ANTIQUARIAN BOOKS IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY

1. ANTIQUARIAN BOOKS IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY Julian Wilson Associate Director Books and Manuscripts Specialist

2. KATH’S EMAIL “If you could talk about yourself and your experience of the Rare Books market, and how it is changing/ values of books ie is the price on Abe a work of total fiction?” (13 May 2014 14:10)

3. NOT RARE(but well known) Charles Darwin. On the Origin of Species. London: John Murray, 1859 Fine copy in original, unrestored, green cloth has a current auction estimate of £80,000 – 120,000 Frequency at auction: 2 – 3 times a year

4. GENUINELY RARE(and well known) F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Great Gatsby. New York: Charles Scribner, 1925 Fine copy in original, unrestored, dust-jacket has a current auction estimate of $120,000 – 180,000 Frequency at auction: approximately once every 15 years

5. GENUINELY RARE (but unknown)NASA & USGS. Geological Maps of the Moon. 1972-1998Frequency: occasional sightings on the internet, but increasing.Individual maps sell between £30 - 300

6. Definition of an“Antiquarian” book “An antiquarian book is a second-hand book that one can sell at a profit” (conversation with John Collins, c.1997)

7. The Big Six • The internet has caused a paradigm shift in the antiquarian book market • The recession of 2008/2009 has accelerated this paradigm shift • Book collectors’ taste has fundamentally changed • There is an ongoing change vis-a-vis online listings and auction offerings • I believe there will be a splintering of traditional bookselling that bodes well for an elite few and ill for many • The upside is that there has never been a better time for collectors

9. Adam Smith(1723-1790) An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. London: 1776. Price Realized £68,500 Estimate £45,000 - £65,000 SALE 1584 — YATES, THOMPSON AND BRIGHT: A FAMILY OF BIBLIOPHILES 16 July 2014 London, King Street

14. EMERGENCE OF ELITE GROUP OF BOOKDEALERS SMALL SPECIALIST DEALERS WITHOUT SHOPS DIFFICULTY OF SMALL DEALERS TO MOVE UP

15. GENUINELY RARE (but unknown)NASA & USGS. Geological Maps of the Moon. 1972-1998Frequency: occasional sightings on the internet, but increasing.Individual maps sell between £30 - 300

18. The Rothschild Prayerbook.Book of hours, use of Rome [Ghent, or possibly Bruges, c.1505] Sold for $13.6 million Christie’s New York, 29 January 2014