Our members list new acquisitions and recently cataloged items almost every day of the year. Below, you'll find a few highlights from these recent additions...
Signed Photograph (Nikola Tesla)
New York: n.p., 1896. First edition. Fine. STUNNING LARGE HISTORIC PHOTOGRAPH OF TESLA, SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY TESLA TO EDWARD EVERETT BARLETT. Albumen print, signed and inscribed by Tesla on the original gray mount: "To my friend E. E. Bartlett, New York, June 9, 1896, Nikola Tesla." The photograph shows Tesla in profile seated before the spiral coil of his high-voltage transformer at his East Houston St., New York, laboratory.
The photograph, in addition to being arguably the most famous and dramatic portrait of Tesla, is scientifically significant, for it served as a demonstration of the power of his new technique of providing illumination with vacuum tubes.
A reproduction of the photograph appeared in the May 20, 1896 issue of Electrical Review, alongside an article where a reporter interviewed Tesla about the novel circumstances of the creation of this photo:
"As to his continuous efforts to improve his system of lighting by vacuum tubes, with which he has been identified during a number of years, Tesla said that he has been more successful than he had ever dared to hope. His methods of conversion from ordinary to high-frequency currents are rendered simple in the extreme, the devices are thoroughly reliable and require no attention. Last, but most important of all, he has succeeded in increasing the candle-power of the tubes to practically any intensity desired.
"A remarkable and most telling result of the advances he has made in the last direction is a portrait, which he has reluctantly allowed us to use, and which was obtained by two seconds' exposure to the light of a single vacuum tube of small dimensions. Tesla stated further that photographs obtained by the light of such powerful tubes show an amount of detail which no picture taken by the sun or flash light is capable of disclosing. This feature is only faintly shown in the reproduction on this page. The photograph was made by Tonnelé & Company, artists' photographers, who aided Mr. Tesla in his attempts to photograph by the light of phosphorescent tubes about two years ago.
"When asked, Mr. Tesla said, in explanation of the picture, speaking with deep feeling, that the volume he was reading was one of the 'Scientific Papers,' of Maxwell, given to him as a token of friendship by Professor Dewar; the chair a gift of his warmest friend, Mr. E. D. Adams; and as to the queer coil to his left, Mr. Tesla hesitatingly remarked that it was the object 'dearest of all in his laboratory,' having been a most valuable instrument in his many-sided investigations.
"Mr. Tesla added, good humoredly, that, had it not been for the extraordinary manner in which the photograph was taken, he would not have given this explanation even to such an important personage as the representative of the ELECTRICAL REVIEW."
Tesla was correct in insisting that the lighting from the vacuum tubes produced a high-level of detail in the photograph; the intricacies of the coil, in particular, appear remarkably sharp. Overall, the photograph has an orange tint, almost certainly the result of his novel lighting technique.
Although this is the only signed example of this photograph we are aware of, it has been reproduced in recent years many times, including serving as the cover image for Marc J. Seifer's groundbreaking biography of Tesla, Wizard.
Provenance: The recipient, Edward Everett Bartlett (1863-1942) was a celebrated New Yorker (both he and Tesla were featured in Moses King's Notable New Yorkers, 1896-1899), who founded Bartlett & Co., (later Bartlett Orr Press) on lower Broadway, in 1888. Variously described as an artist, illustrator, printer, and engraver, Bartlett was internationally known as "an expert on newspaper type, and he was credited with the development of much of the linotype type used in newspaper offices throughout the country"; additionally he published several works on the art of the book. (New York Times, Obituary, 1942).
Size: Image, 7 3/4 x 9 1/2 inches; with mount, 8.5 x 11 inches. Archival matting and framed with UV-protecting museum glass to an overall size of 16.5 x 19 inches. Small closed tear in extreme blank bottom margin (matted out). Fine condition.
SIGNED TESLA PHOTOGRAPHS ARE EXCEEDINGLY RARE ON THE MARKET AND THIS IS, WITHOUT QUESTION, THE FINEST WE'VE SEEN.
Offered by Manhattan Rare Book Company.
by HOUGHTON, William
London:: William Mackenzie, (1879)., 1879. Large 4to. (374 x 275 mm) xxvi, 204 pp. 41 colored full-page chromolithographs (including frontispiece), 64 engraved vignettes, red and black title-page, top edge gilt. Modern dark brown quarter morocco over original cloth boards, raised bands, gilt-stamped spine title. Bookplate of James Jones. RARE. Fine. MAGNIFICENT CHROMOLITHOGRAPHS OF BRITISH FISH: FIRST EDITION, with all plates present and in fine condition. Sometimes bound as two volumes, but this copy is bound as one, and it is complete. This Victorian book is a gentleman's encyclopedia of the fresh water fish native to Britain. In addition to 41 stunning color full-page plates of each fish described, the book also has a steelcut vignette at the beginning of each description, as well as numerous diagrams and drawings. Reverend William Houghton, a Shropshire clergyman, produced this work with the angler in mind - opposed to the naturalist. Many of the fish are portrayed as game-landed freshwater fish set on the pastoral riverbanks and shorelines of the British Isles. The writing, which accompanies each plate, offers detailed information on the habitat, breeding and capture of the fish. The text page includes a lovely steel-engraved vignette of the natural habitat of the fish, an elegant scene of the river from which the fish was caught.
Offered by Jeff Weber Rare Books.
Cambridge, New York: The Limited Editions Club, 1966-1973. Limited Editions. Hardcover. Quartos, Eight Volumes. In Very Good condition. Housed in publisher's lightly worn black paper slip cases bearing gold labels with black lettering. Bound in quarter leather and cloth boards, both in a variety of colors. Embossed stamp of poet on front board of each volume. Most spines bearing black labels with gold lettering. Minor general shelf wear. Textblocks clean. Enumerated on limitation pages in rear of each volume.
Mild scuffing to spines on "The Poems of William Blake" and "The Poems of Percy Bysshe Shelley." Label on spine of "The Poems of William Blake" red. All signed by respective illustrators on limitation in rear except for "The Poems of William Blake."
All Volumes #174/1500 except "The Poems of William Wordsworth," which is #174/2000.
Offered by Second Story Books.
The Hero with a Thousand Faces
by Campbell, Joseph
New York: Pantheon Books, 1949. First Edition. First edition. xxiii, 416 pp. Bound in publisher's black and green cloth with gilt spine lettering. Good with rubbing to cloth along edges, slight lean to spine, strained edges, wrinkling along bottom edge of pages with tidemark visible to plates. Lacking dust jacket.The first appearance of the influential mythology book, which inspired Star Wars and 2001, among other popular works.
Offered by Burnside Rare Books.
by DAPHNE DU MAURIER
First UK Edition; A Near Fine book in a Near Fine dust jacket. SIGNED by the author on the front free end paper. A pristine copy of this collection of short stories, including "The Birds", the basis for the classic Hitchcock film; by the author of "Rebecca", "My Cousin Rachel", etc.; this book very scarce in collectible condition, particularly signed. This copy is in near fine condition with a square tight binding, bright gold lettering over red boards, and clean white pages; a mild crimp to the spine head and some very light soiling to the exterior text block are present, else fine. Housed in a near fine dust jacket that is clean and bright but does show some light age toning to the spine lettering and some mild rubbing to the spine ends and corners, else fine. An outstanding copy of this book; a bucket list item for the Du Maurier collector or a "books into movies" collector! Not price clipped (10/6 intact), not ex-library; in a protective Mylar cover and will ship in a sturdy box.
Offered by Grayshelf Books.
by LEWIS, SINCLAIR
Garden City, New York: Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc, 1935. First Edition. Hard Cover. Good/Fair. 0x0x0. First edition. Large chip from jacket spine base with associated fading to spine, loss from other jacket corners, jacket edges rubbed with several closed tears, boards lightly soiled, owner bookplate on front endpaper. 1935 Hard Cover. 458 pp. 8vo. Original black cloth, gilt titles. A satirical work of dystopian fiction envisioning an American dictatorship. The causes for the descent into fascism are authentic, making the novel an insightful glimpse of what it looks like to trade one set of evils for another. Lewis wrote the book during the Great Depression, basing the dictatorship on Hitler's, but replacing hateful indoctrination with misleading appeals to American values. Many believe the novel to be a direct reaction to the possible candidacy of Huey Long for president in 1936. It was published five years after Lewis became the first American writer to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. Lewis also won (and declined) the Pulitzer Prize for his 1925 novel Arrowsmith.
Offered by Yesterday's Muse.
by O'CONNOR, FLANNERY
New York: Harcourt, Brace & Company, 1955. Hardcover. Fine/Fine. First edition. Fine in fine dust jacket with none of the usual spine-fading on the dust jacket, and a little soiling not really worthy of the mention. The author's masterpiece, her second book and first book of short stories. A breathtaking collection of horror tales that probe the darkest heart of the South through the use of traditional "Southern Gothic" writing mixed with a nightmare vision seemingly derivative of German expressionism. The equal of, or superior to, any copy we've seen.
Offered by Between the Covers Rare Books.
HOUDINI AND CONAN DOYLE: The Story of a Strange Friendship
by ERNST, BERNARD M.L.; CARRINGTON, HEREWARD; HOUDINI, HARRY; DOYLE, ARTHUR CONAN
New York: Albert and Charles Boni, 1932. First edition. Near fine in very good plus jacket.. Inscribed first printing of this account of Houdini and Doyle's friendship, told through their excerpted correspondence with commentary by Ernst and Carrington, a magician and psychical researcher respectively. As both a qualified lawyer and a magician, Bernard Ernst was well-suited to become Harry Houdini's personal attorney, subsequently his estate's legal representative, and co-author of this study of "two strong, strange men." Copies in the dust jacket are scarce; inscriptions by either author are rare. 8.5'' x 5.75''. Original gilt-lettered brown cloth. In original unclipped ($3.00) dust jacket. 249, [1] pages. Black and white frontispiece photograph. Inscribed by Ernst on front free endpaper: "To Morton J. Newberger / with every good wish / from Bernard M.L. Ernst / May 12, 1933." Though no additional provenance markings, this copy from the library of noted Sherlockian, BSI member since 1973, and retired US magistrate judge Andrew Peck. Light edgewear and bumping to boards. Minor chipping and light foxing to jacket, spine lightly sunned.
Offered by Type Punch Matrix.
Col. W. F. Cody. "Buffalo Bill"
by [CABINET CARD] STACY, CHARLES
Corner 9th St. & 5th Ave, Brooklyn: Stacy. Very Good. Cabinet card [16.5 cm tall x 11 cm wide]. Small loss to foot of mount. "Yours truly, W. F. Cody" stamped in facsimile on the recto.
A cabinet card produced by Charles Stacy.
Offered by Ken Sanders Rare Books.
The Works of Joseph Conrad (20 Volumes) -- Signed!
by CONRAD, JOSEPH
London: William Heinemann, 1921. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Good. Produced in an edition of 780 sets, 750 of which were for sale. This is set #429 and is signed by Joseph Conrad (1857-1924) on the colophon. Brown cloth covers with beige buckram spines and printed black titling, Conrad's signature reproduced in black on the cover of each volume. Wear and scuffing to volumes, creasing to head and foot of spine on each volume, slight darkening to endpapers but very clean within.
Offered by Craig Olson Books.
Why don't you do something, dear, besides just make money?
by MCKAY, DOROTHY
No place, 1956. Original cartoon by Esquire's first female cartoonist, Dorothy McKay, published in the September 1956 issue. McKay enjoyed her longest professional relationship with Esquire, whose founders embraced her edgy sense of humor, often deemed too brash or risqué for publication in magazines like The New Yorker and Collier's. Bowing to the sexist standards of the time, McKay was asked to sign her work simply "D. McKay" for the first decade of her tenure with Esquire so that her illustrator husband Donald would be credited. By the time this full-page color cartoon appeared, on page 88 of the September 1956 issue, McKay had definitively asserted her authorship; while she signs "McKay" here, other Esquire cartoons bore her full name. In this domestic scene, a housewife glances up from painting a still life in her living room to inquire about her husband's comparative lack of hobbies: "Why don't you do something, dear, besides just make money?" A classic, full-color example of Esquire humor by one of the most celebrated funny ladies in American cartoon history. Watercolor, ink, and wash on illustration board, image measuring 15 x 10 inches on board measuring 19 x 13.5 inches. Signed "McKay" in lower left image; captioned by McKay in pencil, lower margin. Board trimmed, with Esquire stamp on recto still partially visible in lower right margin. Outer margins and verso with abrasions and remnants from prior matting, board corners chipped.
Offered by Honey & Wax Booksellers.
The Olympics: Where Men and Women of All Nations Engage in Peaceful Competition
by BEARDEN, ROMARE
Kennedy Graphics, 1976. Poster. Color screenprint. Measures 39 3/4" x 24 7/8." Signed and numbered in pencil in lower margin. 51/200. Expressionist poster for the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal featuring runners and the Olympic torch, framed by a five-color striped border. Poster was designed by Romare Beardon and is signed in pencil in the lower right. Limited edition of 200. In excellent condition. Full margins. Romare Beardon (1911-1988) was an American artist, social worker, and writer. He was a founding member of both the Harlem-based art group known as The Spiral and of the Black Academy of Arts and Letters. He was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1972, and received the National Medal of Arts in 1987.
Offered by Argosy Book Store.
The Affluent Society EASTON PRESS
by GALBRAITH, JOHN KENNETH; ZIEGLER, JEROME M. (INTRO.)
Norwalk: The Easton Press, 1994. Leather_bound. Very good. Leather_bound. 8 1/4" X 5 1/2". vii, 368pp. Bound in gray leather over boards with decorative stamped gilt to covers. Five raised bands to spine with 6 gilt compartments. All-edges gilt. Orange silk moire endpapers. Slight evidence of a removed bookplate at front endpaper. Pages are clean and unmarked. Binding is sound. With gold silk bookmark sewn in.
ABOUT THIS BOOK: John Kenneth Galbraith's classic investigation of private wealth and public poverty in postwar America. With customary clarity, eloquence, and humor, Harvard economist John Kenneth Galbraith gets at the heart of what economic security means in The Affluent Society.
Warning against individual and societal complacence about economic inequity, he offers an economic model for investing in public wealth that challenges "conventional wisdom" (a phrase he coined that has since entered our vernacular) about the long-term value of a production-based economy and the true nature of poverty. Both politically divisive and remarkably prescient, The Affluent Society is as relevant today on the question of wealth in America as it was in 1958.
Offered by Underground Books.
The Indigo Bunting; 15 Love Poems
by BLY, ROBERT; SMITH, THOMAS R. (FOREWORD); CRANMER, KEITH (WOOD ENGRAVINGS)
Santa Rosa: Nawakum Press, 2010. Limited Edition. Hardcover. Fine. Cranmer, Keith. One of 20 deluxe copies, quarto size, [32] pp., signed by Robert Bly, with extra print signed by Cranmer, in a clamshell box. An early publication by the Nawakum Press run by the inimitable David Pascoe, whose name has become synonomous throughout the world of fine press publishing with meticulous craftsmanship and design, often paired with original art work by contemporary artists. As is stated on their web site, "While incorporating the very best from the fine press tradition, the Press also chooses to stretch the boundaries of the modern day book."
This work presents fifteen poems by Robert Elwood Bly (1926-2021), renowned poet and activist, who won the National Book Award for Poetry in 1968 for his book "The Light Around the Body". Per the prospectus, "It has been said that Bly has taken on many roles, among them groundbreaking poet, and remains one of the most hotly debated artists of the past half century The psychologist Robert Moore has said that, 'when the cultural and intellectual history of our time is written, Robert Bly will be recognized as the catalyst for a sweeping cultural revolution.' "
Presented with two original wood engravings by Berkeley artist Keith Cranmer, who began engraving by hand in 1975. He "works on paper with drawing, gouache, ink, and painting...[h]is main interest is representational figurative drawing with, at times, a surreal edge" (n.b., quote from the web site of the American Society of Bookplate Collectors and Designers).
This one of twenty deluxe copies with a separate engraving in a wallet numbered and signed by Cranmer, the engraving and book in a clamshell box.
DESCRIPTION: Quarter bound in foil stamped rich brown leather with burnt orange Cave Paper over boards, paper label on the front board with a wood engraving of the Indigo Bunting, patterned endpapers, the frontispiece a two-colour wood engraving (both this and the engraving on the front board printed letterpress directly from the blocks), title page in brown and black, poem numbers and titles in brown, signed by Robert Bly in ink at the colophon; monotype Walbaum on Hahnemühle Biblio, quarto size (10 3/4" by 6 3/8"), [32] pages, limited edition, this no. 9 of 20 deluxe copies, total edition 100. Enclosed in a paper chemise is an engraving of the Indigo Bunting also used for the cover, signed and numbered in pencil by Keith Cranmer. Both contained in a clamshell box of Japanese brown book cloth, leather spine label with gilt lettering inset.
CONDITION: Volume fine, with clean boards, straight corners without rubbing, a strong, square text block with solid hinges, the interior is clean and bright, and entirely free of prior owner markings; as new directly from the Press. Separate print and chemise also fine, clean and without wear; clamshell box fine, also clean and without wear. Overall a stunning production.
Offered by Swan's Fine Books.
EDMUND DULAC'S FAIRY-BOOK: Fairy Tales of the Allied Nations
by DULAC, EDMUND
London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1916. First Edition. Hardcover. Near fine. This is No. 88 of 350 copies signed by Edmund Dulac. Quarto: [x], 170 p. Original white cloth binding, with elaborate gilt-stamped designs and blue accents. Near fine. Provenance: from the Publishers' Bookbindings collection of Ellen K. Morris and Edward S. Levin.
"British artist Edmund Dulac (1882-1953) was among best-known illustrators of the "Golden Age of Children's Gift Books" during the early twentieth century. After studying at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and winning major prizes for his paintings, he returned to London in 1904 and began his meteoric rise as illustrator of luxury picture books, adapting his skill at pen and ink drawing, watercolor and gouache to new developments in color offset printing technology.
Originally published in 1916 during the darkest days of the Great War (First World War: 1914-1916), Edmund Dulac's Fairy-Book is one of the last examples of this category of high-end publishing, as wartime rationing severely restricted the availability of paper for civilian use. One can only speculate that Dulac's book was given special consideration because of its patriotic focus in presenting a selection of tales representing the Allied nations fighting alongside Great Britain, including France, Russia, Italy, Belgium, Serbia, Japan, and China. (Conspicuously absent are any familiar tales from Germany and the other Central Powers!)
Dulac adapted his own texts, clearly with an eye for describing settings and details that he would highlight in his illustrations. The sixteen tipped-in color plates, each measuring approximately 15 x 13 cm., demonstrate through the different styles he employs his keen interest in the folklore and folk art of each country. For example, his illustration to the Chinese tale "The Story of the Bird Feng" takes the form of a Chinese fan. The Japanese tale "Urashima Taro" is represented by a subtle watercolor clearly influenced by Ukiyo-e woodblock prints. Perhaps most spectacular of all are the illustrations for the Russian tales "Ivan and the Chestnut Horse" and "The Fire Bird," both of which owe a debt to Leon Bakst's opulent stage designs for Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes productions" (Minneapolis College of Art and Design).
Offered by johnson rare books & archives.
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