Charles Dickens’ Toothpick & Unprecedented Pieces of Lindbergh’s Plane Highlight December 15th Books, Maps, & Manuscripts Sale
Bonhams New York’s December 15th sale will be marked by exceptional diversity, a number of outstanding private collections, and truly one-of-a-kind lots.
Certain to attract collectors is a 1685, extra-illustrated, fourth folio edition of Shakespeare's plays. Titled Comedies, Histories, Tragedies. Published according to the true Original Copies, this particular issue, which states that it is “to be sold by Joseph Knight and Francis Saunders” is without doubt the rarest and is considered by some as likely the first issue of the fourth folio.
The first collected edition of Shakespeare’s works was published in 1623 and copies of that edition sell for several million dollars. The fourth folio was published within 70 years of Shakespeare’s death and is the last edition to be published in the 17th century. Expected to fetch $100,000-150,000 this is a great opportunity to acquire a copy of the Shakespeare’s works that was produced in the same century as he was alive.
In an auction first, original parts of Charles Lindbergh’s plane, the Spirit of St. Louis will be going to block. Removed from the plane after its pioneering transatlantic flight in 1927, the lot includes two spark plugs, a rocker arm from the Wright J5-C "Whirlwind" engine, and three shock absorber bungee cords from the landing gear or the tail skid. The present items represent what must surely be the only pieces of the Spirit of St. Louis from her transatlantic flight ever to come to market. This extraordinary lot carries an estimate of $80,000-120,000.
A collection of Civil War cipher journals will be presented as well. Consisting of 38 manuscript albums along with 20 period cipher books, the journals span from 1862 to 1867 and feature a possibly complete collection of coded telegraphs sent and received by the War Department. Belonging to Maj. Thomas T Eckert, the journals were purchased by the present owners from the estate of Maj. Eckert’s descendents. One of the most complete and remarkable Civil War archives Bonhams has had the pleasure to offer, the lot is estimated at $30,000-50,000.
Another lot sure to draw attention is an album of photos showing life in Hilo, Hawaii circa 1868. Taken by Harvey Rexford Hitchcock Jr.–a prominent settler from Massachusetts–the lot contains 9 albumen prints and 19 tintypes together with 7 related cabinet cards or smaller portraits. The photos include Captain J. Worth's store on Front Street, Wailuku Bridge, Coconut Island, and Haili Church, amongst others. Expected to fetch $20,000-30,000, this is an excellent photographic record of early Hawaii.
Cause for excitement is the spectacularly diverse Arnold Smoller Collection of Contemporary Livres d'Artiste. Comprised of nearly 200 art books, the group spans several decades of American and international art and ranges in date from the Jasper Johns exhibition catalogue with original screenprint wrappers, through important Pop, Conceptual and Neo-Expressionist contributions to recent works by artists such as Doug Aitken. Consisting of books made from materials such as lead, hair, plastics, and rubber, amongst the most sought after lots in the collection is a book, arguably made of air, by artist Olafur Eliasson. The computer-aided, laser-cut leaves of the book form a 3D, negative sculpture of the artist's own house in Copenhagen. The book is described as "an extraordinary, disorienting illusion of an inhabitable, portable home". This fantastic lot is estimated at $8,000-12,000.
In time for the Holidays, the sale will also feature three notable Christmas related lots. Of these will be two handwritten bars with the first five words of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by its composer, Johnny Marks (est. $500-700); a first edition copy of Clement Clarke Moore’s poems including the immortal Twas the Night Before Christmas (est. $6,000-8,000); and a first edition, first issue of Charles Dickens’ complete set of “Christmas Books” which includes A Christmas Carol (est. $5,000-7,000).
Not to be overlooked is another Dickens related lot–and perhaps the most unusual lot in the sale. The author’s ivory and gold retracting toothpick will be offered. Engraved with Dickens' initials, the toothpick is presented with an autograph note signed by his sister-in-law which confirms its authenticity. At one point a part of the Barnes & Noble family collection, this unique lot is estimated at $3,000-5,000.
Viewings will begin at the Madison Avenue galleries on December 12th until the morning of the sale which takes place on December 15th at 1PM EST. The illustrated auction catalog for the sale will be online atwww.bonhams.com/us in the weeks preceding the preview and auction. For more information about the department, please visit www.bonhams.com/newyork.
