On Collecting Books

The Charleston Library Society, the oldest library in the South, has been conducting a muti-year search and cataloguing project to record the multitude of volumes it contains in its vault. (The library has been moved a number of times over the years and collections have been integrated, thus necessitating the project.) Recently the search unearthed a rare, 270-year-old book on political parties, Henry St. John Lord Bollinbroke's Dissertation Upon Parties. Published in 1743, the book was one of 800 volumes donated to the College of Charleston by John Mackenzie, a planter and diplomat in the 1700s. His library was housed at the Charleston Library Society until the college could erect its own library, but after a terrible fire in 1778 all but 77 of Mackenzie's donated books were thought to be lost. This newfound 78th volume, which is embossed with Mackenzie's name, will be returned to Charleston College in a special ceremony today. The book is quite rare; only 15 other copies remain in existence and most of them are held in academic libraries. A limited number to be sure, but the survival of that "many copies of a book that's almost 270 years old shows it was popular at the time". The search has turned up some other exciting discoveries, including two letters penned by Alexander Hamilton and "a unique third letter written by John Marshall, chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, to South Carolinian Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, who helped draft the Constitution", on the day that... [more 270-year-old Book and Other Valuable Documents Unearthed in the Charleston Library Society Vault]

After a friend showed Thom Adorney, a retired Colorado schoolteacher, an antique whaling journal written by an ancestor in the 1850s, Mr. Adorney had a great idea: why not give students at the local Ute Meadows Elementary School the unique opportunity to unlock history for themselves? For over a year now, that's exactly what students have been doing. The entire journal was photographed and students have been diligently transcribing its contents and recreating a map of the three year journey by entering navigational points onto Google Earth. The students expect to finish the transcription and map by the end of the month and, upon completion, their work will be published by the New Bedford Whaling Museum in Massachusetts. (The museum notes that over 14,000 whaling journals were created but most were lost over time.) Mr. Adorney is ecstatic that the children have been so engaged in the project and that they are actually participating in history rather than just learning about it. "Teachers always struggle to make history come alive for kids," he said. "It doesn't get any more real than this unless we're able to transport them back to the time and put them on the deck of the ship." You can watch a video report of this story below. Students work to document 155-year-old whaling journal [more Elementary School Children Bring History To Life with an Antique Whaling Journal]

On May 1, Emory University's Manuscripts, Archives, and Rare Book Library (MARBL) opened the archive of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) to the public. The SCLC was founded in 1957 by seminal civil rights leaders including Martin Luther King Jr. in response to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Black leaders in the southeast were cognizant that the boycott was the beginning of a much larger movement and formed the SCLC as a means to coordinate further protest activities. At the first convention, held in Montgomery in August of 1957, the SCLC developed some basic resolutions: the use of nonviolent mass action as a strategic foundation of the movement, affiliation with local community organizations throughout the region, and a commitment to keep the SCLC open to all who wanted to participate, regardless of race, color or creed. The archive is a collection of 981 boxes of materials that report on the SCLC's activities from 1968-2007 (the organization is still active today), and includes correspondence, memos, reports and meeting minutes in addition to photographs, flyers, and both audio and visual recordings. Audio recordings include transcripts and other materials from Martin Luther King Speaks, a radio show that aired from 1967-1979. Speeches and lectures by prominent civil rights leaders were aired on the program, but the show explored a range of social issues, including women's rights and the anti-war movement. The archive reveals the SCLC's involvement in a numb... [more Highly Anticipated Civil Rights Archive Opens to the Public]

For many readers of this blog, the answer is obvious, but based on the responses I occasionally receive when I tell people who I work for or about one of our fairs (blank stares and sometimes an "antiquari-what?), it's very clear to me that not everyone is 'in the know'. The most evident reasonto buy rare bookscan be easily deduced, but it overlooks the pure pleasure of attending, whether you leave with books in hand or not, and what I consider to be the true spirit of the show: a celebration of books, history, and intellect. I attended my first antiquarian book fair here in New York two years ago, before I had any idea what the ABAA was. Literature has always played a central role in my life, both academically and personally, so when my aunt, also a bibliophile and minor collector, invited my boyfriend and I to attend the show with her we accepted eagerly. We were unsure of what to expect, but figured that if there were lots of books involved then it couldn't be that bad. Armed with no real expectations, I was staggered to arrive on the show floor and behold the immensity of the Armory and its current inhabitantsfirst editions of every classic I had ever read, texts from the Renaissance, maps and prints I had only seen the likes of in galleries and institutions. I was overwhelmed, albeit in a good way, and before I had even begun to look around I realized that I wanted to spend more time there than I had allowed for that evening. I wandered through the aisles in silent wo... [more Why Visit an Antiquarian Book Fair?]

There are only two days left before the NY Antiquarian Book Fair opens to the public! In addition to the more than 200 exhibitors coming in from all parts of the country and the world, collectors and book lovers will be coming to NYC for the fair. Refreshments will be offered on the show floor, but below are a few recommendations for a variety of nearby restaurants. Bon appetit! For a nice meal&.. Daniel 60 E 65th St New York, NY 10065 (212) 288-0033 Menus * Yelp Reviews JoJo 160 E 64th St New York, NY 10021 (212) 223-5656 Menus * Yelp Reviews Bistro Chat Noir 22 E 66th St New York, NY 10065 (212) 794-2428 Menus * Yelp Reviews Uva 1486 2nd Ave New York, NY 10021 (212) 472-4552 Menus * Yelp Reviews The Modern 9 W 53rd St New York, NY 10019 (212) 333-1220 Menus * Yelp Reviews David Burke Townhouse 133 E 61st St New York, NY 10065 (212) 813-2121 Menus * Yelp Reviews Sushi of Gari 402 E 78th St New York, NY 10021 (212) 517-5340 Menus * Yelp Reviews A quick bite&.. Luke's Lobster 242 E 81st St New York, NY 10028 (212) 249-4241 Menu * Yelp Reviews Shake Shack 154 E 86th St New York, NY 10128 (646) 237-5035 Menu * Yelp Reviews The Candle Cafe (good for vegetarians and vegans) 1307 3rd Ave New York, NY 10021 (212) 472-0970 Menu * Yelp Reviews Pret A Manger 400 Park Avenue New York, NY 10022 212-207-4101 Menu If you have little ones with you&.. Alice's Tea Cup (Chapter II) 156 E 64th St New York, NY 10021 (212) 486-9200 Menus * Yelp Reviews Serendipity 3 225 E 60th St New York, NY 100... [more NY Book Fair: Where to Eat]

David Rayfield is a lettings agent who was performing a valuation at a home in Oxfordshire, UK when he noticed something peculiar: a very old book being used as a bedroom doorstop. The book was entitled "Corporation of Wallingford" and turned out to be a rare 1799 book of statutes, which detailed laws enacted by Parliament. The resident allowed Mr. Rayfield to take the book to the Wallingford Museum, where curator Judy Dewey and her colleagues are currently examining and researching it. “Councils couldn't consult the internet in those days so they all had books of statutes as reference books to show them all the laws that had been passed by Parliament," Mrs. Dewey explains. “It's fascinating because it provides such a detailed picture of 18th century life." I'm glad that the book 'rediscovered' and can provide a significant historical snapshot of this area. I can't get over where it was found, thoughbeing used as a doorstop?! Cringeworthy, to be sure, but this story also highlights how exciting appraising and scouting can beyou never know what you'll find or where you'll find it! Rare history book used as doorstop [more *Cringe*: Rare Book Used as a Doorstop]

The NY Antiquarian Book Fair is only 9 days away (!) and the eager anticipation is palpable. The Americana Exchange calls the Fair "the signal event for book, maps, manuscripts and ephemera collectors in America" as it "attracts the most important dealers, institutions and collectors from across the United States and around the world." AE couldn't be more right on—the NY Fair should not be missed by any lovers of books, art, history, music, popular culture…there's truly something there for everybody! Click here for a few exhibitor highlights. NY Antiquarian Book Fair April 12-15 Park Avenue Armory Fair Hours: Preview: Thursday April 12, 5-9 pm Friday, April 13: 12-8 pm Saturday, April 14: 12-7 pm Sunday, April 15: 12-5 pm [more NY Book Fair Countdown: 9 Days]



Friday's Features

By Susan Benne

Tune in, turn on, drop out. Excerpts from the Acid Test by GRATEFUL DEAD and Ken Kesey First Edition Offered by: Ken Lopez Bookseller, ABAA Seller Inventory #: 029100 Edition: First Edition Publisher: Sound City Productions Place: San Francisco Date published: Description: San Francisco: Sound City Productions. . The first recording by the Grateful Dead, who had been known as the Warlocks about a month earlier. This is a 7" 33 RPM promotional record, labeled "For Radio Play Only, Not for Sale" and consists of excerpts from the Acid Test album that Sound City was producing. The recording was made at the Sound City studio and was the seventh Acid Testcommunal events/happenings that were open to the public and at which LSD, "acid"which was still legal in California at the timewas freely distributed to the attendees. The Sound City Acid Test, because it took place in a recording studio, was more of a private event than earlier, or later, Acid Tests. It was also the last one Kesey himself participated in. He had been arrested for marijuana possession for the second time two weeks earlier, and had had to show up in disguise at the sixth Acid Test a week earlier at Longshoremen's Hall in San Francisco, in order to avoid reporters and the police. Within a week of the Sound City Acid Test, Kesey had left the country and gone into hiding in Mexico. The Grateful Dead had been the house band for the Acid Tests since they began in 1965, but under their earlier name of The Warlocks. By ... [more Friday's Features]

On Wednesday, a rare book collection that would leave any modern art enthusiast drooling is set to be auctioned in Paris. The collection comes from a French couple identified only by their initials, R. & B.L., and is comprised of various works by countless modern masters- Picasso, Matisse, Miró, Braque, Chagall, and Toulouse-Lautrec, to name a few. "This collection, in which Picasso plays a key position, unites poetry, literature, painting and beautiful bindings," says Anne Heilbronn, the head of the book and manuscript department at Sotheby's Paris. A handful of the items that will be offered tomorrow: * Matisse sketchbook from 1930 * Matisse's exquisite 1947 artist book, Jazz * 32 books with illustrations by Picasso, dating from 1905-1960, and including a very rare copy of André Salmon's Poèmes, which contains an etching of two acrobats (only 10 copies of this print are known to have survived) * Blaise Cendrars's La Prose du Transsibérien et de la petite Jehanne de France (Prose of the Trans-Siberian and of the little Jeanne of France), illustrated by Sonia Delaunay. The book folds out like an accordion and is considered to be a major milestone in artists's books. (Check out photos at the link below.) * Paul Verlaine's Parallèlement with a mother of pearl binding by Eugène-Alain Séguy *Rose Adler's abstract, mosaic binding for Ovid's Metamorphoses, which contains 30 etchings by Picasso Did I mention that my birthday is this week? Please click here to view all the en... [more Amazing Rare Art Book Collection Goes to Auction]