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Communication / Information Theory: A Collection

A remarkably complete collection of works documenting the history of the theory of communication of information - what 'information' actually is, and what are the theoretical restrictions on the accurate transmission of information from source to receiver. Note: The numbers in brackets correspond to the titles listed in the accompanying pdf, accessible via the link below the images. The first group of works details the development and proof of what is now called the 'Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem'. If an analog signal (e.g., voice or music) has to be converted to a digital signal, consisting of binary zeros and ones ('bits'), the theorem states that a sample of twice the highest signal frequency rate captures the signal perfectly thereby making it possible to reconstruct the original signal. This theorem laid the foundation for many advances in telecommunications. The first evidence for the sampling theorem was found experimentally by Miner in 1903 [8]. It was formally proposed by Nyquist in 1924 [9, 10] and by Küpfmüller in 1928 [8], but first proved by Nyquist [12] and later by Küpfmüller's student Raabe [8]. In 1941, Bennett [15] referred to Raabe's work and generalized it. A result equivalent to the sampling theorem had, however, been proved by Whittaker as early as 1915 [8, 14] in the context of interpolation theory. Finally, in 1948 Shannon [8, 19] published a proof of both the sampling theorem and the interpolation formula as one part of his broader development of information theory. The term 'information', as a precise concept susceptible of measurement, was coined by Hartley in 1928 [11]. "Hartley distinguished between meaning and information. The latter he defined as the number of possible messages independent of whether they are meaningful. He used this definition of information to give a logarithmic law for the transmission of information in discrete messages . Hartley had arrived at many of the most important ideas of the mathematical theory of communication: the difference between information and meaning, information as a physical quantity, the logarithmic rule for transmission of information, and the concept of noise as an impediment in the transmission of information" (Origins of Cyberspace 316). In the following year, the physicist Szilard established the connection between information and the thermodynamic quantity 'entropy'. "Szilard described a theoretical model that served both as a heat engine and an information engine, establishing the relationship between information (manipulation and transmission of bits) and thermodynamics (manipulation and transfer of energy and entropy). He was one of the first to show that 'Nature seems to talk in terms of information'" (Seife, Decoding the Universe, 2007, p. 77). Another physicist, Gabor, pointed out the relation between the sampling theorem and the uncertainty principle in quantum mechanics [16]: "Signals do not have arbitrarily precise time and frequency localization. It doesn't matter how you compute a spectrum, if you want time information, you must pay for it with frequency information. Specifically, the product of time uncertainty and frequency uncertainty must be at least 1/4π." In 1942 Wiener issued a classified memorandum (published in 1949 [23]) which combining ideas from statistics and time-series analysis, and used Gauss's method of shaping the characteristic of a detector to allow for the maximal recognition of signals in the presence of noise. This method came to be known as the 'Wiener filter'. In his Mathematical Theory of Communication (1948) [19], Shannon notes: "Communication theory is heavily indebted to Wiener for much of its basic philosophy and theory. His classic NDRC report 'The Interpolation, Extrapolation, and Smoothing of Stationary Time Series', to appear soon in book form, contains the first clear-cut formulation of communication theory as a statistical problem, the study of operations on time series." Many of the developments in communications theory up to 1948 were summarized and systematized in Weiner's famous book on cybernetics [17]. It is this work of Shannon's that represents the real birth of modern information theory. "Claude Shannon's creation in the 1940s of the subject of information theory is one of the great intellectual achievements of the twentieth century" (Sloane & Wyner, Claude Elwood Shannon Collected Papers, 1993, p. 3). "Probably no single work in this century has more profoundly altered man's understanding of communication than C. E. Shannon's article, 'A mathematical theory of communication', first published in 1948" (Slepian, Key papers in the development of information theory, 1974). "Th[is] paper gave rise to 'information theory', which includes metaphorical applications in very different disciplines, ranging from biology to linguistics via thermodynamics or quantum physics on the one hand, and a technical discipline of mathematical essence, based on crucial concepts like that of channel capacity, on the other . The 1948 paper rapidly became very famous; it was published one year later as a book, with a postscript by Warren Weaver regarding the semantic aspects of information" (DSB). "The revolutionary elements of Shannon's contribution were the invention of the source-encoder-channel-decoder-destination model, and the elegant and remarkably general solution of the fundamental problems which he was able to pose in terms of this model. Particularly significant is the demonstration of the power of coding with delay in a communication system, the separation of the source and channel coding problems, and the establishment of fundamental natural limits on communication. "Shannon created several original mathematical concepts. Primary among these is the notion of the 'entropy' of a random variable (and by extension of a random sequence), the 'mutual information' between two random variables or sequences, and an algebra that relates these quantities and their derivatives.
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Typed Letter Signed [TLS] introducing The Lord of the Rings

EIGHT MONTHS BEFORE PUBLICATION, TOLKIEN ANXIOUSLY INTRODUCES HIS MASTERPIECE, THE LORD OF THE RINGS, TO A FAN OF THE HOBBIT. Tolkien had begun work on The Lord of the Rings in December of 1937 and by early 1950, after over twelve years of labor, the writing was essentially complete. The road to publication, however, was not an easy one, for Tolkien feared his book would have difficulty finding an audience. In February, 1950, he wrote about his concerns to his publisher (Allen & Unwin): "My work has escaped from my control and I have produced a monster: an immensely long, complex, rather bitter, and rather terrifying romance, quite unfit for children (if fit for anybody)." (Carpenter, 213). Tolkien's admission that he had produced a "monster" turned out to be prescient, for seeing the book through publication proved to be a challenge for both him and his publisher and three years after completion, the first volume (The Fellowship of the Rings) was still not in print. At the time of the present letter -December 2, 1953 -publication finally seemed imminent, and Tolkien was understandably nervous. Writing to Mrs. F.L. Perry, a fan of The Hobbit, he explains the delays in publication (it was supposed to be published by Christmas, 1953), worries that the book will be too long and expensive to reach a wide audience, introduces the world of The Lord of the Rings and expresses his hopes that she will like the book despite humbly worrying that it is filled with too much history, geography, and genealogy. His was right to be concerned about further delays in publication -the first edition of The Fellowship of the Ring wouldn't actually appear until July 29, 1954 - but of course his other major concern -that the book would not find an audience - was wildly misguided. The letter reads in full: December 2nd, 1953 Dear Mrs. Perry, Thank you very much for your letter, and kind words. All I can say is that, if you have so much enjoyed The Hobbit, then at least you will not be disappointed with The Lord of the Rings. Unfortunately, I have not only been crushingly busy this year, but also during October and November often ill, and certain adjuncts, necessary to publication, which only I can supply (e.g. maps) have been so long delayed that issue of Vol. I for Christmas, as planned, has become impossible. I hope it will appear early in 1954, and the next two vols. in quick succession. I am correcting the proofs of Vol. II at the moment. I do not know the price yet. Alas! Having put so much into this sequel, it has grown to such a large book that size and cost alone will, I fear, keep it out of many hands that would enjoy it. But I hear that the Americans are taking it up, after seeing an advance copy of Vol. I, and I am told that may make a larger issue and a rather lower price possible on the side of the Water. There is no more about Mirkwood or the northern countries, I am afraid; and the story moves away down the Great River to the kingdoms of the South. But there is a great deal of Ancient History and geography and genealogy in it: too much, I dare say, for all but the most devoted friends of Hobbits. I would send you some proof-copies, if I had any to spare, and if I did not think that you would enjoy it more, when it is complete, and has maps and appendices and all. But I hope very much that when at last you get it you will not be disappointed. It will take a very long time to read, even once, and even quickly! Yours sincerely, [signed] JRR Tolkien Typed Letter Signed ("J.R.R. Tolkien") to Mrs. F.L. Perry, two pages, on one half-sheet (both sides) of Tolkien's 76 Sandfield Road stationery. Center mailing fold, two tiny closed tears at extreme edges; generally fine. Housed in custom presentation folder. As far as we can tell, this letter is unpublished. References: Carpenter, Humphrey. J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2000.
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Autograph Letter Signed [ALS] on The Lord of the Rings

A REMARKABLY REVEALING LETTER: TOLKIEN DISCUSSES HIS SPECIFIC FEARS ABOUT THE TWO TOWERS AND DEFINES "THE FOUNDATION" OF THE LORD OF THE RINGS AND CONNECTS IT TO HIS LIFE'S WORK. The Fellowship of the Ring (the first volume of The Lord of the Rings trilogy) was published on July 29, 1954. There were a number of rave reviews (mostly notably from Tolkien's friend C.S. Lewis) but there were also enough harsh or critical assessments (particularly the reviews in the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Times) to concern Tolkien and make him anxious about the reception of the second volume, The Two Towers. Professional reviews were one worry, but Tolkien always seemed even more eager to discover if his works connected with "regular" readers as well. One such reader whose opinion he held in high regards, was one of his early supporters, Miss F.L. Perry, whom he had corresponded with earlier about The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring. The present letter was written on November 22, 1954 -only eleven days after the publication of The Two Towers - but the opening of the letter implies that Tolkien has already written her for her thoughts on his new book ("I did not mean to put you to any trouble") and has been eagerly awaiting her reply. Then, in a revealing passage that gives insight into Tolkien's thinking on potential failures of The Two Towers, he confesses that he worried about how his readers would accept the return of Gandalf (who was presumed dead at the end of The Fellowship of the Ring), and more generally, "would feel a falling off on a failure of their expectations," or "feel they had had enough after the novelty had worn off, and perhaps regret the decrease of hobbitry and elfishness as the darkness increases and war and terror come out of the East." With relief - and evidently pleased with Miss Perry's previous response - he writes that "All this is answered! Though by no means all are so satisfied by Gandalf." It's clear that Miss Perry was curious to learn more about Tolkien's writing and the history of Middle-earth, for Tolkien then goes on a wonderful digression first focusing on The Lord of the Rings before shifting to a discussion of his previously published work grounded in Anglo-Saxon history (noting, interestingly, that he is at his best when he is writing "verses arising from the emotions of a story, and written to represent the feelings of other 'characters' than myself"). He concludes with an important statement identifying the theme that unites all his work, both reality-based and fantasy-based. The historical work, he writes, "is really on the theme which has always engrossed me and is the foundation of 'The Lord of the Rings': the noble and the ignoble. For hobbitry you have the plain farmer-soldier; for the chivalry, a young minstrel or poet." He concludes his letter with the hope that Miss Perry will stay with him through volume III, "when all the complicated plot, and many characters, must be drawn together." The text reads in full: Nov. 22nd 1954 Dear Miss Perry It was very nice indeed of you to write; but I did not mean to put you to any trouble, specially not when unwell. Still, I was anxious about one or two points: specially about the return of Gandalf; and generally whether my friends would feel a falling off on a failure of their expectations; or feel they had had enough after the novelty had worn off, and perhaps regret the decrease of hobbitry and elfishness as the darkness increases and war and terror come out of the East. All this is answered! Though by no means all are so satisfied by Gandalf. However, all the reviews of the T.T. so far have been good, and Edwin Muir (Observer) is much less patronizing. As for the Chronicles: it has been impossible to include all that I have written or sketched out in this book. But there is really quite a lot of stray information about Arwen scattered about. It was the northern Númenórean realm of Isildur with its capitals at Annúminas and Fornost of which a good deal is said in the 'Council of Elrond.' The King of Angmar becomes the Lord of the Ringwraiths, who appears in Book 1, and will appear again. I have written a good deal of verse (of very varying merit), and some of it has been published here and there. But I have never collected it. I think I am best at the kind of thing seen in the present book - verses arising from the emotions of a story, and written to represent the feelings of other 'characters' than myself. The very long narrative poems, I do not suppose will be ever published. They may! Of longer things a 'Breton Lay,' Aotrou and Itroun was published in the 'Welsh Review' (now deceased); and on Dec. 3 you can hear (if you wish) a dramatic dialogue in alliterative verse concerning the 'Battle of Maldon (fought A.D. 991), broadcast by the B.B.C. It might interest you since it concerns one of the most heroic events in Anglo-Saxon history, and is the history of Essex; the death of the great Duke Byrhhnoth of Essex in battle with the Vikings of Anlaf (Olaf Tryggvason) of Norway. And also because it is really on the theme which has always engrossed me and is the foundation of 'The Lord of the Rings': the noble and the ignoble. For hobbitry you have the plain farmer-soldier; for the chivalry, a young minstrel or poet. I hope you will soon be better. And I hope, too, that you will continue to approve of Vol III, when all the complicated plot, and many characters, must be drawn together. Thank you once more for your kindness in writing, and for the great encouragement you have given. Yours sincerely, [signed] J.R.R. Tolkien Autograph Letter Signed. Four pages on two sheets (170 x 132 mm) of Tolkien's 76 Sandfield Road stationery. Custom presentation folder. Usual mailing folds, a few spots, particularly on last page; visually very attractive, showcasing Tolkien's famous calligraphic handwriting. As far as we can tell, this letter is unpublished. References: Carpenter, Humphrey. J.R.R. Tolkien: A Biography. Boston: Hou
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Autograph Manuscript “Concerning ‘The Hoard'”. WITH: Autograph Manuscript Genealogical Tree “Kinship of the Half-Elven”. WITH: Typed Letter Signed to Eileen Elgar

- A MAJOR TOLKIEN AUTOGRAPH MANUSCRIPT ON THE CENTRAL THEMES OF HIS WORK AND CONTAINING A VARIANT HISTORY OF THE FIRST AGE; LIKELY THE MOST SIGNIFICANT MANUSCRIPT IN PRIVATE HANDS -A VISUALLY STUNNING HAND-DRAWN CHART, "KINSHIP OF THE HALF-ELVEN," TRACING THE GENEALOGY FROM FËANOR TO ELROND, ARWEN, AND ARAGORN -A LONG, REVEALING LETTER TO EILEEN ELGAR PRESENTING THE MANUSCRIPTS, REFLECTING ON THE RECENT DEATH OF C.S. LEWIS AND DISCUSSING LITERATURE AND WRITING, INCLUDING A DETAILED ANALYSIS OF HIS MIDDLE-EARTH POEM "FASTITOCALON". "Concerning 'The Hoard'" Manuscript: Responding to Eileen Elgar's letter about the meaning of Tolkien's poem "The Hoard," Tolkien here pens what he calls "a long screed" discussing the poem's themes and its relationship to his writing. Only recently published in The Adventures of Tom Bombadil and Other Verses from the Red Book(1962), "The Hoard" was a bardic poem telling of an ancient elven hoard successively claimed by a dwarf, a dragon, and a man - each of whom is killed in consequence of his feverish greed for the hoard. Tolkien here calls The Hoard "one of the main strands in The Silmarillion," and he explains that this work-in-process "concerns the great hoard of Nargothrond, which contained much of the treasure and works of Elvish art that had been preserved from the wreckage of the Elven-kingdoms and the assaults of the Dark Lord from his unassailable stronghold of Thangorodrim in the North." In endeavoring to give his correspondent a fuller idea of "what my proposed book, The Silmarillion, is about," Tolkien then proceeds to give a substantive account of the fate of this legendary hoard and its three great gemstones, the light-capturing silmarils magically crafted by Fëanor. The story arc and First-Age history Tolkien here charts differs in many subtle ways - especially in its rerouting of the Ruin of Doriath - from that found in The Simarillion and other related accounts of First Age history (e.g. the story of Nauglafring, as published in The Book of Lost Tales). But Tolkien's essay "Concerning 'The Hoard'" is much more than a behind-the-scenes look into "The Hoard". The nature of obsession, discussed so vividly in "Concerning 'The Hoard'", is at the core of Tolkien's most celebrated works, namely: The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion, and "Concerning 'The Hoard'"provides vital insight into the dramatic underpinnings of these works. After explaining in this manuscript how "dark and secret hoards" were originally formed and indicating that such hoards are very often "possessed and guarded by a dragon," Tolkien affirms that such "dragon-hoards were cursed, and bred in men the dragon-spirit: in possessors an obsession with mere ownership, in others a fierce desire to take the treasure for their own by violence and treachery." Beyond the insight such a "dragon-spirit" offers for the immediate analysis of The Silmarillion - where even the noblest of heroes succumb to its obsessive poison and go to extreme lengths to obtain the silmarils - we see the "dragon-spirit" driving the actions surrounding the Arkenstone in The Hobbit and The One Ring in The Lord of the Rings. Tolkien's essay gives new meaning to the dragon Smaug's role in The Hobbit (and the reveling delight he takes in his hoard) and it further helps us understand the basis for Thorin Oakenshield's insatiable avarice and his fixation on recovering a treasure that he had never seen. InThe Lord of the Ringswe see Bilbo's reluctance to relinquish the One Ring and many of the early pages are occupied by Gandolf's explication to Frodo of how the Ring has affected its bearers. And who, after all, is Gollum but one who succumbed entirely to the "dragon-spirit"? A major unpublished essay, "Concerning 'The Hoard'" is a highly important addition to Tolkien's known work. Broadening the characters and events of Middle-earth history, this manuscript affords us insight into Tolkien's evolving conception of the First Age. This manuscript was unknown to Christopher Tolkien at the time he was piecing together The Silmarillion, and one can only imagine the contribution its text might have made to that work. But even beyond its significance for The Silmarillion, this manuscript offers a penetrating view of how Tolkien conceived the "dragon-spirit" that is a driving force in all his major works. Encapsulating as it does the core history and thematic at the heart of Tokien's legendary works, "Concerning 'The Hoard'" is, to the best of our knowledge, the most significant Tolkien manuscript in private hands. "Kinship of the Half-Elven" Genealogical Tree: Tolkien's 1964 letter to Eileen Elgar also included the offered autograph genealogical tree entitled "Kinship of the Half-Elven". Tolkien was in the habit of creating itemized documents to help him keep track of the rich layers of detail present in his complex narrative structures. This particular tree begins with Fëanor in the early days of the First Age and traces his descent through the House of Hador and the House of Bëor to the Third-Age figures - Elrond, Arwen and Aragorn - we encounter inThe Lord of the Rings. The chart is a stunning visual companion to his work, meticulously and stunningly drawn with black, green, and red ink and pencil. Letter to Eileen Elgar: Tolkien's letter of March 5, 1946, presenting the chart and manuscript to Eileen Elgar, begins on a somber note, with Tolkien explaining that he had been through some troubling times, highlighting that "The death of my friend (C.S. Lewis - whom I do not think you have confused with C.D. Lewis) was the first blow." He then discusses "Concerning 'The Hoard', hoping that it will give Elgar a better idea of what "my proposed book, 'The Silmarillion' is all about." The rest of the letter is a detailed discussion of various aspects of writing and publishing: complaining about proofreaders' attempted changes to passages in The Lord of the Rings, an analysis of certain phrases with an explication
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Miss Virginia Stephen”: Large Charcoal Drawing of Virginia Woolf

ORIGINAL, HISTORICALLY IMPORTANT DRAWING OF THE YOUNG VIRGINIA STEPHEN BY FRANCIS DODD. DODD'S WORK FROM HIS 1907-1908 SITTINGS WITH WOOLF ARE THE ONLY EXTANT LIKENESSES OF HER FROM THIS PERIOD. FROM THE BENJAMIN SONNENBERG COLLECTION. Virginia Woolf famously hated being an artist's subject. According to her nephew Quentin Bell, "one of the things she most disliked in life was being peered at. A very few friends had been allowed to make pictures; some were made by stealth." We have, therefore, very few surviving images from artists of Woolf, and Dodd's work from 1907-1908 are the only extant artist portraits of her in the early years of her work on her first novelThe Voyage Out and were the only artist likenesses of Woolf made prior to Duncan Grant's painting of her of 1911 (now at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York). At the time of her 1907-1908 sitting with the artist Francis Dodd, Woolf was not yet a famous writer (The Voyage Out would not be published until 1915). In a letter to Violet Dickinson (June 3, 1907) she mentions her first sitting for Dodd, almost with amusement:†"Dodd, a little New English Club artist, half drunk and ecstatic, wishes to paint my portrait, and I am to sit in the afternoons from 2 to 4:30. Alone?" On 1 October she mentions further Dodd sittings to Dickinson, and later in the month to Vanessa Bell. The sittings extended well into 1908: in March 1908 she writes to Lady Robert Cecil about Dodd, wittily calling him "friend-brother-citizen-Dodd" and on 10 August 1908 she mentions to Vanessa that Dodd was "much pleased with his print of me" but complains that "my lip is probably a chronic blemish; I always forget to anoint it-and how do you account for that, considering my vanity?" From his sessions with Woolf, Dodd created three known drawings in preparation for a print etching (as mentioned by Woolf in her letter): One of the drawings is in the National Portrait Gallery; another is held privately; the third is this drawing from the Sonnenberg collection and it is by far the most complete and detailed of the drawings. The others are incomplete sketches of just her head; this Dodd drawing is a large, full drawing showing Woolf adorned with a flowing scarf from just above her waist and appears to be a completed work. Of particular note is Dodd's evocative rendering of Woolf's eyes -Woolf stares off the side in a wonderful portrayal of pensiveness. The artist Francis Edgar Dodd (1874-1949) was a successful and highly regarded painter and etcher, active in the New English Art Club, a trustee of the Tate Gallery (1929-35), and a member of the Royal Academy of Arts, from 1935 until his death (by suicide) in 1949. He was introduced to the Stephen family and Clive and Vanessa Bell by the painter Henry Lamb. Provenance: †-J. S. Maas & Co., Ltd., London, 1965. -Benjamin Sonnenberg (1901-1978), renown art collector and member of New York's high society. Sold his sale Sotheby Parke Bernet, 3-5 June 1979, lot 1490 (where it sold for $6500). Illustrated in catalog. -Private collection, with gift presentation note on frame backing Exhibited: -London, Maas Gallery,Pre-Raphaelite to Post-Impressionists, 1965, no. 38. -New York, The Pierpont Morgan Library,Artists and Writers: Nineteenth and Twentieth Century Portrait Drawings from the Collection of Benjamin Sonnenberg, May 13 to July 30, 1971, no. 40, p. 37, illustrated in catalogue. DODD, Francis.Miss Virginia Stephen. Charcoal on paper. Signed and dated by Dodd in pencil at upper right "Francis Dodd / 1908" and inscribed by Dodd at lower center "Miss V. Stephen". "Virginia Stephen" also in another hand in pencil at upper left. In beautiful ornate frame, from Mass Gallery/Sonnenberg, now refitted with museum plexiglass. Dimensions: sight = 11.75x 7.5 inches. framed = approx. 15 x 19.5 in. Paper uniformly toned, only evident when drawing removed from frame. References: BELL, QUENTIN. Virginia Woolf. Vol 2., p.160. NICOLSON, NIGEL; TRAUTMANN, JOANNE, ed. Letters of Virginia Woolf, Vol 1., 1888-1912.
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All the Pretty Horses; The Crossing; Cities of the Plain [The Border Trilogy]

FIRST EDITIONS, with All the Pretty Horses and The Crossing signed and inscribed by McCarthy. Inscribed in ink on the half-titles of All the Pretty Horses: "For Darla / All best / Cormac McCarthy"; and The Crossing: "For Darla / All best wishes / Cormac McCarthy". All three volumes are from the recipient, with detailed letter of provenance (available upon request). "The completion of Cormac McCarthy's Border Trilogy - All the Pretty Horses (1992), The Crossing (1994), and Cities of the Plain (1998)--marked a major achievement in American literature. Only ten years earlier this now internationally acclaimed novelist had been called the best unknown writer in America. "The trilogy is McCarthy's most ambitious project yet, composed at the height of his mature powers over a period of fifteen years. It is 'a miracle in prose,' as Robert Hass wrote of its middle volume, an unsentimental elegy for the lost world of the cowboy, the passing of the wilderness, and the fading innocence of post-World War II America. The trilogy is a literary accomplishment with wide appeal, for despite the challenging materials in each book, these volumes remained on bestseller lists for many weeks." (Arnold and Luce, A Cormac McCarthy Companion). Note: The Crossing was also issued in a signed limited edition of 1000 copies with a tipped-in leaf signed by McCarthy (before binding). The copy in the present set is a much more desirable first trade edition where McCarthy actually signed the book. There was no signed limited edition issued for All the Pretty Horses. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1992-98. Octavo, original half black cloth, original dust jackets. Fine copies. Original cloth, original dust jacket
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Kunstformen der Natur [Art Forms in Nature]

HAECKEL, ERNST FIRST EDITION OF HAECKEL'S BEAUTIFUL AND HIGHLY INFLUENTIAL COLLECTION OF "ART FORMS OF NATURE", WITH 100 STUNNNING FOLIO PLATES, MOST COLORED. "The geometric shapes and natural forms, captured with exceptional precision in Ernst Haeckel's prints, still influence artists and designers to this day. Powerful modern microscopes have confirmed the accuracy of Haeckel's prints, which even in their day, became world famous. Haeckel's portfolio, first published between 1899 and 1904 in separate installments. illustrate Haeckel's fundamental monistic notion of the 'unity of all living things' and the wide variety of forms are executed with utmost delicacy. Incipient microscopic organisms are juxtaposed with highly developed plants and animals. The pages, ordered according to geometric and 'constructive' aspects, document the oneness of the world in its most diversified forms. This collection of plates was not only well-received by scientists, but by artists and architects as well. Rene Binet, a pioneer of glass and iron constructions, Emile Galle, a renowned Art Nouveau designer, and the photographer Karl Blossfeld all make explicit reference to Haeckel in their work" (Breidbach, Olaf. et al. Art Forms in Nature). "From the delicately intricate architecture of micro-organisms such as diatoms and algae, to the graceful variations of hummingbird species, Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919) visually explored the diversity of life on Earth through his stylistic and painstakingly detailed illustrations.These artworks opened people's eyes to the complexity of life forms rarely seen by his contemporaries. Even in today's world of high resolution photography and digital archiving, these illustrations remain wondrous.While it would be ideal to have more information about the images themselves, Art Forms in Nature is a mesmerising collection of science and art history" (Ten Great Books on Scientific Illustration). The plates were originally published in sets of ten before collected in this first edition. WITH: Supplement bound-in. Two volumes bound in one. Leipzig & Vienna: Bibliographisches Institit, 1904. Folio (10.5 x 14), contemporary half-morocco; later endpapers. Fading to spine. In outstanding condition with text nearly pristine and plates extraordinarily bright.
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Archive of Photographs

EINSTEIN, ALBERT OVER 100 PHOTOGRAPHS (with some duplicates) from the archives of the Wide World Photos (later the Associated Press) documenting Einstein's life. Taken together, the collection - photographs with individual explanatory captions - serves as a biography in pictures through the eyes of the press and is a valuable primary source in understanding how the public's perception of Einstein was shaped by the media. Albert Einstein's fame far exceeded what one could ever have expected for a scientist - for much of his adult life he was one of the most recognized people in the world and, astonishingly, his fame has only grown since his death in 1955. How did this come to be? Einstein had the luck (or misfortune) of having a career that coincided almost perfectly with the rise of mass media, particularly in the form of newspapers, magazines, and photojournalism in general. With his revolutionary theories, bohemian attire, expressive face, and witty quotes, Einstein became the perfect subject for the new media. The public adored Einstein and because of his status as a "genius" nearly everything he did could be a source of possible interest. The collection contains dozens of photographs covering serious events -Einstein speaking on the horrors of war or oppression, meeting with other scientists or dignitaries, teaching or working in his study -but there are nearly as many photographs of Einstein involved in recreational activities, like sailing, playing the violin, sight-seeing, or celebrating his birthday. The striking thing about the included captions is that there is the same tone of excitement and even wonder, in watching Einstein do anything -everything, the media seem to be telling us, can be important if it involves Albert Einstein. Through this collection, we can understand what the public saw - and, perhaps, wanted to see - in Einstein, and how the popular image of Einstein was created - an image of Einstein that we still hold today. Later in life, Einstein said that he felt his real job was as a photographer's model, because the most celebrated photographers of the day sought him out as their subject. This archive does indeed contain some of these famous posed photos of Einstein, but the collection is dominated by candid photos many of which have rarely been reproduced. Over 100 silver gelatin prints (102 by our count, although with some duplicates), the images measuring approximately 8 1/2x6 1/2 inches (21.6x16.5 cm.), and slightly smaller, most with a Wide World Pictures or Associated Press stamp on verso and with a press captions on loose slips. Photos from Einstein's life from 1919-1955. A few photos with edgewear, but generally very good condition.
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A View from the Ranks”: The Civil War Diaries and Manuscripts of Charles E. Smith, 32nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry

[CIVIL WAR; CIVIL WAR DIARY]. SMITH, CHARLES E. A REMARKABLY EXTENSIVE ARCHIVE OF A UNION SOLIDER, INCLUDING DIARIES FROM 1861-1865 SPANNING HIS ENTIRE CIVIL WAR CAREER. THE SOLDIER, CHARLES E. SMITH, PARTICIPATED IN SOME OF THE MOST CRITICAL CAMPAIGNS OF THE WAR, INCLUDING THE SEIGE OF VICKSBURG, THE FALL OF ATLANTA, AND SHERMAN'S MARCH TO THE SEA. Background: Charles E. Smith (1836-1905) was born in Berlin Township, Ohio. He worked as a farmer and country schoolteacher in Alum Creek, Delaware County, Ohio. He enlisted in the 32nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry at the age of 25 on September 3, 1861 and mustered in September 7, 1861. He was promoted to the rank of corporal in Company I of the regiment on January 30, 1864. He was slightly wounded on July 29, 1864 during the Atlanta Campaign. He mustered out of the service on July 20, 1865 at Louisville, Kentucky. The 32nd Ohio Infantry was organized at Mansfield, Ohio, on August 20-September 7, 1861, and mustered in for three years' service under the command of Colonel Thomas H. Ford. The regiment was involved in several important engagements and operations during the Civil War, including the Battle of Greenbrier River, the Battle of McDowell, the Battle of Harpers Ferry, the Battle of Champion Hill, the Siege of Vicksburg, the Atlanta Campaign, the Battle of Jonesborough, Sherman's March to the Sea, the Carolinas Campaign, and the Battle of Bentonville. The 32nd Ohio Infantry mustered out of service at Louisville, Kentucky, on July 20, 1865. The Collection: The collection consists of 26 dairies, dating from 1859 to 1866. Except for four volumes, covering a period from 1856 to April 1861 and one covering the period September 18, 1865 to December 5, 1866, the remaining dairies (21 volumes) span his entire Civil War career in the 32nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, covering the period September 3, 1861, the date of his enlistment, to the date of his mustering out of the service, on July 20, 1865. The diaries, of various sizes, average approximately 100+ pages, with few blank pages. His daily entries in his Civil War diaries, many of which are detailed, consist of descriptions of the weather, diet, geographical locations, his devotion to the Union, camp activities, military news, and description of engagements. He also included several drawings in the diaries, some in color. He described his day of enlistment of September 3: "Enlisted at Lewis Center between 8 and 9 oclock in Captain Dyre's company of 3 years volunteers. I bid good bye to all my folks and started having resolved to assist in sustaining the Government. But the feelings which came over me, when I left home, friends and all that seemed dear to me I cannot describe." The new enlistees moved to Camp Dennison and Smith records the daily activities in camp as his company prepared for their first movement. From Camp Dennison, the 32nd Ohio was ordered to western Virginia (present-day West Virginia) to assist in driving Confederate forces out of the region. On October 3, 1861, the 32nd Ohio participated in the inconclusive Battle of Greenbrier River. Smith records in his diary, beginning on September 29 through October 3: ††"In the evening we received orders, to march to make an attack on Greenbrier about 12 miles distant. Our company numbered 86 men. Our regiment probably numbered 900 men present and able to perform duty. The 32nd. Went in advance and cleared out the road and took one prisoner. Our regiment stopped at the cross roads within four miles of Greenbrier, and stopped. We expected there that the battle commenced. but they [Confederate troops] did not come, and we. crept into the thick laurel bushes to lay till morning. When I awoke it was daylight, and other regiments were passing. The artillery was hurrying along as fast as possible, each gun was drawn by six horses, and about nine oclock the canons began to roar. It was kept up till two oclock, on both sides, when our communication failed, and our men withdrew from the field without losing any guns. The canons roared very loud and the sound rolled over the Mountains and valleys, and made everything ring once more. Our loss was, including those that were killed on the field and those that died of wounds after the battle, about 12 men. We took 13 prisoners."†Smith describes an engagement with Confederate forces around Beverly, Virginia, on December 18, 1861: "The rebels came out and met our forces, and a bloody fight ensued. The 32nd fought bravely and drove the enemy back. The 25th were in the advance, and were cut up dreadfully. They fell back and the 32nd stood their ground and fought them like tigers. Our men made two or three gallant charges and drove them out of their entrenchments and were forced out themselves. Our boys could not drive them out again, and after a desperate and bloody struggle our troops retreated., having lost about one hundred men." After spending the winter in Beverly, Virginia, the 32nd Ohio participated in the Shenandoah Campaign of 1862, where they engaged Stonewall Jackson's Confederate force at the Battle of McDowell, Virginia, on May 8, and were defeated. On that day, Smith recorded the following: "We formed into line and gave three cheers to the cavalry and were waiting to welcome the infantry, when a dispatch came for us to report immediately at headquarters, armed and equipped. We went forthwith and formed into line of battle on an open field. The rebels came down on the hills & tried to pick a spot to plant a gun and our boys threw shell amongst and drove them out. The rebels gathered on a mountain at the right of town, about 4,000 men. Our boys did not find out what they were at or where they were till late in the afternoon. Two regiments went up the mountain and the ball was opened. The battle lasted till after 8 oclock at night when our boys withdrew bringing the wounded and mostly all the dead from the field. The fight lasted about 4 hours." The 32nd Ohio retreated to Franklin, Virginia, where they joined General John C. Fremont's comma
  • $95,000
  • $95,000
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Photograph: Self-portrait with Picasso, 1965

PICASSO, PABLO; BEATON, CECIL INSCRIBED BY PICASSO IN RED AND BLUE CRAYON TO THE PHOTOGRAPHER, CECIL BEATON: "pour Cecil Beaton. Ami Picasso 9.6.65.". Cecil Beaton (British, 1904 -1980) photographed virtually every prominent person in public life over the course of his career, which spanned more than half a century. Everyone from the Queen to the Rolling Stones sat before his lens. As an arbiter of glamor, the opportunity to sit for Beaton represented the pinnacle of success for many, but in some cases it was Beaton who pursued the sitter, and he had followed Pablo Picasso (Spanish, 1881 - 1973) long before they first met. As one of the foremost artists of the twentieth century, Picasso was sought after by many who wanted to rub elbows with success. He became one of those whom Beaton photographed several times over a period of many years, first at the rue de la Boetie in Paris in 1933, then at the rue Augustins in 1944, and finally at Mougin in the south of France in 1965. (Vickers). In addition to taking photographs, Beaton wrote about Picasso in his private diary, sketched his portrait, and after the 1965 sitting wrote a profile of Picasso for Vogue Magazine. Photographs from Picasso's home in the hills above Mougin reveal a close bond between the two men. Here they appear relaxed, comfortable with one another, and with a gleam in their eyes. By then Picasso was 84 years old and still painting late into the nights. Writing in Vogue, Beaton describes Picasso's energy as he gave Beaton a tour of the sprawling studio crowded with paintings, some still wet with paint and others from decades before. Beaton wrote of Picasso's welcome: "Pablo said 'It has been twenty years since I last saw you!' A golden Picasso threw open his arms. 'After so long we must embrace.'" The two then made much fun about the passage of years and how they had aged. (Beaton). A clear sign of affection, Picasso inscribed select prints and dedicated them to Beaton. Picasso writes in red and blue crayon on this print: pour Cecil Beaton. Ami Picasso 9.6.65. The print stands as testament to the kinship between the two artists. Provenance: With stamp "From the Beaton Studio / Sotheby Parke Bernet" on verso (sold, Sothebys Parke Bernet, 1978). Also with stamped notation "1/1" possibly indicating that this is a unique print. We have not been able to locate any others. Silver gelatin print. Signed, inscribed and dated by Pablo Picasso "pour Cecil Beaton / Ami / Picasso 9.6.65" in red and blue ink (recto). Image: 111⁄4 x 73⁄4 in. (28.5 x 19.6 cm.); sheet: 111⁄2 x 91⁄4 in. (29.2 x 23.4 cm.). Majestically framed to an overall size of 24 x 19.5 in. Small abrasion evident to the right of Beaton's left ear; otherwise fine. References: Vickers, Hugo, ed. Cecil Beaton: Portraits & Profiles. London: Frances Lincoln, 2017. P 152. Beaton, Cecil. "Golden Picasso" Vogue Magazine, volume 146, November 15, 1965.
  • $20,000
  • $20,000
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Artists in Exile

CHAGALL, MARC; MONDRIAN, PIET; ERNST, MAX; LÉGER, FERNAND; BRETON, ANDRÉ; et al. CATALOG FOR THE LANDMARK ARTISTS IN EXILE EXHIBITION, SIGNED BY ALL 14 ARTISTS, INCLUDING ANDRÉ BRETON, MARC CHAGALL, MAX ERNST, AND PIET MONDRIAN. On March 3, 1942, an historic exhibition of fourteen émigré artists opened at the Pierre Matisse Gallery in New York City. Pierre Matisse, distinguished modern art dealer, gallery owner, and son of Henri Matisse, exhibited some of the greatest European and American artists of the twentieth century, many for the first time. This special exhibit, appropriately titled Artists In Exile, represented cutting edge European avant-garde art and featured a single work from each artist, created after their arrival in the United States. We have on offer a rare Artists in Exile exhibition catalog which features a group photo by George Platt Lynes and the signatures of all 14 of the artists in colored inks: Eugene Berman, André Breton, Marc Chagall, Max Ernst, Fernand Leger, Jacques Lipchitz, André Masson, Roberto Matta, Piet Mondrian, Amdeé Ozenfant, Kurt Seligmann, Yves Tanguy, Pavel Tchelitchew, and Ossip Zadkine. There are only a handful of signed copies, each one uniqueã ¡the artists used different colored pens and placed their signatures in different locations. Artists in Exile highlighted the growing presence of modern artists in New York, who despite their differences in style, generation, and nationality, joined together to showcase their art. Pierre Matisse, for his part, created a welcoming gallery environment. Despite American political rhetoric which celebrated democratic freedom, America in the 1930s and 1940s was economically, socially, politically and culturally isolated and not a welcome refuge for the huddled masses. In contrast, the Pierre Matisse Gallery served as a creative gathering space for these new arrivals who energized the American art world. Each of these artists worked in modern styles which had been denounced and destroyed by the Nazis and labeled Entartete Kunst (Degenerate Art) in the 1930s. After the fall of France in 1940 these artists fled Europe, many of them were Jewish. The artists featured in this exhibit had successfully escaped Nazi, fascist and totalitarian regimes, some with the help of the Emergency Rescue Committee (ERC) in Marseille. From 1940-1941 American journalist Varian Fry, of the ERC, worked with art dealers like Pierre Matisse, collectors like Peggy Guggenheim, and museum directors like Alfred H. Barr Jr. (first director of the Museum of Modern Art) to rescue European artists in the greatest danger of Nazi persecution. The ERC helped at least 1,500 refugees escape from France and provided aid to over 2,000 others. Many artists who escaped because of the ERC's efforts arrived in New York City, the American art capital. The early 1940s was a turbulent time with so many of Europe's most prominent modern artists relocating to America. Many of the exiled artists helped to reshape the American art world. Max Ernst, for example, showed Jackson Pollock how to drip paint onto a flat canvas. The Artists in Exile exhibition, therefore, was a celebration of the talent and contributions of these fourteen artists who were introduced to the New York art scene by Pierre Matisse, a leading modern arts enthusiast. George Platt Lynes, a well-known commercial and fashion photographer of this period, had the difficult task of herding egos for the Artists in Exile exhibition group photograph. While the public viewed this show as a symbol of artistic unity, creating that illusion was a testament to Platt Lynes and to Pierre Matisse's commitment to showcasing these accomplished artists. Matisse admitted "I get all these people in the studio for the Artists in Exile show and while the photographer (Platt Lynes) fixed his camera, all these people who hated each other were walking around trying not to greet one another. Breton didn't like Modrian, Leger didn't like Chagall, Chagall and Ernst didn't like each other. They all wound up in the picture next to the one they liked the least." (Weld 271) Despite their differences in style and their sometimes strained personal relations, this now legendary group show was an opportunity for fourteen artists to introduce themselves to their new home. The signed exhibition catalog for Artists in Exile represents a moment of immense historical importance for these newcomers and for New York City which emerged as the new center of modern art in the 1940s. Catalog includes complete text by James Thrall Soby and Nicolas Calas, a list of all fourteen pieces of art, and a pull-out group photograph by George Platt Lynes, 1942. 226x152 mm; 9x6 inches. Signed in colored inks on the blank page opposite the iconic photograph by George Platt Lynes by all the participating artists: Berman, Breton, Chagall, Ernst, Leger, Lipchitz, Masson, Matta, Mondrian, Ozenfant, Seligmann, Tanguy, Tchelitchew, and Zadkine. Note: There are two copies of the catalog included. The signed copy is archivally framed to show the cover, the photograph and the signature page. There is also another complete (unsigned) copy housed in a pocket in the back of the frame. New York: Pierre Matisse Gallery, 1942. Signed copy framed under UV-protecting museum glass to an overall size of 30x14 inches. Signed copy with tape reinforcement on verso at fold (not visible in frame) and inevitable crease visible at fold in photo. Unsigned copy with only very minor wear. References: Allen Ellenzweig. George Platt Lynes: The Daring Eye. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021. Collin Makamson. "First Fruits of Exile: European Art at Pierre Matisse 1942." The National World War II Museum, New Orleans. March 16, 2022. Paul McRandle. "Artists in Exile." Surrealist NYC, March 2, 2013. Jacqueline Weld. Peggy: The Wayward Guggenheim. New York: E.P. Dutton, 1986.
  • $14,000
  • $14,000
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O Kulcie Jednostki I Jego Nastepstwach [The Personality Cult and its Consequences]

KHRUSHCHEV, NIKITA SERGEYEVICH SCARCE FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE of Khrushchev's 'Secret Speech' Which Attacked Stalinism and Changed the Course of World History. On February 14, 1956 the twentieth congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union assembled in Moscow for their first meeting following the death of Joseph Stalin in 1953. Almost nothing was said about the deceased leader until, in a closed session on February 25th, 1,500 delegates and visitors with special passes listened to a shocking speech by First Secretary of the party Nikita Khrushchev entitled The Personality Cult and its Consequences. In this speech Khrushchev denounced Stalin, seeking to destroy the beloved image and legacy of the late dictator. Guests and members of the press were excluded, and the Polish translation was the only version circulated during the Cold War. We have on offer the scarce first printing of the Polish text which included the recorded interjections which were edited out of subsequent printings. The official Russian text was not published until 1989. In his speech, Khrushchev recounted numerous instances in which Stalin committed horrific crimes. He quoted from correspondence, memoranda, and his own observations, providing details of Stalin's heinous actions during the Terror of the late 1930s, Stalin's lack of the preparedness at the time of the Nazi invasion in 1941 and throughout World War II, Stalin's inhumane deportation of various ethnic groups (including the Kalmyks, Chechens, and Crimean Tatars) in 1943 and 1944, and Stalin's tyrannical and abusive behavior towards party members. Khrushchev also referenced V.I. Lenin's Testament, published in 1923, in which Lenin warned that Stalin was power hungry and should be removed from his position as General Secretary. Khrushchev spoke for four hours as his audience sat in complete silence, stunned by the appalling accusations. When Khrushchev was finally done, there was no applause and the audience departed in a state of shock. By distancing himself from Stalin and blaming Soviet failures on the "cult of personality" that Stalin encouraged, Khrushchev sought to absolve the Communist party itself of any grave mistakes that had been committed under Stalin. This speech also served as a starting point for Khrushchev's de-Stalinization campaign to revert official policy to an idealized Leninist model. The decision to deliver the speech was contentious. Khrushchev had argued vehemently with those who saw Stalin as the divine father, finally agreeing that the speech was not to be published as part of the congress's proceedings nor reported in the Soviet press. However, copies were sent to regional party secretaries who briefed rank-and-file members. The U.S. State Department received a copy of the speech from Eastern European sources. The speech was a bombshell, Soviet sources reported that some twentieth congress delegates suffered heart attacks and others committed suicide. People in the Soviet Union were shaken to the core and Khrushchev's words changed the Soviet Union with ripples felt for decades to come. At the 1961 party congress Khrushchev and others attacked Stalin's memory again in an open session. After this meeting Stalin's body was removed from the mausoleum in Red Square that he had shared with Lenin. Stalingrad and other such places were renamed. Mikhail Gorbachev, who became General Secretary in 1985, publicly praised Khrushchev for his courageous speech and pursuit of de-Stalinization. Determined to carry on Khrushchev's reform work Gorbachev explained that the secret speech laid the foundation for perestroika by addressing "not only the cult of personality, but also.ways to manage the country." (Bigg) The speech also had far-reaching consequences in Central and Eastern Europe, fueling hopes of political change and revolution, particularly in Poland and Hungary. It eventually led to a period of liberalization known as the "Khrushchev thaw" and freedom for tens of thousands of political prisoners. The speech caused many western Communists to abandon the movement and shocked many western powers. On February 8, 1956, prior to the meeting of the Communist Party congress, the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Information Agency (USIA) sent out a policy statement about the meeting explaining that it would "probably not bring any surprises." Thus, western powers were astonished when in March 1956, word leaked out that on February 25th at the twentieth congress, Stalin had been censured and condemned. The speech, and Khrushchev's de-Stalinization campaign, also had major repercussions in Asia. China's Chairman Mao Zedong saw Khrushchev's speech as a threat to his authority and the speech was a major cause of the Sino-Soviet split. Mao criticized Khrushchev for deviating from the path of Lenin and Stalin, using adherence to Stalinist values as an excuse to strengthen his own cult of personality. In North Korea, activists within the Workers' Party of Korea attempted to remove Chairman Kim Il Sung, criticizing him for not "correcting" his leadership methods, distorting the "Leninist principle of collective leadership," developing a cult of personality, and using arbitrary arrest and executions. (Lankov) The attempt to overthrow Kim failed, the activists (labeled anti-party factionalists) were arrested and executed and Kim further strengthened his own cult of personality. This extremely scarce and important first edition of Khrushchev's secret speech, is one of the defining texts of twentieth century geopolitics and the Cold War. Khrushchev, describing Stalin as a despot and terrorist who had committed crimes against humanity, disrupted the traditional belief that Stalin was a savior of the Soviet people and unleashed forces that changed the course of history. It planted the seeds that led to revolutions throughout Eastern Europe and eventually contributed to the demise of the USSR. With "Wylacznie do uzytku organizacji partyjnych" ("Exclusively for inner-party use") p
  • $7,800
  • $7,800
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Contact Sheet of Rare Beatles Photographs, Candlestick Park, 1966

THE BEATLES. LENNON, JOHN. McCARTNEY, PAUL. HARRISON, GEORGE. STARR, RINGO. WEILL, ERIC One-of-a-Kind Beatles Images Portend the End of an Era. This original contact sheet of rare 1966 images of The Beatles was discovered by artist, photographer, musician, and Beatles enthusiast Dave Seabury at a garage sale near San Francisco in the late 1980s. These photos, which we have on offer, were taken at the Fab Four's final concert at Candlestick Park on August 29, 1966. The story of how these images were discovered is almost as fascinating as the images themselves. Seabury frequented garage sales for years inquiring about Grateful Dead or Beatles photos and never had any luck. On one fateful day the seller said, "Yeah, there are some Beatles pictures in that box over there." (Marks) In the box Seabury found a contact sheet with 73 black-and-white images of The Beatles taken by someone who clearly had privileged access to the band. The photos were close-up and deeply moving, however there was no date on the photos and no photographer stamp. Seabury recalls that every once in a while he'd take out these photos and think, "These are really great, they deserve some attention." Then, many years later, he read Joel Selvin's article in the San Francisco Chronicle about The Beatles' last concert at Candlestick Park which included Jim Marshall's famous photos. After looking at the pictures Seabury thought, "Those shirts look familiar." He quickly pulled out his Beatles contact sheet and voilà, they were wearing the same shirts. Seabury said, "That's when I realized the photos on my contact sheet were taken at Candlestick in 1966." (Marks) In 2015, Seabury began his quest to find the photographer. With the 50-year anniversary of The Beatles' final concert on the horizon, he said, "I contacted all The Beatles collectors I could find. I just kept coming up zero." (Marks) At the same time, Seabury, a photographer in his own right, was working on a photo exhibition and concert to be called "Lost and Found Beatles." Scheduled to open on the 50th anniversary of the Candlestick show, at The Reclaimed Room Gallery in San Francisco, he started a Kickstarter campaign to raise the money to turn the contact sheet images into prints. It was a labor of love. When the pictures were finally printed, Seabury realized that rather than the usual stock photos taken at concerts, these images were unusually pensive and intimate. Unbeknownst to their fans at the time, John, Paul, George, and Ringo had a secret - they had recently decided that this would be their last live concert together. Amidst 25,000 screaming fans, the photographer was able to capture what The Beatles knew, that this was the end of an era. When the "Lost and Found Beatles" show opened on September 29, 2016, the identity of the photographer was still a mystery. At the exhibition closing party, professional collector Derek Taylor realized that a photo in the exhibit looked familiar. He explained ". the way Lennon's hair was tousled. I just knew I'd seen that photo before, like something I'd bought. A few weeks later, I happened to be looking for a record and boom, that Lennon photo, an 8-by-10, falls out." Taylor flipped the photo over and saw a stamp that read, "Photo: Eric Weill." (Marks) Mystery solved. Eric Weill, who struggled with bipolar disorder for most of his life, died in 2006. He was well known for his photos of Bob Dylan and for claiming to be the Zodiac killer on a call-in radio show in 1969. Ethan Byxbe, nephew of Weill, described his uncle as "a professional photographer. [whose] news photo called 'The First Hippie Riot' from 1968 is in the collection of the Smithsonian." One of Weill's acquaintances explained that "Eric was just one of those guys who showed up everywhere with a camera." (Marks) Seabury was eager to meet Weill's nephew, his only living relative, and explains, "When I finally connected with Ethan and explained everything to him, he was totally blindsided. He was like, 'Whoa, wait a minute. You published his photos?' And I said, 'Look, man. I want to meet with you. I cede all rights to these photos to you.'" Byxbe was grateful for Seabury and explained, "thanks to Dave's project, people can enjoy some of my uncle Eric's photographs, and he can get credit for some of the work he did. I think he would be happy about that." (Marks) Though the mystery was solved, it was still not clear how the contact sheet ended up in a garage sale. Ethan Byxbe believes that "The bulk of my uncle's material was stolen right under our noses. When I was a little kid in the 1970s, my grandmother had hired some older neighborhood kids to help her clean up her garage.There were several milk crates full of original negatives and photographs, including most of The Beatles' material. I had a bad feeling about them and said, 'Grandma, maybe you should put Eric's pictures in a closet or something.' She said, 'Oh, no, they're fine.' She was very trusting. And sure enough, after they left, I checked the garage and the milk crates with Eric's original materials were gone. They had taken everything." Byxbe remembers another theft that occurred years later. He said, "My uncle was living in an old, 1930s milk truck. People would be in and out of the truck visiting him, and one time, someone ripped off much of what he had left. Between those two incidents, most of his photographic materials that I knew about were gone." (Marks) Byxbe does not know when the contact sheet was stolen but he assumes that's how it started its journey to a garage sale in Northern California. This original contact sheet would be a thrilling addition to any Beatles collection. Weill memorialized one of the most significant turning points in the history of the world's greatest band by inviting the observer into The Beatles' souls and capturing a moment that the audience was not aware of at the time - the beginning of their separation. Also part of this lot is a poster-size image of the contact sheet, 46x61 cm (18"x24"), as well as a poster, a flier, and 6 postcards promoting
  • $22,000
  • $22,000
Archive Including Autograph Letters Signed; East of Eden; The Red Pony; Travels with Charley; et al.

Archive Including Autograph Letters Signed; East of Eden; The Red Pony; Travels with Charley; et al.

STEINBECK, JOHN A collection of unpublished letters with outstanding content and inscribed books establishing the close friendship John Steinbeck and his wife Elaine shared with theater director John Fearnley. The correspondence is lengthy, writerly, and warm, and the inscriptions humorous and joyful. The letters, largely undated, map primarily to their time in England from March through September 1959. The inscriptions were likely made in the mid-to-late 1950s - most of them post-dating their publications by years or even decades. The Books: In the first edition of East of Eden (1952) Steinbeck writes as if he simply pulled it off Fearnley's shelf: What joy to write in the copy of my book which belongs to my friend John Fearnley: I think this might be the reason I wanted to write it. John Steinbeck. In the third printing of The Red Pony (1937) Steinbeck leaves a cute poem in an inscription employing nicknames they gave each other on a trip in the 1950s: Dear Fearnley (Small Change) When you are old And cannot see, Put on your 'specs, And think of me. Your [ ] friend John (Inside Straight) Steinbeck And in the first edition of Travels with Charley (1962) - the only inscription that could be contemporaneous with publication - he wrote as if from himself and his dog Charley: "For Fido Fearnley / Bow Wow and F-F-F-T! From John and Charley Steinbeck." (Also from Fearnley's library, but unadorned by Steinbeck, are a jacketed pre-publication second printing of Cannery Row (1945), and a jacketless copy of Tortilla Flat (1935).) The Letters: Steinbeck met Elaine Anderson - then wife of actor Zachary Scott - in May 1949. They married in December 1950, after Elaine's divorce. It was Steinbeck's third and final marriage. Anderson knew Fearnley, casting director for Rodgers and Hammerstein from 1945-1955, from their shared theater production days. (Anderson's most high-profile credit we can trace is as assistant stage manager of "Oklahoma!" in the mid 1940s.) In one letter, Steinbeck writes to Fearnley, "Elaine protects you like a mother hen. .You are pretty much her property, you know." The three worked together on "Burning Bright" in October 1950, with Steinbeck as writer, Elaine as his assistant, and Fearnley as casting director, and again in 1955 when Fearnley cast Rodgers and Hammerstein's Broadway production of "Pipe Dream," a musical based on Steinbeck's Sweet Thursday which ran for 256 performances at the Schubert Theater. In some of these letters and inscriptions Steinbeck incorporates nicknames they devised on a New Year's trip to Trinidad and a holiday sail around the Windward and Leeward Islands during that "Pipe Dream" run: They "took Calypso names: Inside Straight (Steinbeck), Queen Radio (Elaine Steinbeck), and Small Change (Fearnley)" (Letters 519). In two of these letters Steinbeck writes at length on the many issues he had with that Rodgers and Hammerstein production, from script to direction, in the process revealing his thoughts and feelings about Sweet Thursday, of which he hopes that Fearnley might helm a new stage adaptation. Steinbeck adorns those letters, as well as the cover of the dust-jacket of The Red Pony, with his signature flying pig stamp and his handwritten phrase, "as astra per alia porci" - "to the stars on the wings of a pig," referencing the common lore that one of his early teachers had told him he'd only become a writer "when pigs fly." Elaine explained elsewhere in 1983, The Pigasus symbol came from my husband's fertile, joyful, and often wild imagination. After his signature on letters or inside his books, he would draw a fat little pig with wings, and lettered his name, "Pigasus." John would never have been so vain or presumptuous as to use the winged horse as his symbol; the little pig said that man must try to attain the heavens even though his equipment be meager. Man must aspire though he be earth-bound. At some point, he began to write "Pigasus" in Greek letters, and he added the motto, "Ad Astra Per Alia P
  • $95,000
  • $95,000
Over 100 Press Photographs that Helped Define Hemingway's Public Image

Over 100 Press Photographs that Helped Define Hemingway’s Public Image

HEMINGWAY, ERNEST THE RISE OF PHOTOJOURNALISM AND MASS-MEDIA HELP MAKE HEMINGWAY ONE OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY'S FIRST AMERICAN INFLUENCERS. After graduating from high school in 1917, Ernest Hemingway worked as a cub reporter for the Kansas City Star. This job exposed him to the media's growing addiction to sensationalism and taught him the craft of writing clear and succinct prose. Hemingway's journalism experience, his interest in boxing and big-game hunting, and his military service during and after the First World War enabled him to explore fiction writing about everyday people and to hone his innovative writing style. His adventurous lifestyle and the success of The Sun Also Rises (1926) coincided with the public's growing interest in photojournalism and lifestyle magazines, pushing Hemingway into the limelight. By the 1930s, Americans craved international recognition of their culture as one that surpassed that of Europe. Hemingway's trajectory from literary celebrity to international icon in the 1940s and 1950s paralleled America's increasing global economic and cultural dominance. We have on offer a collection of over 100 original press photos from Wide World Photos (acquired by the Associated Press in 1941) that span three decades and chronicle Hemingway's public and private life. Selected highlights include: -Images of Hemingway's overseas travel as a war correspondent during the Second World War -Photos of time spent with Gary Cooper, Sinclair Lewis, Lauren Bacall, and Fidel Castro (featured in The Atlantic in 1965) -Shots of fishing excursions in Cuba and Peru, bullfights in Spain, and hunting trips in Africa -A photo of Hemingway, and his fourth wife Mary, that accompanied a New York Daily News story breaking the news of a 1954 plane crash in Uganda in which he and Mary were presumed dead -Pictures on the occasion of his winning the 1954 Nobel Prize in Literature -Portraits of Hemingway that were printed in The New York Times and other leading publications announcing his death in 1961 Scribner, his publishing house, promoted Hemingway's daredevil side and attempted to build him up like a Hollywood star by disseminating photos to fan magazines, newspapers and gossip columnists. In turn, the media courted him and relished in his super-masculine adventures. Though Hemingway showed some ambivalence towards celebrity, the paparazzi and the public were fascinated by this bon vivant who was a big game hunter, bullfighting enthusiast, playboy, and avid traveler. Hemingway capitalized on his persona as both a man's man and a literary superstar, taking risks in art and life and cheating death numerous times. His relationship with the press became more strained in the 1940s and 1950s as he dealt with mental health issues and failed marriages. The media focused on his loud and aggressive behavior in public, especially when drunk. His opposition to being portrayed as a caricature of himself, and his desire to be respected for his craft, led to clashes with journalists. He sought professional accolades and acceptance and feared that the public's fascination with his larger-than-life personality prevented him from being among the literati. The General Editor of the Hemingway Letters Project observed, "On the one hand, you have a writer who cares very much about his public reception. He's always asking how the sales are going. He loves good reviews. He courts celebrity to some extent. On the other hand, he does have this intense desire for privacy." (Spanier and Mandel) The photos in this collection expose a thrill-seeker with a serious side. Underneath the bravado, he was a sensitive writer plagued by self-doubt who wrote crisp, piercing sentences that told stories about soldiers, lovers, hunters, bravery, fear and death. In 1952, his publisher, Charles Scribner said, "The important element in Hemingway's writings derives from his constant concern to convey powerful psychological states: despair and hope, fear and courage, anger and resignation.the
  • $12,500
  • $12,500
Vpered (Vperyod) [Forward]

Vpered (Vperyod) [Forward]

LENIN, VLADIMIR ILYICH ULYANOV Vpered introduced Bolshevik strategy and led to Lenin's dominance during the Russian Revolution. A complete run with noted provenance. In the early twentieth century, the fate of Marxism hung in the balance as various revolutionary factions used journals and party congresses to exert control. We have on offer the full run of Vpered, a newspaper published from January to May 1905 in Geneva and smuggled into Russia. Vladimir Lenin contributed more than 40 articles to Vpered (Forward) and several issues were entirely written by him. Lenin was joined on Vpered's editorial board by Alexander Bogdanov, Anatoly Lunacharsky, and Mikhail Olminsky. Financial support was provided by the founder of socialist realism, Maxim Gorky, who also contributed articles to several issues. Iskra (Spark), the predecessor to Vpered and the first underground newspaper of the Russian Social Democratic Labor Party (RSDLP), was founded in 1900 by Lenin, at the time a ruthless organizer and political tactician who moved to Western Europe in 1900 after three years in Siberian exile. Lenin left Iskra in late 1903 after it was taken over by the Mensheviks, a minority Marxist faction of the RSDLP that supported more progressive political change through legal means. Lenin disparagingly referred to the loosely assembled Mensheviks as "disorganizers" of the party. Lenin's followers would come to be known as Bolsheviks, which means majority. After a brief respite in the mountains with his wife in 1904, Lenin settled in Switzerland to begin his next publishing venture, Vpered, following "the direction of the old Iskra" and directly competing with the new Iskra. Published during a critical period in Russian history - the Russian Revolution of 1905, the first major challenge to the autocratic rule of Russian Czar Nicholas II and a precursor to the more famous Russian Revolution of 1917 - Vpered was an influential underground publication that was crucial to the formation of the distinct political identity of the Bolshevik faction of the RSDLP. Vpered was central to the success of Lenin's revolution, enabling him to bring disparate groups together and outflank his competitors (namely, the Mensheviks). Lenin's writing in Vpered reflects his willingness to adapt to changing circumstances. Though he continued to advocate for a centralized and disciplined revolutionary party (the Bolsheviks), he also emphasized the use of violent insurrection by local revolutionaries and mass actions by workers and peasants, a central tenet of the evolving Bolshevik ideology. This shift in strategy was a response to the political and social unrest of the 1905 revolution. Lenin wrote, "the proletariat must fight in the front rank for a republic and must contemptuously reject the advice that is given to it to take care not to scare the bourgeoisie." Unlike the Mensheviks who wanted the bourgeois to lead, Lenin advocated for an alliance that would establish a "revolutionary democratic dictatorship of the proletariat and the peasantry."(Faulkner) Ultimately, Lenin and the Bolsheviks dominated the revolutionary movement against the czar while the Mensheviks struggled to stay relevant. The final issue of Vpered was printed just before Lenin's departure from Geneva for the Third Congress of the RSDLP in London on April 25, 1905. Following this conference, Lenin began work on a new publication, Proletarii (Proletarians), which we also have on offer. Vpered represents a pivotal moment in his political evolution and explains the pragmatism of Bolshevik strategy that helped them successfully overthrow Czar Nicholas II. Provenance: With stamp on first page (issue 1) of the Bund Archive ("Archiv Bunda"). The Bund Archive is the collection of a social democratic organization founded by two Russian Jewish revolutionaries, John Mill and Tsemakh Kopelson, who fled their native land to avoid political persecution. Mill and Kopelson established the Bund Archive in 1899 in Geneva, Switzerland, then a safe have
  • $7,500
  • $7,500
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Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete? [Einstein, Podolsky, Rosen] WITH: Can Quantum-Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete? [BOHR]

FIRST EDITION of the famous "EPR" paper, one of the most discussed and debated papers of modern physics. WITH: Bohr's response. "In the May 15, 1935 issue of Physical Review Albert Einstein co-authored a paper with his two postdoctoral research associates at the Institute for Advanced Study, Boris Podolsky and Nathan Rosen. The article was entitled 'Can Quantum Mechanical Description of Physical Reality Be Considered Complete?' [.] Generally referred to as EPR, this paper quickly became a centerpiece in debates over the interpretation of quantum theory, debates that continue today. Ranked by impact, EPR is among the top ten of all papers ever published in Physical Review journals." (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Indeed, like the verification of Einstein's earlier prediction of the gravitational deflection of light, EPR even got attention in the popular press. Eleven days before the paper was published: "The New York Times carried an extensive report under the provocative headline 'Einstein Attacks Quantum Theory,' which was summarized by the sentences: 'Professor Einstein will attack science's important theory of quantum mechanics, a theory of which he was sort of grandfather. He concluded that while it [the quantum mechanics], is "correct" it is not "complete."'" (Mehra and Rechenberg, p. 724-25). In essence, Einstein and his collaborators devised a thought-experiment involving two physical systems (say, A and B) with necessarily-correlated physical properties, that were widely separated in space. (For example, the two systems might have equal and opposite momenta and positions dictated by physical conservation laws.) From the perspective of quantum theory, the two systems could be described by a single wave function, or state vector. A measurement performed on A could precisely determine its position, which would also fix a precise position for B. The momenta of A and B could be determined in the same way. The central insight of EPR was that either the position and momentum of A and B were real, determinate and fixed prior to the measurement of A, or else B only took on a fixed and determinate value when A was measured. But the latter interpretation implied that the measurement event at A had somehow instantaneously fixed the (previously indeterminate) properties of B, despite the spatial separation between A and B, which could be made as great as one wished. Einstein argued that this implied one of two things: either that the quantum description of A and B was incomplete, in that each of them had a fixed, determinate position and momentum at all times; or that nature permitted actions such as measurement to have "nonlocal" influences on distant systems. Leon Rosenfeld, who was in Copenhagen at the time, remembered the fallout of these developments vividly: "This onslaught came down upon as a bolt from the blue [.] As soon as Bohr heard my report of Einstein's argument, everything else was abandoned: we had to clear up such a misunderstanding at once." (Pais, 430). According to Rosenfeld, the next day Bohr was heard muttering "Podolski, Opodolski, Iopodolski," etc. By mocking Podolsky-who was, after all, only a postdoctoral student and the second-named author of EPR-Bohr presumably was, even in his anger, avoiding saying anything that might be interpreted as a direct attack on Einstein. Bohr's argument proceeded with what some might describe as his characteristic lack of explanatory clarity. Indeed, in revisiting EPR fifteen years later, Bohr himself would admit, "[r]ereading these passages, I am deeply aware of the inefficiency of expression which must have made it very difficult to appreciate the trend of the argumentation" (Schilpp, p. 234; see also Lehner, p. 331, who describes Bohr's rebuttal of EPR as "obscure in content but confident in tone."). Generally speaking, however, Bohr's approach seems to boil down to a willingness to accept non-local or "contextual" theory of measurement interactions. In any event, it is clear that Bohr was more prepared than Einstein was to take quantum theory at face value as a complete theory, even if this meant abandoning notions of physical reality that are part of humanity's intuitive understanding of the world. Later in a famous 1964 paper, John Bell, using an EPR-like thought experiment, proved that the situation was even worse than Einstein had imagined: even a hidden variable theory that reproduced the empirical predictions of quantum mechanics would necessarily violate Einstein's desideratum of local realism. As Christoph Lehner puts it, "this proof is of great importance because it shows the impossibility of Einstein's idea that quantum mechanics could be understood as an incomplete description of a reality that is objective and locally definite." (Lehner, p. 234). Included are both papers - the original EPR paper and Bohr's response. IN: The Physical Review,pp.777-780 Vol. 47, No. 10 (whole issue offered), May 15, 1935. Quarto, original green wrappers. WITH: Physical Review, vol. 48, no. 8 (whole issue), October, 1935. Quarto, complete issues in original wrappers; housed together in custom box. Stamp of P.E.O. Memorial Library, Iowa Wesleyan College (now defunct). Mild toning around edges (as often) otherwise crisp, clean copies. RARE IN ORIGINAL WRAPPERS.
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Leviathan, or, The Matter, Forme, & Power of a Common-wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civill

FIRST EDITION, FIRST ISSUE, OF ONE OF THE FOUNDATION WORKS OF POLITICAL THEORY. PMM 138. Regarded as one of most influential philosophical texts produced in the seventeenth century, Leviathan is the product of its troubled time. Written during the English Civil War (1642-1651), Leviathan argues the necessity of absolute sovereignty and social contract. "Hobbes outlined, without reference to an all-powerful God, how humans, endowed with a natural right to self-preservation but living in an anarchic state of nature, would be driven by fear of violent death to form a civil society and submit to a single sovereign authority (a monarch) to ensure their peace and security through a social contract-an actual or hypothetical agreement between citizens and their rulers that defines the rights and duties of each" (Britannica). "This book produced a fermentation in English thought not surpassed until the advent of Darwinism. Its importance may be gauged by the long list of assailants it aroused. It was placed on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum 7 May 1703, though all Hobbes's works had previously been condemned in toto, and it still remains a model of vigorous exposition, unsurpassed in the language" (Pforzheimer). "During the early years of the Revolutionary period, American leaders found Locke's revolutionary compact ideas more useful than Hobbes' view of the unlimited authority of the state. But as the political and social experience of the 1780s seemed to bear out Hobbes's pessimistic view that men are essentially self-interested, the Hobbesian outlook became more relevant. When John Adams wrote that 'he who would found a state, and make proper laws for the government of it, must presume that all men are bad by nature,' he was expressing an idea that was derived at once from Hobbes" (Lutz & Warden, A Covenanted People, 38 ). First issue: With woodcut "head" ornament on title-page and the famous engraved title page by Abraham Bosse. On the Bosse engraving: The engraved title (sometimes called the frontispiece) has achieved a level of fame independent of the book. It's a masterpiece of allegorical illustration. At its most basic level, the bottom half depicts emblems representing the Church (on the right) and the state (on the left). Towering over all, in the top half of the image, is the Sovereign King, composed quite literally, of his subjects, for if you look closely you will see that his body is made of the tiny figures of his people. London: Printed for Andrew Crooke, at the Green Dragon in St. Paul's Church-yard, 1651. Folio (280 X 180 mm). Complete with folding table between p.40-41. Contemporary full calf with early rebacking (apparently retaining original spine label). Housed is beautiful half-leather box. General repairs to binding, mostly at extremities. Reinforcement to hinges. Engraved title re-margined with old paper (1.1 cm at base, 0.5 cm maximum at top) with no loss to image; residue of adhesive on small blank section partially covering old owner signature. Scattered mild toning and soiling to text, but generally fresh and clean. Early and elegantly penned short biography of Hobbes written on verso of rear free endpaper. Sheet with ownership signature of "Augustus H. Gleason 1850" laid-in, likely indicating 19th-century provenance. A very handsome copy of the rare first issue of one of the landmark works of English political theory.
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As We May Think

FIRST EDITION of Vannevar Bush's landmark paper credited for originating the idea of hypertext and, by extension, providing many of the theoretical underpinnings for the world wide web. "In a 1945 article entitled "As We May Think," published in the Atlantic Monthly, Bush proposed a device that he called the Memex-an indexed, archival, microfilm machine for cross-referencing and retrieving information. For Bush, this article was an extension of his work in analog computing and microfilm technology. To the modern reader it portends the creation of hypertext and the World Wide Web" (Britannica). "Different people place the origins of the Internet at different times. The earliest accounts put it in the mind of Vannevar Bush, as long ago as 1945. Bush, the man who had played such a prominent role in the building of the atomic bomb, envisaged a machine that would allow the entire compendium of human knowledge to be 'accessed'" (Peter Watson, The Modern Mind). Bush's Memex device for storing and accessing vast quantities of information was the direct influence and inspiration for the later invention of hypertext by Ted Nelson and Douglas Engelbart (see Engelbart's classic 1962 paper, Augmenting Human Intellect). IN: The Atlantic Monthly 176, no. 1 (July 1945), pp. 101-8. Rumsford Press, Concord, N.H., 1945. Quarto, original wrappers.The subscription issue (as opposed to the newstand issue). The subscription issue has several additional pages of ads, and an additional five pages of short reviews of new books and is presumed to have been issued before the newsstand issue. (The Bush article is identical in each issue.) Light, general wear. An outstanding copy. RARE.
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. WITH: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. WITH: The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

FIRST EDITIONS OF TWO MASTERPIECES OF ENGLISH LITERATURE. The story of Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes, and Strand Magazine began in April, 1891, when Doyle sent three stories, "A Case of Identity," "The Red-Headed League," and The Boscombe Valley Mystery" to The Strand for publication in their issues. Doyle had imagined a creating a series of stories centered around his detective Sherlock Holmes, but with each one self-contained in case a reader missed an issue. The series, however, was intended to be limited, but the editor of The Strand kept asking for more. As Doyle later explained, "The more he asked for the more I turned out until I had a dozen. That dozen stories being finished I determined they should be the end of all Sherlock's doings." (Green and Gibson, A10). After appearing in magazine form, those original twelve stories were collected together in book form as The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. "The proprietor of the magazine published the book himself using the same presses and many of the same materials as the magazine and was printed on thick cheap paper which was too heavy for the binding." (Green and Gibson). This heavy paper has been a source of frustration to collectors, since the weight of the text has destroyed so many of the original bindings over the years. The volume was published on 14 October 1892, and sold out quickly. Doyle had earlier threatened to kill off Sherlock Holmes (apparently he was persuaded not to by his mother) but now, in the next series of stories he was determined to do so. "If I don't [kill Sherlock Holmes]," Doyle announced, "he'll kill me." The second series, The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes contains many of Doyle's most famous stories, before concluding, famously, with "The Final Problem," where Holmes apparently plummets to his death at Reichenbach Falls while wrestling Professor Moriarty. (Years later Doyle would, of course, succumb to the demands of a grieving public -and hefty payments from The Strand - to "resurrect" Holmes in "The Adventure of the Empty House".) Both volumes are the correct first editions, first printings: Adventures with the correct first printing points: "Miss Violent Hunter" on p. 317 and the blank street sign in the cover vignette; there are no comparable points for Memoirs. With wonderful illustrations throughout by Sidney Paget. London: George Newnes, 1892, 1894. Tall octavo, original publisher's decorated cloth gilt, patterned endpapers, all edges gilt. Housed in custom box. Adventures with light, general soiling and wear to cloth, some rubbing to gilt; front free endpaper with old newspaper clipping about the death of Sherlock Holmes neatly pasted on recto and owner signatures on verso. An excellent copy of a book that is notoriously difficult to find in collectible condition. Memoirs in outstanding condition with clean cloth and very bright gilt on front panel. Spine gilt with a touch of rubbing. Front free endpaper with small embossed stamp of the London bookseller "W.H. Smith"; mild toning on both front and rear endpapers. A beautiful set. References: Green and Gibson, A Bibliography of A. Conan Doyle, A10; A14.
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Dutch Details

FIRST EDITION OF THE RAREST RUSCHA BOOK; ONE OF ONLY AN ESTIMATED 200 COPIES. IN OUTSTANDING CONDITION. "In December 1970, Ruscha was invited to produce a photobook in conjunction with the Sonsbeek 71 exhibition in the Netherlands. Wim Beeren, the commissioner of the international festival, chose the location (Stadskanaal-a village in Groningen built along both sides of a straight canal) for the commission, but left the specifics of the project up to Ruscha. Once on site, Ruscha began photographing the facades of the houses along the canal, undoubtedly informed by his panorama of Los Angeles, Every Building on the Sunset Strip (1966). The topography of the Dutch village led Ruscha to a different approach, however, and the book is conceptually more performative than the earlier work, inasmuch as it directly encompasses a site-specific action: the artist's journey back and forth across the bridges of the canal, with each trip documented by six photographs, which progress from a distant view to a close-up detail of the house directly across both sides of a given bridge. The oversized horizontal format of the book, with each leaf a gatefold representing the two sequences of photographs made on a single bridge, is also unique in Ruscha's oeuvre. Although the book was supposed to have an open edition, available by mail order, it did not sell well and the printer removed and disposed all extra copies from its warehouse. Dutch Details is thus the rarest of Ruscha's books" with an estimated 200 copies in existence. (The Metropolitan Museum of Art (NY) collection website). Deventer: The Octopus Foundation and Sonsbeek 71, 1971. Oblong folio (approx. 4 1/2 x 15 in / 112 x 380mm), original white card covers printed in black; custom box. Complete with 116 black and white photographs on 10 fold-out leaves. Some spots of foxing on extreme edges, but otherwise fine; most importantly without the band of toning of the front cover evident in so many copies. By far, the nicest copy we've handled. RARE.