Prices of Books Part 15

Hildyard, ?4165; of the Earl of Orford, two days, 340 lots, ?2609; of the Rev. W. J. Blew (liturgical), ?2220; and of Dr. Hyde Clarke, ?2598.

The library of the Rev. W. Bentinck L. Hawkins, F.R.S., was sold at Christie?s in the same year. First portion, three days, 747 lots, ?1176.

Second portion, two days, 471 lots, ?833. Third and final portion, one day, 252 lots, ?894. At the same rooms the library of William Stuart, 215 lots, ?4296.

The sales at Sotheby?s in 1896 which realised ?2000 and upwards were those of John Tudor Frere, ?3747; Sir W. Pole, ?4343; Adrian Hope, ?3551; Lord Coleridge, ?2845; Sir Thomas Phillipps (MSS.), ?6988; Sir E.

H. Bunbury, ?2965, Lord Bateman, ?2151; Alfred Crampton, ?2492; fine bindings of a collector, ?3613; books and MSS. from various collections, ?8554.

The chief sales at Sotheby?s in 1897 have been as follows:--Sir Charles Stewart Forbes and others, five days, ?5146; Beresford R. Heaton and others, three days, ?4054; Sir Cecil Domville and others, four days, ?5289.

The great sales, however, of 1897 were those of the first and second portions of the library of the Earl of Ashburnham. In the first part 1683 lots were sold for ?30,151, and in the second part 1208 lots for ?18,649.

LIST OF BOOK SALES IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY WHICH HAVE REALISED OVER ?10,000.

1812. Duke of Roxburghe ?23,397 1813. Ralph Willett (Merly) 13,508 1818-21. James Brindley _over_ 17,522 1819. John North 12,806 1825. Sir Mark Masterman Sykes 18,729 1827. John Dent 15,040 1828-35. Earl of Guilford 12,175 1833-34. P. A. Hanrott 22,409 1834-36. Richard Heber 56,774 1844-45. Duke of Suss.e.x 19,148 1849. Duke of Buckingham (Stowe) 14,155 1853. W. Pickering (private library) 10,700 1859-64. Gulielmo Libri 28,159 1864. George Daniel 15,865 1868-73. Rev. T. Corser 19,781 1873. Henry Perkins 25,954 1874. Sir William t.i.te 19,943 1878. R. S. Turner (Paris) 12,764 1879-81. David Laing 16,536 1881-83. Sunderland (Blenheim) 56,581 1882-83. William Beckford 73,551 1884. Duke of Hamilton 12,892 1883. Stourhead (h.o.a.re) 10,028 1884. Earl of Gosford 11,318 1884. Sir J. H. Thorold (Syston Park) 28,000 1885. Earl of Jersey (Osterley Park) 13,007 1885-87. L. L. Hartley 16,529 1886. F. C. Severne, M.P. (Michael Wodhull) 11,972 1887. Baron Seilli?re 14,944 1887-89. Earl of Crawford 26,397 1887-88. J. T. Gibson-Craig 15,519 1888. Earl of Aylesford 10,574 1888. R. S. Turner 16,244 1889. MSS. from the Duke of Hamilton?s collection (bought privately by the Berlin Government) 15,189 1890. Sir Edward Sullivan 11,002 1891. W. H. Crawford (Lakelands) 21,255 1897. Earl of Ashburnham. Part 1 30,151 1897. Earl of Ashburnham. Part 2 18,649

It is worthy of notice in the above list that the amounts realised for the Heber and Sunderland sales were almost identical, while the totals of the Hamilton Palace libraries were larger than those for any other English sale, viz., ?86,543 (Beckford, ?73,551; Duke of Hamilton, ?12,892).

In these totals the sales of booksellers? stocks have not been recorded, because they do not sell so well as private libraries, owing to a rather absurd impression in the minds of buyers that the rarer books would have sold out at the shops had they been of special value; but it may be noted here that the stock of Messrs. Payne & Foss was sold in three portions in 1850 for ?8645 (certainly much less than its worth) by Sotheby, who sold in 1868-70-72 Mr. Henry G. Bonn?s stock, in three parts, for ?13,333, and Mr. Lilly?s in 1871 and 1873, in five parts, for ?13,080. In 1873 Mr. T. H. Lacy?s stock of theatrical portraits and books were sold at Sotheby?s for ?5157.

Mr. F. S. Ellis?s stock was sold in November 1885 for ?15,996, and Mr.

Toovey?s in February 1893 for ?7090. The latter?s sporting books realised ?1031.

It is very much the fashion now to average the amounts realised at auctions, and to point out that at such a sale the amount obtained was about ?10 or more per lot. This is a useful generalisation so far as it goes, but further information is required to enable the reader to obtain a correct idea of value. The generalisation is useful in regard to a ma.s.s of sales; thus we may say broadly, that in the last century the ordinary large and good libraries averaged about ?1 per lot, while in the present century they average at least ?2 per lot.

A small and select library will naturally average a much higher amount than a large library, in which many commonplace books must be included.

These averages, however, will not help us very much to understand the relative value of libraries.

For instance, at the Sunderland sale some lots sold for enormous sums, while a large number fell for a few shillings; but at the Hamilton Palace sales (William Beckford and the Duke of Hamilton) nearly every lot was of value, and although individual lots did not reach the sums realised at the Sunderland sale, the total was much larger. As an instance of what is meant, we may quote from the notice of the Ashburnham sale in the _Times_--

?The 1683 lots realised a grand total of ?30,151, 10s., which works out at an average of as nearly as possible ?18 per lot. Hitherto the highest average was obtained by the disposal in 1884 of the Syston Park library, where 2110 lots brought ?28,000, or ?13, 5s. per lot, the next highest average being that of the Seilli?re library, sold in 1887, 1140 lots realising ?14,944, or about ?13, 2s. per lot. It is scarcely fair, however, to compare the Ashburnham collection with either of these two libraries, as the Seilli?re was admittedly only the choice portion of the a.s.semblage of the baron, whilst nearly every lot in the Syston Park library was of importance. Eliminating from the Ashburnham collection the hundreds of lots which realised less than ?1 each, the average would be nearer ?40 than ?18.?

This is all very well in its way, but one lot fetched ?4000, and such an amount would demoralise any average. Let us therefore see what are the particular points worthy of notice in the sums making up this large total of ?30,151. We find that five lots realised ?1000 and over each, and including these five lots, forty-two were over ?100 each. Now the total for these forty-two lots is ?20,348, which, if we deduct from the grand total, leaves 1641 lots for ?9803, bringing our average down considerably.

This is not perhaps a quite fair system of striking an average, but it shows better how the prices of the books are distributed.

FOOTNOTE:

[53] Dibdin?s ?Reminiscences,? vol. i. p. 369 (note).

CHAPTER VIII

PRICES OF EARLY PRINTED BOOKS

It is impossible in the following chapters to do more than select some of the chief cla.s.ses of valuable books in order to indicate the changes that have taken place in the prices. It will be noticed that the great enhancement of prices which is so marked a feature of the present age commenced about the beginning of the present century.

Bibliomania can scarcely be said to have existed in the seventeenth century, but it commenced in the middle of the next century, when the Mead library was sold. Still it attracted little attention until the sale of the Roxburghe library in 1812, when it had become a power. In the middle of the present century there was a dull time, but during the last quarter the succession of sales realising one, two, and three thousand pounds have been continuous, with occasional sales realising much larger amounts. Great changes have occurred at different times in the taste of collectors for certain cla.s.ses of books.

We may obtain a good idea of the public taste in books by a.n.a.lysing a list of the highest prices obtained at three such representative sales as the Sunderland, the Hamilton Palace, and the Ashburnham libraries.

At the first of these the largest prices were obtained for the first editions of Bibles, cla.s.sics, Italian poets, &c.; at the second, fine bindings took the lead; and at the third, Bibles and Caxtons, and other early literature occupied the first place.

All these cla.s.ses are dealt with in the following chapters. In the present one, the most important among the early Bibles, the first editions of the cla.s.sics, and early Italian literature are recorded.

These are among the chief of those books which have been steadily rising for years, and now stand at enormous prices.

It is not safe to prophesy, but there is no reason to doubt that if riches continue to increase these prices will also advance. As these books are placed in great libraries they naturally become scarcer each year. We must, however, always bear in mind that the number of libraries and individuals who can afford to spend thousands of pounds on single books are few, and if they are reduced, those who remain in the field are likely to get books cheaper.

While the first editions of the cla.s.sics will probably always keep up their price, later editions have experienced a fall from which they are never likely to recover. Scholarship and knowledge of ma.n.u.scripts have so greatly advanced, that many of the old high-priced editions are now hopelessly out of date, and good German texts, which can be obtained at a few shillings, are naturally preferred.

The Delphin and Oxford cla.s.sics, which were once so much sought after, have now sunk to a comparatively low price. The large paper copy of Dr.

Samuel Clarke?s edition of ?C?sar? (2 vols. imp. folio, 1712), of which only twenty-five copies were printed, was once a high priced book. The Duke of Grafton?s copy fetched ?64, and Topham Beauclerk?s ?44. There is a story connected with the latter, which should be noted. Beauclerk gave four guineas for his copy to the mother of a deceased officer, the sum she asked, but when he was afterwards told by his bookseller that it was worth seventeen guineas, he sent the additional thirteen guineas to the lady. Certainly the Sunderland copy fetched ?101 in 1881, but this was a special case, owing to the connection of the great Duke of Marlborough with the book. The Duke of Hamilton?s copy, which had belonged to Louis XIV., sold in 1884 for ?36; but Beckford?s copy, bound in red morocco, only brought ?6.

Block books are of such excessive rarity that they have always been high priced, but like the earliest books printed from movable types, they have greatly increased in value of late years. This is seen in the case of the copy of the second edition of the _Biblia Pauperum_, which fetched ?1050 at the Earl of Ashburnham?s sale. This same copy brought ?257 at Willett?s sale, but at Hanrott?s the price fell to the small amount of ?36, 15s.

The following are some of the prices that those magnificent books--the Mazarin Bible and the first Bible with a date--have realised:--

Biblia Sacra Latina (Mogunti?, Gutenberg et Fust, circa 1450-55):--

_On vellum_--G. & W. Nicols, 1825, ?504 (Messrs. Arch for H.

Perkins). H. Perkins, 1873, ?3400. Earl of Ashburnham, 1897, ?4000.

_On paper_--Sykes, 1824, ?199, 10s. (H. Perkins). Hibbert, 1829, ?215. Bishop of Cashel, 1858, ?595. H. Perkins, 1873, ?2690.

Thorold (Syston Park), ?3900. Earl of Gosford, 1884 (vol. i.

in original binding), ?500. Earl of Crawford, 1887, ?2650.

Earl of Hopetoun, 1889 (one leaf injured, and slightly wormed), ?2000.

Biblia Sacra Latina (Mogunti?, Fust et Schoeffer, 1462) [first Latin Bible with a date]:--

_On vellum_--

Duc de la Valliere, 4085 francs. } Count MacCarthy, 4750 francs. } Watson Taylor, 1823, ?215. } Same copy.

Dent, 1827, ?173. } H. Perkins, 1873, ?780. } Earl of Crawford, 1887, ?1025. }

The Lamoignon copy, bought by Mr. Cracherode for 250 guineas, is now in the British Museum. Sunderland, 1881, ?1600. Thorold, ?1000.

The Latin Version of the Psalms, in its second edition, by Fust and Schoeffer, 1459 (printed on vellum), sold at Sykes?s sale for ?136, 10s. At the Syston Park sale (Thorold) it brought ?4950, a greater price even than has been given for the Mazarin Bible.

It has been erroneously stated that this was the MacCarthy copy, which was sold in 1815 for 3350 francs. The MacCarthy copy was bought by Hibbert, and at his sale in 1829 it became the property of Baron Westreenen.[54]

Biblia Latina, folio Venetiis (N. Jenson), 1476, printed on vellum, capital letters illuminated, in red morocco, sold at the Merly sale for ?168. Beckford copy (supposed to be the same copy) sold in 1882 for ?330. H. Perkins, 1873, ?290.

The first edition of the Bible in English (translated by Coverdale), 1535 (with some leaves mended), was sold at the Earl of Ashburnham?s sale for ?820. Dent?s copy ?89 in 1827 (t.i.tle and two leaves in facsimile). Freeling?s copy, ?34, 10s. in 1836.

Dunn Gardner?s, 1854 (with t.i.tle and one leaf in facsimile), ?365. H. Perkins, 1873 (t.i.tle and two leaves in facsimile), ?400. Earl of Crawford?s (imperfect), ?226.

The first edition of Tyndale?s New Testament (1526) sold in Richard Smith?s sale, 1682, for 6s. Ames bought the Harleian copy for 15s. This was sold at Ames?s sale, 1760, to John White for ?15, 14s. 6d. It was sold by White to the Rev. Dr. Gifford for twenty guineas, and bequeathed by Gifford, with the rest of his library, to the Baptists? library at Bristol.