California Book Fair Preview

The California International Antiquarian Book Fair returns to San Francisco February 9-11. Widely recognized as one of the world's largest exhibitions of antiquarian books for sale, more than 100 exhibitors from around the world will present rare books, maps, illustrations, historical documents, and ephemera on a vast array of subjects and genres. Here is a small preview of the material exhibitors will have available.

 

THE UNIQUE ORIGINAL AMBROTYPE 

Ostendorf #14.  Housed in an 1865 period frame, with mourning ribbons setting off the ambrotype at the corners.

Cole, Roderick A. (attributed)  Abraham Lincoln.  Ninth-Plate Ruby Glass Ambrotype. 



Peoria Illinois: circa 1858.  Displayed in a plain, but handsome, period wooden frame with the back opened in order to observe the painted backing and the “ruby-red” tone.

Ambrotypes are negative images produced on a glass plate, viewed as a positive by the addition of a black backing; sometimes this backing is a piece of velvet and other times, such as the present one, a thin varnish. The ruby-red quality of the glass is quite apparent. 1856-1858 were the peak years of the ambrotype, into which this example falls.  But just as the ambro was displacing the  daguerreotype, the care-de-visite and the tintype were waiting in the wings, about to displace this technique.

The Cole image was popularized on campaign ribbons and button ferrotypes during the 1860 presidential campaign.  Probably obtained during that campaign, kept in a drawer, and then, after the assassination, removed from the case and switched to this frame.  Mourning ribbons were added and the whole reverently hung on the wall as a memorial to the fallen leader.  

This image was a favorite of Mr. Lincoln, apparently giving a copy to his stepmother in 1861. This particular ambrotype was found in Allentown, Pa. in 1980.

Period copies of this image, in ambrotype form, appear infrequently on the market.  BUT, they were each produced directly from this original, with the images always reversed.  The present one is the actual glass through which the light photons passed that bounced off Lincoln himself! This is the third time our shop has handled this exciting find – exciting because original Lincoln ambrotypes are excessively scarce!

Offered by Abraham Lincoln Bookshop, booth 210.

 

Beautifully bound mid-17th-century “Visscher Edition” of the Dutch Luther Bible with expertly hand-colored and highlighted gold illustrations.



Publisher: Rieuwert Dircksz. Van Baardt (1599-1648)

Place: Amsterdam, 1648

Size: 38x27x11cm

Price: USD 48,500

Offered by Antiquariaat de Roo, booth 223.

 

Complete copy of the Fourth Folio edition of William Shakespeare’s works: Mr. William Shakespear's Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies. Published according to the true Original Copies. Unto which is added, Seven Plays, Never before Printed in Folio, published in 1685.



This is the last and most comprehensive edition of Shakespeare’s plays printed in the seventeenth century, with seven plays added for the first time, although of the seven only Pericles is now generally accepted as Shakespeare’s.  Bennett’s copy may have belonged to one of Charles II's mistresses and is recently and handsomely bound by the distinguished California bookbinder Philip Dusel. It is priced $95,000.

Offered by Stuart Bennett Rare Books, booth 127.

 

MARIA MONTESSORI'S MOST IMPORTANT AND INFLUENTIAL BOOK - IL METODO DELLA PEDAGOGIA SCIENTIFICA (The Method of Scientific Pedagogy) - SIGNED & INSCRIBED TWICE TO HER TRUSTED ADVISOR & ATTORNEY, ALFREDO BRUNO. Roma, 1913.



This book established the Montessori Teaching Method and led to the creation of Montessori schools worldwide.

Offered by Blank Verso Books, booth 207.

 

Magpie High School Literary Art Journal. Spring 1940 [including James Baldwin's first published short story]
Baldwin, James; Richard Avedon, et al.


Bronx, NY: DeWitt Clinton High School, 1940. Staplebound. 75p. staplebound literary journal, handsomely produced with illustrations scattered throughout; minor edgewear to covers. Student signature and, ironically, a racist doodle on the title page. 8x11 inches. James Baldwin, then 15 years old, was on the staff of this journal; he contributes the short story “Peace On Earth” (pp. 45-48), apparently his first published fiction (he had previously published a nonfiction essay about Harlem while in junior high school). The story is illustrated by John Baldwin, not related. Another student from the school, future photographer Richard Avedon, also contributes the short story "Early Dusk’" as well as three poems. Price: $2,500.00

Offered by Bolerium Books, booth 247.

 

Cowper, William. Poems of William Cowper Esq.



London: S.A. Oddy, 1815. 2 Volumes.

Fore edge paintings to each volume, identified in annotations to the endpapers as “Cowper’s House at Weston” and “Cowper’s Residence at Olney” respectively. Fanning the pages reveals charming scenes of village and town life, hidden under the gilt edges. 

Octavo. Volume 1: engraved frontispiece, title-page, [v]-xi, [1], [1]-367, [1]pp. 3 additional plates. Volume 2: Engraved title page, [1]-443pp. 5 additional plates. Offsetting from plates, occasional mild foxing. 8.5 x 5.5”.

Offered by B Street Books, booth 157.

 

The Elzevier Press Petites Republiques 1626-1649.



A complete collection of the 37 titles in the series published in Leiden and Amsterdam, with 14 additional titles by the Elzevier's contemporary collaborators or imitators. A great rarity, recounting the past and present situation of nations and regions of Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, each with a finely engraved title-page.

Offered by Cavendish Rare Books, booth 260.

 

PTOLEMAEUS, Claudius; translated by ANGELUS, Jacobus, and edited by Nicolaus GERMANUS.
Cosmographia.


Publication: Ulm, Lienhart Holle, 16 July 1482.

Folio (428 by 310mm), 102 leaves, double-column, 44 lines and headline, Gothic letter, 32 double-page woodcut maps with fine original hand-colour, 4 woodcut diagrams in the text, 2 large illuminated historiated initials, one showing Donnus Nicolaus presenting his book to Pope Paul II, the other of Ptolemy, 159 other woodcut initials coloured in red, green and ochre, paragraph marks and initial-strokes supplied in ochre, tear to d6, and repaired tear to the map ‘Tertia Africa’, some dampstaining and discolouration throughout, including spotting affecting the final three maps, skilful reinforcement to weakened lower page corners on maps, single leaf free endpaper bearing ownership inscription; re- cased in contemporary doeskin over clasped oak boards, joints reinforced with vellum waste, remnants of one clasp remaining.

Offered by Daniel Crouch Rare Books, booth 116.

 

Nostradamus, [Michel].

Les Propheties de M. Michel Nostradamus. Reueuës et corrigées sur la coppie imprimee à Lyon par Benoist Rigaud 1568.



[Troyes:] [Pierre du Ruau,] 1605. 8vo. First Seve [Vincent] edition. The first edition to contain the 141 Presages [warnings/signs) from the 

1555-67 Almanachs and the 58 Sixains (six line stanzas).    $2000.00

Offered by Dark Parks Books & Collectibles, booth 129.

 

1660 Octavo King James Bible with 176 Hand-Colored Plates by the Naval Binder With 176 pages of Hand-Colored Copperplates and a Hand-Written Treatise.



Price: $20,000

Offered by Dungeness Books, booth 208.

 

THE COUNTER-REFORMATION IN ROME A RICHLY ILLUMINATED, UNRECORDED PRINTING ON VELLUM

Piae et Universalis Confraternitatis Sacratissimi corporis Domini nostril Iesu Christi in Ecclesis domus beatae Mariae supra Minervam de Urbe…



Rome: no printer, 27 June 1559. Single leaf [74 x 54,5 cm], printed on vellum with a handful of manuscript additions in brown ink. Borders richly decorated by hand with floral designs in red, green, blue, and gold as well as 5 large figurative medallions. $8,500

Stunning, large-format broadside intended for limited circulation, probably among the officials of the Confraternity itself. Troubled by the activities of the Lutheran and Calvinist heretics to the north, Paul III needed little persuasion to confirm the initial statutes of the Society of Jesus in September of 1539. Just a few months later (December), he also confirmed the founding privileges of a further non-monastic society: the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament, headquartered in the Church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva in Rome. As with most confraternities, few traces survive in print of its early activities. The present document – in which Paul’s successor, Gian Pietro Carafa (Paul IV) re-affirms and revises these founding privileges – thus occupies a significant place in the history of “the most prestigious Eucharistic sodality of the early modern period” (Eisenbichler).

Offered by Editio Altera Rare Books & Manuscripts, booth 149. 

 

Original Cover Illustration Art 

THE LEFT HAND OF DARKNESS 

by URSULA K. LE GUIN 



Dillon, Leo and Diane Dillon. Original cover illustration art for the first edition of Ursula Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. 

Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness was one of the first examinations of androgyny in science fiction. The ambisexual individuals on the planet of Gethen  are a mirror of what an alternate Earth could be, and the novel explores the  effect of sex and gender on culture and society.  

Artists Leo and Diane Dillon won the Caldecott Medal in 1976 and 1977.  Mr. Dillon was the first African-American to receive the medal. The Dillons’  artwork was influenced by African folk art, Japanese block printing, and  medieval illumination.  

Provenance: Ace Books gifted the artwork to Le Guin’s editor, Terry Carr, to  commemorate the publication success of the book. Owned continuously by  the Carr family, the artwork is now offered for sale on behalf of the Carr and  Lichtman Estate.  

$20,000

Offered by Mark Funke, Bookseller.

 

HOUND OF BASKERVILLES IN THE RARE ORIGINAL PARTS

CONAN DOYLE, SIR ARTHUR
The Hound of the Baskervilles – The Strand Magazine Original Wrapper Issues.


London:George Newnes, August 1901 – April 1902. Numbers 128-136.The Strand Magazine, Original 9 Parts, Complete with all Wrappers and Adverts. With 60 Illustrations by Sidney Paget, by far the most illustrated Sherlock Holmes story.

The Hound of the Baskervilles, Conan Doyle’s best known novel follows Holmes and Watson as they investigate the mysterious demise of Sir Charles Baskerville, whose body is found on the desolate Devonshire moors. One of the most famous crime stories ever written inspired by Bertram Fletcher Robinson (Daily Express correspondent during the Boer War), with whom Doyle struck up a friendship when traveling back on the same ship from Cape Town. On a golfing holiday in 1901 Robinson mentioned the legend of the Black Hound of Hergest associated with the Vaughan family of Hergest Court in Herefordshire. Doyle subsequently relocated his version of the story, with Sherlock Holmes as the main protagonist, to Dartmoor in Devon, Robinson's native county.

Doyle wrote to his mother on 2 April 1901: "Robinson and I are exploring the moor over our Sherlock Holmes book. I think it will work out splendidly... Holmes is at his very best, and it is a highly dramatic idea". In Clam Shell Box.

$20,000

Offered by Marshall Rare Books, booth 126.

 

The 'Chevalier' Commercial, Pictorial and Tourist Map of San Francisco From the Latest U.S. Gov. and Official Surveys.



Cartographer(s): Augustus Chevalier

Date: ca. 1911
Place: San Francisco
Dimensions: 54.75 x 62.25 inches
Condition Rating: VG
SKU: NL-01904

The Greatest San Francisco Map Ever Made. Augustus Chevalier's stunning map of San Francisco, the premier map of the city following the San Francisco Earthquake and, by any standard, one of the most impressive and beautiful urban plans in the history of American mapmaking. Published during the re-birth of San Francisco following the 1906 earthquake, Chevalier's map represents the height of cartographic design and chromolithography. With its monumental size and up-to-date urban survey details laid over fine topographical contours, Chevalier has created a sophisticated map with an elegant depth of vision and an abundance of detail. In terms of sheer size and beauty, Chevalier's map belongs to the Pantheon of American Urban plans.

Augustus Chevalier was a native of France who arrived in San Francisco in 1890. He produced his first Commercial, Pictorial and Tourist Map of San Francisco on a much smaller scale in December 1903. The map was very well received, with the San Francisco Chronicle of January 14, 1905, describing it as "The Best Map of the City to Be Had" . . . and offering free copies of the map to advertisers in the Sunday Chronicle.

On July 27, 1911, Chevalier obtained a copyright for a new map of San Francisco, which would be over 5 feet tall, in order to capture in minute detail the remarkable renewal of San Francisco after the earthquake and fire had completely obliterated its prior incarnation. The destruction of the 1906 earthquake and fires provided a proverbial clean slate which allowed entrepreneurial city councilors, urban planners, and businessmen to instigate a series of urban renewal projects that would modernize San Francisco and protect it from future disasters. Chevalier's new wall map of the city captures the re-branding of the city, reassuring investors, citizens, and visitors alike that San Francisco was back, stronger than ever. In doing so, he successfully created a narrative to show how the city had used its worst calamity to renew the very fabric of urbanity, improving everything from commercial and supply infrastructure to public safety. Chevalier's new map received immediate public acclaim in San Francisco, with the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passing a resolution thanking Chevalier for the publication of the map (San Francisco Recorder, August 26, 1911--referencing the smaller pocket map edition). Over the next 4 years, the map was updated at least twice, including an edition promoting the 1915 Panama–Pacific International Exposition. The map was published both as a wall map (this example) and as a much smaller folding map. While
the folding map appears occasionally on the market, only a few examples of the wall map survive.

Offered by Neatline Antique Maps, booth 128.

 

(BINDINGS - DE SAUTY). RUSKIN, JOHN. OF KINGS' TREASURIES . [bound with] OF QUEENS' GARDENS.



(London: The Ballantyne Press for George Allen, 1902) 202 x 147 mm. (8 x 5 3/4"). 2 p.l., 84, [2], 85-99, [1] pp., 4 leaves (blank); 2 p.l., 68 pp., [1] leaf.

SUPERB OLIVE GREEN MOROCCO, EXQUISITELY GILT, BY DE SAUTY (stamp-signed in gilt on front turn-in), covers with central mandorla decorated with thin gilt lines and leaves, surrounded by a panel of inlaid red morocco almost entirely covered by gilt stems, leaves, and small flowers, and stippled with tiny circles, a thin panel border with words from Isaiah 35:1 beginning "Be thou glad, oh thirsting desert" in gilt, the whole surrounded by an inlaid red morocco border densely gilt with trios of flowers, leaves, vinestems, and stippled with tiny dots, French fillet border, raised bands, compartments gilt with leaves, flowers, and stippled with dots, gilt lettering, gilt-ruled turn-ins, top edge gilt, others untrimmed. Entirety of the main text with complex floral woodcut borders, numerous large and intricate initials printed in red. Front joint with thin crack alongside top three and bottom two compartments (but not apparent, being hidden by refurbishment), spine sunned to honey brown (as usual with green morocco), a couple of instances of faint offsetting internally, but AN EXTRAORDINARILY BEAUTIFUL VOLUME, quite attractive inside, and the binding absolutely splendid.

Covering a wonderful tribute to the author John Ruskin and the Arts & Crafts movement he helped inspire, this is a dazzling binding by one of the greatest craftsmen of the period. The text is composed of two lovely private press editions of Ruskin's famous pair of essays on books, education, and Victorian gender roles. The first work, "Of Kings' Treasuries," is a critique of contemporary masculinity; the second work, a companion piece titled the "Of Queens' Gardens," describes an ideal model of Victorian femininity, in which women restrict their influence to the home and provide moral guidance to their husbands and family. For both men and women, Ruskin promotes reading and proper education as the means to fulfill their ultimate purpose. An eminent critic of art and social issues, Ruskin (1819-1900) had a considerable influence on artistic movements like the Pre-Raphaelites and the Arts & Crafts movement, as well as on social welfare policy. Our copy of these two works was beautifully bound by Alfred de Sauty (1870-1949). A finisher for the Riviere firm at the end of the 19th century, de Sauty subsequently created designs for the Hampstead Bindery and taught at the London County Council School of Arts and Crafts. He later emigrated, becoming manager of the Extra Bindery at R. R. Donnelley Co. in Chicago, where he became known as one of the most accomplished binders at work in the first third of the 20th century. As suggested by the present example, he was a binder with enormous technical skill and a refined imagination for design. Prideaux herself praised De Sauty in her "Modern Bookbindings," saying that "his work is of considerable merit. His inlays are distinguished for the taste shown in the association of colours, and his finishing has some of the brilliant qualities of the French school, seen particularly in the finely studded tooling of which he seems particularly fond." The extraordinary gilding on our binding is in perfect condition, and it is certainly one of the best examples de Sauty's work that we have ever had the privilege of acquiring. $14,500

Offered by Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books & Manuscripts, booth 216.

 

Hiroshige, Utagawa. With an introduction by J. S. Happer. Tokaido Yokyo and Narita Dochu: Intermediate Tokaido Stations and Views on the Narita Highway. Complete set of twenty original color prints after the drawings made by Hiroshige.



Tokyo, Japan: S. Sakai, 1919. First edition thus. Twenty art prints (complete) with descriptive booklet in portfolio as issued.

The color prints [26 x 38.5 cm] are mounted on thick card stock [31 x 46 cm], with paper matte frames and tissue guards. The images are bright, sharp, and beautiful. Some age toning and light foxing is revealed when viewing at the (unprinted) edges and margins. The prints show extremely well, look bright and fresh, and reveal with excellent contrasts and subtleties. A few of the prints have very small creases or short closed tears near the corners where they are mounted, never interfering with the printed images and there are no paper losses and none which interfere or come near the printed areas. The tissue guards are all foxed, one is missing, and another is detached. Previous owner's faint neat notations in pencil at the bottom of each tissue guard. Overall, the set of prints is complete and in Very Good condition.

The descriptive booklet [31 x 21 cm] is simply side sewn in the Japanese style with turquoise thread. Booklet consists of 15 leaves printed on rectos only [4 pp. in English collated and oriented left to right, 11 pp. in Japanese, likewise, right to left]. The booklet is lightly age toned, bumped at corners, and shows some mellow creasing at the hinge and corners; still Very Good.

Portfolio cloth covered boards [31 x 46 cm] are illustrated with a depiction of Mount Fuji and ocean waves. Paper cover label is printed in Japanese and affixed to the front board. Good only; the front and rear boards are rubbed, lightly stained, soiled, and are detached from one another — but still present and presentable.

A small brochure (perhaps a sales prospectus for this set?) is laid in; it is a single sheet printed on both sides and folded three times like a brochure. This is printed in Japanese in red, blue, and black ink, with four black and white images depicting four of the images from the portfolio.  $5,000.00

Offered by Ken Sanders Rare Books, booth 121.

 

For more information about the 2024 California Book Fair,  visit  https://www.abaa.org/cabookfair...