Potter & Potter Auctions’ October, 2020 Fine Books And Manuscripts Sale a Cover to Cover Success at Nearly $500,000.

This sale tempted collectors with remarkable publications, livres d’artiste, archives, and works by 20th century artists including Picasso, Dali, and Hockney.

Chicago, Il, October 14, 2020 – Potter & Potter Auctions’ signature fall event was a best seller in every respect. When the hammer fell for the last time, 98 lots realized $750-2,499; 23 lots scored $2,500-$9,999; and four lots broke the five digit mark. Prices noted include the company’s 20% buyer’s premium.

Museum quality fine art, paintings, and prints took several of the top lot slots in this exciting sale.

* Lot #630, Pablo Picasso’s Le Pigeonneau, was estimated at $10,000-15,000 and traded hands at a breathtaking $37,500. This hand colored and signed artist proof from 1939 was printed in Paris by Robert Blanchet and was accompanied by two letters of authenticity.

* Lot #605, David Hockey’s framed Ossie and Mo, was estimated at $1,000-2,000 and made $4,800 – almost five times its low estimate! This signed work was numbered 4/75, printed by Maurice Payne on Chisbrook handmade paper, and published by the Petersburg Press in 1968. 

* Lot #581, William Adolphe Bouguereau’s beautifully rendered Study of the Head of a Brunette Woman, delivered $14,400. This signed, pastel on board work included its original Galerie Drouant–David and Galerie Percier Paris gallery tags

Important century and millennium spanning books also generated heated bidding and impressive results. 

* Lot #6, a second edition of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, was estimated at $8,000-10,000 and sold for $11,400. It was published in 1860 in London by John Murray. This example had an 1860 imprint and “fifth thousand” on title page; roughly two copies of the first issue exist with an 1859 imprint. 

* Lot #231, a copy of Gaius Julius Caesar’s The Commentaries printed in London in 1712 by Jacob Tonson, realized $14,400 – more than twice its low estimate. This 560 page folio was edited by Samuel Clarke and included the double-page plate of the bison, which is usually missing.

* Lot #13, Thomas Hawkins’ The Book of the Great Sea-Dragons, Ichthyosauri and Plesiosauri…Extinct Monsters of the Ancient Earth from 1840. was estimated at $3,000-4,000 and made $7,200. This first edition was published in London by W. Pickering and featured thirty plates copied from skeletons in the author’s collection of fossil organic remains.

* Lot #83, an 18 volume set of The Works of Jonathan Swift, from the library of Robert R. Livingston, soared to $5,520 on its $1,00-2,000 presale estimate. These books were printed by Mrs. Mundell, et al, in Edinburgh in 1778. Each volume included Mr. Livingston’s personal bookplates. One of the Founding Fathers of the USA, Livingston was a member of the Committee of Five that drafted the Declaration of Independence, the administrator for George Washington’s Oath of Office when he assumed presidency in 1789, and the chief negotiator of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803.

* Lot #584, a boldly inscribed presentation copy of Alma Mahler’s Gustav Mahler: Memories and Letters from 1946, scored $3,600 on its $400-600 estimate. Alma Mahler was a composer, author, and the spouse of Gustav Mahler. This book had six paper items laid in the volume, including an autographed letter, Western Union telegram, photo postcards, snapshots, and other ephemera.

* Lot #67, William Cullen Bryant’s two volume Picturesque America; Or, the Land we Live in: A Delineation by Pen and of the Mountains, Rivers, Lakes, Forests, Water-Falls, Shores, Canyons, Valleys, Cities, and Other Picturesque Features of our Country, sold for an astonishing $3,360 on its $250-350 estimate. This first edition, first printing set was published in New York by the D. Appleton & Company was profusely illustrated with 49 full-page steel-engraved plates, including additional title pages and frontispiece engravings, and numerous intertextual wood engravings.

Late 19th and early 20th century photographs, images, and cabinet cards were another focus of this exciting auction. 

* Lot #710, a collection of early photographs of men and women with hats, was estimated at $100-200 and topped off at $2,280. These included daguerreotypes of a wealthy man with a cane and top hat; an ambrotype of a young man smoking a cigar; and a partial real photo postcard with a seated man donning a hat and bowtie. 

* Lot #751, a group of 13 occupational cabinet cards from the 1880s, was estimated at $200-300 and worked its way to $2,040. Professions represented included a tailor, organ builder, blacksmith, chimney sweep, picture framer, glassblower, saddle makers, actors, and others.

* Lot #779, a collection of 30+ cabinet cards and CDVs of French stage performers, writers, and other notables, was estimated at $100-200 and sold for $1,440. Most were taken by the Nadar Studio; individuals pictured include Dumas, Daudet, Bernhardt, Gustav Doré, Victor Hugo, and others. 

Ephemera of all sorts, periodicals, modern editions, and other manuscripts brought this sale full circle. 

* Lot #632, a group of 35 Playboy Magazines from 1954–1958 delivered $3,600 – twelve times its low estimate.

* Lot #644, a four volume limited edition folio on Abstract Expressionism produced by the Tiber Press in 1960, made $6,000 . This important post-war American artist book featured collaborations between four of the most influential American poets of the second half of the twentieth century, and four important second-generation New York School artists. Each publication was signed by the author and artist. 

* Lot #222, a typed French language manuscript travelogue detailing a trip China by way of the Tran-Siberian Railway in the 1913-1924 timeframe, was estimated $400-600 and sold for $3,120. The tome was lushly illustrated with post cards, snapshots, maps, and real photos mounted with photo corners and numerous annotations or captions. 

According to Gabe Fajuri, President at Potter & Potter Auctions, “Strong results across the board and a 93% sell-through rate shows that demand is high for quality – but more importantly, it shows that Potter & Potter continues to deliver exceptional results in the book and manuscript market, not to mention fine art. We’re thrilled with the results of the sale and already have our next auction in this category set for mid-March of 2021.”

Potter & Potter, founded in 2007, is a Chicago area auction house specializing in paper Americana, vintage advertising, rare books, playing cards, gambling memorabilia, posters, fine prints, vintage toys, and magicana – antiques and collectibles related to magic and magicians. For more information, please see www.potterauctions.com.  Follow us on Facebook (potterandpotterauctions) and Instagram (potterauctions). 

Media contact:

Gabe Fajuri, President

Potter & Potter Auctions

email: [email protected] 

phone: 773- 472- 1442