby’s, July 7: Binding—Sangorski & Sutcliffe—Omar Khayyam. Rubaiyat, London, 1872, third edition, in a magnificent jewelled Peacock binding. £15,000 to £20,000.Sotheby’s, July 7: George Eliot. Middlemarch, Edinburgh and London, 1871, first edition in the original parts. £20,000 to £30,000. -
Forum Auctions
The Private Library:
Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers
July 9, 2026Forum, July 9: Hassall (Joan) A large collection of over 300 original woodblocks of engravings for various books, v.d., with Hassall's engraver's glass water-globe (Qty) - Est. £10,000-15,000Forum, July 9: Eragny Press.- [Bradley (Katherine Harris) & Edith Emma Cooper], "Michael Field." Whym Chow, Flame of Love, one of only 27 copies, inscribed by Bradley, the rarest book from the press, 1914. - Est. £3,000-4,000Forum, July 9: [Moore (Thomas Sturge)] [Wood Engravings], 71 wood-engravings printed by David Chambers from the original blocks, the only set on Japanese Hosho paper, from an edition of 5 sets, [1970]. - Est. £3,000-4,000Forum Auctions
The Private Library:
Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers
July 9, 2026Forum, July 9: La Fontaine (Jean de) Contes et Nouvelles en vers, 2 vol., engraved plates after Eisen, fine early 19th century blue morocco, gilt, by Bradel l'ainé, Amsterdam [Paris], 1762. - Est. £2,000-3,000Forum, July 9: Erotica.- Prostitution.- Pretty Women of Paris (The); Their Names and Addresses, Qualities and Faults..., [Paris], privately printed at the Press of the Prefecture de Police, 1883. - Est. £3,000-4,000Forum, July 9: Vale Press.- Ricketts (Charles) & Lucien Pissarro. De la Typographie et de l'Harmonie de la Page Imprimée…, [one of 216 copies], bound in dark blue morocco tooled in gilt, by Sarah T.Prideaux, 1898. - Est. £1,000-1,500Forum Auctions
The Private Library:
Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers
July 9, 2026Forum, July 9: Martin (John) Illustrations of the Bible, complete set of 20 mezzotints, good impressions, rarely found in early states, [c.1831-1835]. - Est. £1,000-1,500Forum, July 9: Golden Cockerel Press.- Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ (The), one of 500 copies, Mary Gill's copy, Waltham St. Lawrence, 1931 with a signed proof of engraving on japon numbered 10/10 (2) - Est. £5,000-7,000Forum, July 9: Boccaccio (Giovanni) The Decameron, 3 vol., vol.1 extra-illustrated by John Buckland Wright with c.150 erotic original drawings in pen & ink and pencil, 1886 [extra-illustrated c.1940]. - Est. £10,000-15,000Forum Auctions
The Private Library:
Fine Printing & Private Press books, the collection of the late David Chambers
July 9, 2026Forum, July 9: Cox (Morris) Collection of Gogmagog Press Books, 35 vol., rare complete collection of printed books issued by the press, limited editions, most signed by Cox, 1957-83. - Est. £10,000-15,000Forum, July 9: Wynkyn de Worde.- [Terentius Afer (Publius)] [Comedie...], [Paris, Josse Badius: sold in London by Wynkyn de Worde, & others], [15 July 1504]. - Est. £4,000-6,000Forum, July 9: Mosley (James) Ornamented Types. Twenty-Three Alphabets from the Foundry of Louis John Pouchée, 2 vol., one of 10 copies for presentation, from an edition of 210, 1992-93. - Est. £1,000-2,000 -
Freeman’s, June 30. Thomas Jefferson’s “Birth of the New Nation” letter, carried to Paris with the Treaty of Peace, by a Jewish patriot. $100,000-200,000.Freeman’s, June 30. “The rockets’ red glare.” A British midshipman’s log recording the bombardment of Fort McHenry. $60,000-80,000.Freeman’s, June 30. The Critical Promotion of a Naval Hero, Oliver Hazard Perry Commission signed by James Madison, 1812. $40,000-60,000.Freeman’s, June 30. Born in the USA: First Day of Printing in the United States, July 4, 1776. $15,000-25,000.Freeman’s, June 30. One of the Earliest Printed Announcements of American Independence, in the Exceedingly Rare Original Wrappers, 1776. $10,000-15,000.Freeman’s, June 30. "The Two Big Guns of the N.Y. Yanks": A Striking Type 1 Press Photograph of Lou Gehrig's Hands. $8,000-12,000.Freeman’s, June 30. A Unique Contemporary Manuscript Account of Joseph Smith's Final Words to His Followers, the Day Before his Violent Death. $8,000-12,000.Freeman’s, June 30. The State of Minnesota Officially Certifies the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution Of the United States. $8,000-12,000.Freeman’s, June 30. Extraordinarily Large Manuscript Petition Signed by a Who's Who of Colonial New York to Queen Anne from the Colony of New York. $8,000-12,000.Freeman’s, June 30. Mickey Mantle's First Cover: The Earliest Front-Page Newspaper Image of Mickey Mantle, "Something Good from Joplin". $8,000-12,000.Freeman’s, June 30. A Call to Arms in the Months Following the Declaration of Independence: An Early Continental Army Recruitment Poster. $6,000-9,000.Freeman’s, June 30. Samuel Jones, the Statesman Behind the Newly Discovered "Jones Declaration": His Annotated Set Used in His Working Law Library. $6,000-9,000.