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This private collection of books (lots 1-217) was largely compiled by Thomas Henshaw, one of the founder members of the Royal Society. It formed the foundation of the Halsey library at Gaddesden Place in Hertfordshire, Henshaw’s only surviving child Anne having married Thomas Halsey MP of Gaddesden. A noted alchemist interested in scientific research, Thomas Henshaw was the son of Benjamin Henshaw, one of the City Captains of London, and his wife Anne Bonham. He served in the Kings army during the Civil War, and was then overseas during the Commonwealth. After service under William II, Prince of Orange, he travelled extensively in Italy in the 1640s, and returned to England after Charles I’s execution. In 1672 Henshaw attended Charles Stewart, 3rd Duke of Richmond, ambassador extraordinary to the court of Denmark, as secretary of the embassy and assistant to the duke. Following the latter’s death on 12 December of that year, Henshaw remained in Denmark as envoy extraordinary, for two and a half years. Henshaw was a friend and travelling companion of John Evelyn, references to whom appear in his pocket diary and whose tutor he was. He was appointed Charles II's under-secretary of the French tongue and gentleman of the privy council in ordinary; this appointment was gained with Evelyn's help. He continued as French secretary under James II and William III. His time as envoy to Denmark may account for the number of books related to Scandinavia in the collection. Thomas was buried in Kensington where he lived, while his daughter Anne is commemorated by a large memorial in the Halsey Chapel in Great Gaddesden church. Almost all the books in the collection bear the bookplate of Gaddesden House.

Regional auction houses in the UK report a surge of interest in their revised online-only sales since the spread of Covid-19 forced us to find more things to do via our computers. At Lyon & Turnbull, headquartered in Edinburgh, a behind-closed-doors sale of decorative arts and design on April 1 recorded nearly 1,400 bidders, double those registered at its equivalent real-life sale last October. “We took the gamble that there would be a lot of people at home with nothing to do and fewer auctions to participate in, as so many were cancelled or postponed — and it paid off,” says Gavin Strang, managing director of Lyon & Turnbull. He conducted the auction from the rostrum in its Edinburgh saleroom via Zoom and Microsoft Teams — with a socially distanced technician to hand. The increased activity meant that the 654-lot auction took a full 12 hours to complete and also helped several items soar above estimate. Top lot was a bronze cast of George Frampton’s Kensington Gardens sculpture of Peter Pan (1911), which sold for £35,000 (with fees, est £15,000-£20,000). Also selling above estimate were an embroidery of a tabby cat (1935) by May Morris, the daughter of the Pre-Raphaelite artist William Morris, which sold for £10,625 with fees, and a pair of faience (glazed earthenware) vases, c1880, by Théodore Deck for £6,875, with fees. The sale even scored an artist record when a marble panel by the Leith-born sculptor Thomas Whalen (1903-1875) sold for £13,125. Other auction houses that also report virtual successes since the end of March include London’s Forum Auctions, Oxfordshire’s armour specialist Antony Cribb and Wallis & Wallis in East Sussex.

A heartfelt letter penned by King George IV to the Duke of Wellington praising him for his success in the Battle of Vitoria in 1813 has been unveiled after 207 years.

The monarch, who became Prince Regent in 1811 before going on to succeed his father George III to the throne in 1820, wrote the two page correspondence following Wellington's triumph in the decisive battle.

The battle, which took place in Spain on June 21 in 1813, saw Wellington's combined British-Portuguese-Spanish army defeat King Joseph Bonaparte's French soldiers during the Peninsula war.  

In the letter, which is now on auction at Forum Auctions and is expected to fetch £120, the military leader, who went on to defeat Napoleon Bonaparte at Waterloo two years later, said that his 'glorious conduct was above all human praise'.

As a token of his appreciation, he said he would send him a Field Marshal's baton, adding: 'You have sent me among the trophies of your unrivalled fame the staff of a French Marshal, and I send you in return that of England.'  

A copy of George IV's letter has now emerged for sale with London-based Forum Auctions.

It is believed to be from the hand of one of the Royal household, or from a member of Wellington's staff, as a matter of record.

The battle of Vitoria, which took place on June 21, 1813, was decisive in breaking Napoleon Bonaparte's control over Spain during the Peninsular War.  

On the day of the attack, Wellington split his soldiers into four attacking 'columns' and sent them towards Bonaparte's French army who were situated in a defensive position in the Spanish city of Vitoria. 

At 8am, the allies crossed the Zadorra river at several bridges to the west in order to attack the heights overlooking the French army before heavy battle ensued. 

The battle saw around 5,000 troops under Wellington's command killed while the French lost around 8,000 of their soldiers. 

King George IV, who was 21st Prince of Wales, did not officially ascend to the throne until 1820 following the death of George III, but his father's increasingly ailing mental health meant he effectively ruled from 1811 onwards.

His high opinion of Wellington was not reciprocated by the duke who reputedly thought he spent too much, was morally corrupt and lazy.

It is said that he often destroyed correspondence he received from George IV, meaning this could be the only surviving record of this letter.

It has been consigned for sale by a private collector.

Max Hasler, specialist at Forum Auctions, said: 'This copy letter praises Wellington in extravagant terms after his victory at the Battle of Vitoria, and he sends him a Field Marshal's baton.

'It was presumably from one of the Royal household or a member of Wellington's staff for their staff records.

'The letter has been in the same private collection for the past 30 years.' 

Wellington went on to twice be prime minister, with his first stint (1828-30) under the reign of George IV who died in 1830.

He was also prime minister for a month in 1834.

The sale of the letter, which is expected to fetch £120, takes place tomorrow.

Forum Auctions is hosting a single-lot live online-only sale to raise money for the NHS Charities Covid-19 Urgent Appeal.

The artwork to be offered via thesaleroom.com is by the urban artist James McQueen. His pictures often focus on reworking Penguin Classic book titles. The 6ft x 4ft (1.83 x 1.22m) picture, titled ‘You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone”, has a starting estimate of £2000 and was hand-painted by McQueen to support the NHS.

Forum Auctions chief executive Stephan Ludwig said: “We are tremendously grateful to James for having created this unique and substantial artwork to raise charitable funds for the Covid-19 Urgent Appeal. Our public healthcare system is performing absolutely brilliantly and the painting’s poignant message underscores one of the more challenging and unpopular debates surrounding the NHS’ future structure.”

James McQueen said: “I have been truly touched by the courage that NHS staff have shown during this crisis. It takes a special kind of person to do the job that they do. They are real life heroes. We must commemorate those who have and will sadly lose their lives during this terrible time and to remember how much we need the NHS.”

The auction will be webcast live at 6pm on May 8 with Forum’s Rupert Powell on the rostrum. Bids can be placed in advance from midday on May 1 via thesaleroom.com.

On Tuesday 21st January Forum Auctions is offering a unique hand sprayed variant numbered 1/250 of Banksy’s iconic Rude Copper image. The work is signed and further embellished with Banksy’s trademark red ink tag. 

Printed by Pictures on Walls in 2002, Rude Copper is recognised as the artist’s first commercially produced screen-print and introduced Banksy’s work to the fine art market for the first time. 

Of the 250 examples, only c.50 were signed and fewer still hand sprayed with the ‘FUCK THE POLICE’ tagline. Acquired by the seller at Sydney’s inaugural Semi Permanent exhibition in 2003 for only $400 AUD, the work is estimated to sell for £70,000 - £90,000 and promises to be keenly contested by collectors.

Rude Copper’s blunt messaging questions the traditionally romanticised image of the friendly neighbourhood bobby on the beat, instead warning us to be wary of authority. The image also parodies the cat-and-mouse relationship between graffiti artists and the police’s efforts to crack down on the vandalism of public spaces. Banksy’s subversive images of policemen have adorned any number of buildings and doorways over the years, from his infamous Kissing Coppers in Brighton to his rediscovered Snorting Copper in Hackney, London.

Forum Auctions’ sale of Editions and Works on Paper is being held at The Westbury Hotel on Tuesday 21st January. Alongside Rude Copper (Lot 266), a further seven numbered and signed prints will be on offer; Napalm (Lot 264), Morons (Lot 265), Grannies (Lot 268), Monkey Queen (Lot 269), Love is in the Air (Lot 270), Silver Flag (Lot 271) and Trolleys (Lot 272).

Forum Auctions is London’s specialist auctioneer for works on paper and sells over a quarter of all Banksy numbered editions that come to auction on the secondary market annually.

Banksy's first commercially produced screenprint to be offered at Forum Auctions next week.

Eight Banksy prints will be offered and among the highlights is Banksy’s Rude Copper print, numbered one out of an edition of 250.

According to Forum, this picture was printed by Pictures on Walls in 2002 and is recognised as the artist’s first commercially produced screenprint.

Of the 250 in the edition, only c.50 were signed and fewer still hand sprayed with the ‘FUCK THE POLICE’ tagline. 

It had been purchased by the seller at Sydney’s Semi Permanent exhibition in 2003 for AUS$400.

It will be offered at Forum’s Editions and Works on Paper sale on January 21 at The Westbury Hotel with an estimate of £70,000-90,000. It is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Banksy’s Pest Control Office. 

According to the description the image “questions the traditionally romanticised image of the friendly neighbourhood bobby on the beat, instead warning us to be wary of authority. The image also parodies the cat-and-mouse relationship between graffiti artists and the police’s efforts to crack down on the vandalism of public spaces.” 

View and bid for Banksy's Rude Copper via thesaleroom.com.

Forum Auctions’ sale includes seven other numbered and signed prints such as Napalm and Love is in the Air. 

A photo album showing giving a guided tour of the locations that inspired one of his most famous works is being put up for auction.

The Hardy Society would like to see it saved for the nation and is looking for partners to help buy it when it goes on sale this month. The album contains some of the last images of Hardy, aged 85, two years before he died, as he gave a tour of Dorchester in 1926. The town inspired The Mayor of Casterbridge, published in 1886.

John Drinkwater, the poet and playwright, took photos as he was shown the landmarks that feature in the novel.

Tony Fincham, chairman of the Hardy Society, said that the tour would have been an “extremely rare” event.

Evocative photographs showing Victorian author Thomas Hardy visiting real-life locations that inspired him to write The Mayor of Casterbridge have emerged almost 100 years later.

The great novelist gave a literary friend a guided tour of 'Casterbridge' - based largely on Dorchester, Dorset - 40 years after writing his classic book.

John Drinkwater took photographs of landmarks and venues that feature in the 1886 novel as well as some of the last images of Hardy - who died just two years later.

Among the locations depicted is Ten Hatches Weir, a riverside beauty spot where Michael Henchard - the Mayor of Casterbridge - contemplates suicide.  

Hardy described how the flawed character 'stood on the brink of the stream' before changing his mind upon seeing an effigy of himself floating by.

Incredibly, the 1926 photo shows Hardy stood at the same spot with his wife Florence.

Another black and white image shows Florence sat alone in the Roman ampitheatre of Maumbury Rings on the outskirts of Dorchester, Dorset.

In the novel, Hardy wrote how the Henchard secretly met the long-lost wife at the amphitheatre 18 years after he had drunkenly and shamefully sold her.

There is a shot of the iconic facade of the Kings Arms Hotel in Dorchester where Mrs Henchard looked in through the bow windows to find her former husband presiding over a feast.

Mr Drinkwater, a playwright, documented his visit of Hardy's home in a photo album that has now been offered for sale for the first time.

He titled the album 'The Mayor of Casterbridge' with a description on the front cover reading, 'Photographs of Casterbridge (Dorchester) taken on August 6, 1926 when I was taken by T.H to see the scenes of the book.'

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7868717/Victorian-author-Thomas-Hardy-visiting-locations-inspired-Mayor-Casterbridge.html, 9th January 2020

The history of the rare book world has, over the centuries, been peppered with landmark single- owner auctions which not only have created a sensation at the time but have also influenced and driven the way collectors and dealers ever since have approached book-collecting. The last 30 years have seen several of the greatest collections in their respective fields dispersed – Bradley Martin, Estelle Doheny, Lord Wardington, The Earls of Macclesfield, Frank Streeter and, most recently, Franklin Brooke-Hitching. One auction which stands alongside these in importance is The Collection of The Garden Ltd., conceived and created by Haven O’More and auctioned in New York in late 1989. O’More’s goal was to assemble “the finest examples of mankind’s greatest books” and indeed the auction catalogue reads like a book collector’s dream wish-list: the true first edition of Cervantes’ Don Quixote; the finest copy of Copernicus’ De revolutionbus in private hands; a perfect matching set of Shakespeare’s four folios; and the autograph manuscript of John Locke’s An Essay concerning Human Understanding, to name but a few. The current trend for collecting high-spots or ‘trophy’ books was born here.

The upcoming Forum Auctions sale on 21st November 2019 – over 550 lots of Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper – opens with 173 lots from The Collection of The Garden Ltd., the Estate of Haven O’More. None of these books appears to have been included in the 1989 auction -- all were either retained or acquired since -- but all bear the distinguishing features of this most singular collector: rarity, exceptional condition and many of considerable significance in respect of the history of printing or ideas.

The lots are largely divided into two subject areas – fine printing/illustrated books; and science/philosophy. Examples from many of the greatest private presses and exponents of ‘the book beautiful’ – often combining superb typography with exceptional illustrations – are offered to a current generation of collectors. Most notably, there are over a dozen lots by or relating to the Doves Press, including the Catalogue Raisonné of Books printed at the Doves Press 1900-1916 in a superb binding of gilt-stamped russet morocco by T.J. Cobden Sanderson at the Doves Bindery (lot 17, est. £4,000-6,000). Lot 16, likewise handsomely bound by Cobden Sanderson himself, but this time in dark green morocco, and again in exceptional condition, is Wordsworth’s The Prelude, printed at the Doves Press in 1915 in an edition of only 155 copies (est. £3,000-5,000). Offerings from the Golden Cockerel Press include Eric Gill’s two masterpieces – Troilus and Criseyde, 1927 (lot 23, est. £2,500-3,500) and Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, 4 vol., 1929-31 (lot 25, est. £4,000-6,000); other presses include examples from Cranach, Gregynog, Kelmscott, Nonesuch, and Officina Bodoni (who printed a volume of O’More’s own poetry).

O’More was also an associate trustee of the William Blake Trust, which reproduced magnificent, facsimile Trianon Press limited editions of all of Blake’s works. The Forum auction offers a near complete set of the Trianon Press works, many of them in their special formats and smallest limitations usually reserved for the trustees themselves, as well as other books by or about Blake. Again, the condition of practically every book coming under the hammer is exceptionally fine.

The scientific lots cover a wide range of dates and subjects, but the main focus is on atomic theory and quantum physics. Foremost among these is lot 145, Niels Bohr’s On the Constitution of Atoms and Molecules, which comprises three extremely rare offprints from the Philosophical Magazine, 1913, the first of which is signed by the author to fellow physicist Kasimir Fajans. These papers constitute the birth of modern atomic theory and carry an estimate of £20,000-30,000. Other highlights include the ‘three-man paper’ by Born, Heisenberg and Jordan on quantum mechanics; Einstein’s paper Ist die Trägheit eines Körpers von seinem Energieinhalt abhängig?, which developed into his most famous of equations, E=mc2; Heisenberg’s Über Quantentheoretische Umdeutung kinematischer und mechanischer Beziehungen, 1925, on the discovery of matrix mechanics and a cornerstone text of quantum physics; James Clerk Maxwell’s A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism, 2 vol., 1873, the research on which Einstein directly based his theories of special and general Relativity; the first appearance in a western language of Mendeleev’s Periodic Table, 1872; Röntgen’s two landmark papers on X-rays from 1895 and 1896; the two papers by Ernest Rutherford on the discovery of the atomic nucleus and the structure of the atom, 1911 and 1914, and his seminal paper on atomic fission, Collision of Alpha Particles with Light Atoms, 1919, announcing the splitting of the atom and the discovery of the proton. Earlier works by Euclid, Boscovich and Boole lend context to this selection of scientific works that has had such an explosive impact on the way humanity now views and uses the world around itself, both on the macro and sub-atomic levels.

Every book from this premier collection bears the small leather book-label of Haven O’More, thus preserving his legacy for future generations of collectors.

For the full catalogue, details of viewing times and more information about the auction, please visit forumauctions.co.uk

For more information about Haven O’More, his poetry, his library, and his other works, please see havenomore.com

 

 

Forum Auctions is excited to be offering a signed presentation copy of James Joyce’s Dubliners in their forthcoming Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper auction on 26th September. This copy of the 1914 first edition, estimated at £100,000-150,000, is only the fourth known signed copy to have appeared at auction and was previously unrecorded. Dubliners is widely regarded as one of the greatest collections of short stories and Joyce one of the great masters of the English language, making inscribed copies exceptionally desirable. This copy was inscribed within a few days of publication to one of Joyce’s students, Beatrice Randegger, who would have bought it most likely directly from the author for the original retail price of 3 shillings and 6 pence. It was passed down to the recipient’s daughter and upon her death placed in a box and stored in a warehouse along with her other belongings. It was only in the last year, when her son the current owner decided to sort through her remaining possessions, that the book was discovered and the decision was taken to offer this extraordinary item through Forum Auctions.

On 29^th May 1875 Captain Sir George Nares led an expedition on board the Discovery and the Alert to the Canadian arctic, the main purpose of which was to reach the North Pole. The two-year expedition attained the most northerly point hitherto reached in the Canadian arctic; charted nearly 400km of unknown coastline; and a party led by Cdr. A.H. Markham made an attempt to reach the pole, reaching 83° 20’ N before turning back due to ice drift and rough conditions. On board H.M.S. Discovery was a young naval officer, Reginald Baldwin Fulford, and many of his personal items, having been passed down by descent in his family, have been consigned for sale in Forum Auctions’ 26^th September sale of Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper.

First of the 8 lots on offer (lot 48) is a superb photograph album compiled by the 24-year-old Lieutenant, comprising 56 albumen prints, many (if not all) of which are by Thomas Mitchell, the paymaster in H.M.S. Discovery. An amateur photographer, Mitchell was trained at the request of Captain Nares at the Army School of Photography in Chatham especially for this expedition. The images include groups of ‘Eskimeau’ and native women and views of the ice-bound ships, sledging parties, the crew and their dogs etc. The lot carries an estimate of £3,000-4,000.

The most highly priced item (lot 50), and the most iconic, is the original sledge flag used by Fulford on his exploratory missions. The large metre-long blue silk swallowtail flag carries the rather apt embroidered legend “Bear up”. In Nares’ own account of his expedition, published in 1878, he writes: “On the 15^th [July 1876] Lieutenant Fulford crossed Hall’s Basin from Polaris to Discovery Bay and found the ice stationary until he arrived within two miles of the west shore; there he came to broken-up ice in motion, across which he had difficulty in reaching the shore with his sledge crew.” This unique piece of polar ephemera is estimated to fetch £4,000-6,000.

Other personal effects include his snow glasses (in their original case – lot 49), est. £400-600; a tea cup and saucer plus coffee cup and saucer used in the British Arctic Expedition (lot 51), est. £400-600; and the Arctic Medal, awarded to Fulford (lot 53), est. £2,000-3,000.

Lots 48-55 (relating to Reginald Baldwin Fulford) will be sold as part of Forum Auctions’ sale of Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper on Thursday 26^th September 2019 which takes place at The Westbury Hotel in Mayfair, London.

Please CLICK HERE to view the Reginald Baldwin Fulford Collection.

Please CLICK HERE to view the complete auction.

For bidding and information, please contact:
r.powell@forumauctions.co.uk | +44 (0) 20 7871 2640 | www.forumauctions.co.uk

 

From the East End to the West End, from Monaco to Tobago, Forum Auctions presents a dynamic collection of photographs covering British Photographer Norman Parkinson’s career while he was based out of his Twickenham studio. Gifted to his former studio assistant upon the close of his London space, Angela Williams, these works have remained exclusively a part of the Angela Williams Archive until now.

Parkinson is undoubtedly one of the most important photographers in British history, having revolutionised the British fashion scene through his humorous and elegant style. His charming images captured not only the British fashion scene of Fifties and Sixties, but also the iconic faces and places that made up Swinging London; including British socialites, actors, and the theatre scene—he even became the official photographer of the British Royal family. 

After establishing his London studio in 1934, he quickly became a regular contributor to Vogue Magazine, Queen Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar. He went on to become one of their most important photographers. Parkinson also had a keen eye for discovering talent, including models Jerry Hall, Grace Coddington, and Nena von Schlebrügge. The latter is the subject of three important lots in the present sale, which feature her first test shots as a young model (Lots 13, 14, 15). Von Schlebrügge, actor Uma Thurman’s mother, was first spotted by Parkinson as a teenager in Stockholm and shortly thereafter moved to London to pursue her career. In these images, Von Schlebrügge displays her fresh-faced elegance and striking beauty that went on to skyrocket her to fame.

Provenance: At the age of twenty-one, aspiring photographer Angela Williams was introduced to the eminent fashion photographer Norman Parkinson. This meeting went well and she soon became his assistant, developing a collaborative and close working relationship with Parkinson during the 1960s. When the time came for Parkinson to downsize from his Twickenham studio in London, Williams was there to help him sort his possessions. As a thank you, the photographer agreed to gift her his working vintage prints. Williams went on to spend over two decades curating and researching these rare silver prints, now known cumulatively as ‘The Angela Williams Archive’. This sale marks their first presentation to market.

Forum Auctions’ 11 July sale of Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper takes place almost exactly 50 years since the launch of the first manned mission to the Moon, Apollo 11, in July 1969.  The anniversary is marked by the inclusion of four exceptional vintage photographic items, including one of the most reproduced images of the 20th century.

The first is a rare set of twelve images including some of the very first from the lunar surface. The majority were taken by Neil Armstrong who was tasked by NASA with photographing most of the lunar views, but one outstanding image was shot by Buzz Aldrin when he tilted his chest-mounted camera downwards to photograph the impression of his moonboot in the lunar soil. The uncommon square format of this group reflects those of the original 70mm Hasselblad camera negatives.  (lot 518 est. £4,000-6,000)

The second captures Aldrin as he climbs down the ladder from the lunar module just before stepping onto the Moon. This is a rare large-format photograph, 14 x 11 in. (lot 515 est. £2,000-3,000). 

The third is an even larger, 16 x 20 in., image of Aldrin saluting the American flag. (lot 517 est. £3,000-5,000)

The fourth is the most sought-after of all vintage lunar photographs and among the most reproduced images of the 20th century.

Why has it achieved such mythic status? Buzz Aldrin is portrayed full length, standing in a shallow crater with the lunar horizon sloping away behind him, his arm bent as he checks the to-do list on his forearm. The horizon line is mirrored in his visor, gold-coated to reflect solar radiation. Also reflected are the lunar module, Aldrin’s long shadow thrown by the sun and the photographer, Neil Armstrong. All the essential elements of the first moonlanding are here and the photograph appears perfectly composed. In reality, Armstrong’s Hasselblad camera had no viewfinder and the image was captured on the point and shoot principle. “It wasn’t staged, it was just a lucky shot” said Aldrin. “As I walked away from the Eagle lunar module, Neil said “Hold it Buzz”, so I stopped and turned around, and then he took what has become known as the ‘Visor’ photo.” The photograph offered for sale is a large-format, 14 x 11 in. vintage print. Its iconic significance was not lost on Andy Warhol who reworked the image in one of his last prints, Moonwalk, 1987.  (lot 516 est. £5,000-7,000)

 

We’ve all got one or two Harry Potter books lying around at home. But it might just be worth digging them out after one copy of The Philosopher’s Stone was valued at a whopping £30,000. The book is a first edition and just one of 500 of its kind. It is now open to bids on the Forum Auctions website, having been given up by a collector.

Max Hasler, a modern first editions specialist at Forum Auctions, said he was expecting the book to do well at around £20,000 to £30,000. He said: ‘It is an ex-library copy which does detract for obvious reasons. ‘Some collectors are looking for a copy with no blemishes – these days those copies can make upwards of £60-70,000, so relative to that you could say this is a bargain.’ Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone was first published in June 1997 in the UK. The main characteristics of a first edition is a line that reads ’10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1′ and sometimes the crediting of ‘Joanne Rowling’ instead of ‘JK’. Early editions also have a picture of young Dumbledore on the back cover, rather than an illustration him with a long white beard. Mr Hasler said that six or seven years ago first editions were going for around £6,000 to 8,000, indicating a vast change in price. He said: ‘It’s partly because people in their thirties who grew up reading it are now at the age where some of them have got a bit of excess cash and are looking for something to collect or invest in. ‘Now we’re expecting it to do well at £20,000 to 30,000, and that’s unusual really in any collectable world, to see something increase at that rate.’ The copy up for auction has a lot of wear and tear, including bumped corners, laminate peeling and clipped extremities. However, it is ‘quite a nice copy’ according to Mr Hasler, although he added that the same copy in mint condition could go for up to £60,000 to £80,000.

 

 

 

Here is a selection of highlights from across its Editions and Works on Paper sale on January 29 and its Private Press, Illustrated Books and Modern First Editions auction on January 30.

1. Lowry pencil sketch

A 1962 pencil on paper 'Girl pushing three children in a pram' signed and dated by Laurence Stephen Lowry (1887-1976) will be offered at Forum Auctions.

A 1962 pencil on paper Girl pushing three children in a pram signed and dated by Laurence Stephen Lowry (1887-1976) will be offered at Forum Auctions’ Editions and Works on Paper 1500-2018 sale on January 29. From a private collection, with provenance to dealers Richard Green Gallery and Trinity House Paintings, the 7.5 x 9.75in (19 x 25cm) work is estimated at £10,000-15,000. View the lot on thesaleroom.com. 

2. Golden Cockerel Gospels illustrated by Eric Gill

 Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Close to 300 lots of private press books feature in the sale and among them is this copy of the celebrated 1931 Golden Cockerel Press Four Gospels of the Lord Jesus Christ. It includes wood-engraved illustrations and initials by Eric Gill. Numbered  296 of 500, this copy was owned by art collector and Arts & Crafts movement patron Laurence W Hodson (1864-1933). It is inscribed by him to his daughter-in-law Lilian: Given to Lilian. Christmas 1931. It is estimated at £5000-7000. View the lot on thesaleroom.com.

3. Rare lithographic poster for SS Normandie

 A rare lithographic poster for SS Normandie to be offered at Forum.

This 1938 rare lithographic poster - a classic Art Deco image from the golden age of travel by French designer Adolphe Cassandre (1901-68) - is estimated at £9000-12,000 at the January 29 sale. Printed on wove paper and titled Normandie, 60 Voyages, it was published to promote the maiden voyage of the legendary ocean liner SS Normandie. View the lot on thesaleroom.com. 

4. Edward Gordon Craig’s first book

 A copy of Edward Gordon Craig’s first book, 'Book of Penny Toys', will be offered at Forum.

With woodcut and partly hand-coloured illustrations, Book of Penny Toys is the rare first book of writer, theatre director and designer Edward Gordon Craig (1872-1966). This is number 136 of what had originally been planned as a print run of 550. However, the number of copies available for sale in 1899 was drastically reduced when Craig burnt half the edition after deciding that hand-colouring all of them would be too laborious. It is estimated at £2000-3000 on January 30. View the lot on thesaleroom.com.

5. The Grosvenor School in bloom

 This c.1930 linocut ‘Plant in a Pot’, was produced in an edition of 50 by Edith Lawrence (1890-1973).

This Grosvenor School print, Plant in a Pot, was produced in an edition of 50 by Edith Lawrence (1890-1973). The c.1930 linocut, 13 x 9in (33 x 23cm) in size on buff oriental tissue paper, is estimated at £2000-3000 on January 29 at Forum. View the lot on thesaleroom.com.

 

The top-lot of the sale of the Rothamsted Collection: Rarities from the Lawes Agricultural Library was a 1471 first edition of Pietro Crescenzi’s Opus ruralium commodorum, a work sometimes known in English as ‘The Advantages of Country-Living’. It is the first printed book on agriculture, written by a retired lawyer and country landowner between 1304-09. Once owned by an Italian bibliophile, the Marchese Girolamo d’Adda, this copy is in a 19th century armorial binding of red morocco gilt.

Against a £60,000-80,000 estimate, it sold at £75,000.

The library was named after John Bennet Lawes, an agricultural scientist and pioneer of chemical fertilisation at his experimental farm at Rothamsted Manor.

The collection was formed a century ago under the direction of Sir John Russell, the director of what is today known as Rothamsted Research. Founded in 1843 at Harpenden in Hertfordshire, it is the world’s oldest agricultural research centre. 

Rothamsted Research, The Lawes Agricultural Trust and the Rothamsted Trustees consigned the library for sale to Forum. All 819 lots sold over 14 hours, with around 20% by value selling online. The auction total is believed to be one of the highest auction totals achieved so far this year for an auction house outside the top four nationally.

Forum chief executive Stephan Ludwig said: “Being selected by the Rothamsted Trustees to handle the sale was a tremendous privilege. We are naturally delighted with the outcome, all the more so as it coincides with the second anniversary of Forum’s inaugural auction in July 2016.”

Deliberately timed to take place just after the ABA Fair (May 24th-26th), Forum Auctions’ sale on 31st has a wealth of enticing lots covering most areas of interest. This year the main London book fair is being held in Battersea Park, just a 10-minute walk from Forum’s offices in Queenstown Road, and the auction house is looking to make the most of the proximity of the world’s dealers and collectors by opening their doors for viewing for the full week before and during the fair. Also on view then will be highlights from other forthcoming sales, including Modern and Contemporary Prints, Wine, and a selection of works from the Rothamsted Collection – rare agricultural books from 1471-1840, with the sale taking place on 10th July.

Highlights from 31st May sale include:

·       A superb dust-jacketed first edition of Tolkien’s The Hobbit, 1937, est. £20,000-30,000, one of several Tolkien-related items in the sale

·       A manuscript map by Lt. Col. Sir Edward Baker entitled Plan of the Province of Upper Canada showing the route of the Simcoe Expedition, bound into a copy of Hearne’s A Journey from Prince of Wales’s Fort in Hudson’s Bay…, 1795, est. £6,000-8,000

·       Jefferys’ The Natural and Civil History of the French Dominions in North and South America, 1760 – a very good copy of the first edition in contemporary calf, est. £6,000-8,000

·       The George Katkov copy of the original typescript of Boris Pasternak’s Doktor Zhivago, with autograph corrections, 1956, most likely the copy used by the CIA to publish the first edition in Russian for dissemination in the Soviet Union, est. £100,000-150,000

·       A very good copy of the first issue of Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol, 1843, est. £6,000-8,000

·       A miniature Book of Hours with 6 full-page miniatures and 6 large initials with full borders, Flanders, second quarter of the 15th century, est. £6,000-8,000

·       A fine mini-archive of letters from G. K. Chesterton to Enid Simon with autograph poems and original sketches from the 1920s, est. £6,000-8,000

·       Manuscript eye-witness account of the Indian Mutiny and Massacre at Cawnpore by William Jonah Shepherd, 1857, est. £3,000-5,000

·       Laboureur (Jean-Emile) Petites Images de la Guerre sur le Front Britannique, Paris, 1917, one of only 4 copies with 3 additional suites of plates in progressive states before letters, est. £5,000-7,000

·       One of only 10 copies printed on vellum of the Cresset Press edition of Milton’s Paradise Lost and Paradise Regain’d, 1931, est. £8,000-12,000

·       A fine collection of 19 original watercolour caricatures of Milanese high society by Sebastiano de Albertis, 1864-65, est. £4,000-6,000

·       A good impression of Albrecht Durer’s woodcut Hercules conquering Cacus, 1496 (but printed c.1580), est. £4,000-6,000

·       A complete set of 4 17th century Tokugawa hanging scrolls demonstrating the Japanese art of acupuncture, Tokyo, 1662, est. £5,000-8,000

·       Guericke (Otto van) Experimenta nova…de Vacuo Spatio, Amsterdam, 1672, a very good copy of this highly important work on experimental physics, est. £12,000-16,000

·       Desmond Morris’ copy of Edward Tyson’s landmark work on comparative morphology, Orang-Outang, sive Homo Sylvestris: or, the Anatomy of a Pygmie, first edition, 1699, est. £4,000-6,000

·       Merian’s Erucarum Ortus, Amsterdam, 1718, the first Latin edition of this profusely illustrated early entomological work, depicting butterflies and grubs in juxtaposition with flowers and blossoms, est. £6,000-8,000

·       Ptolemy’s La Geografia, Venice, 1574-73, a very good, complete copy of the third Ruscelli edition, est. £5,000-7,000

·       Group of 4 unrecorded original watercolours by Edward Walsh (medical officer and artist) documenting the Napoleonic Wars, including one of La Belle Alliance “executed on the spot” 7 days after the Battle of Waterloo and showing the burial of the dead, est. £4,000-6,000

·       Mallet’s Description de l’Univers, 5 vol., Paris, 1683, an excellent copy of this important atlas from the Grand Siecle, complete with almost 700 plates and maps.

 

Forum Auctions is expanding into the wine and spirits market with the purchase of the assets of Bid for Wine from Stanley Gibbons.

It has hired ex-Sotheby’s and Christie’s wine specialist Richard Brierley to lead the new business, which will relaunch this spring.

Forum has bought the assets, including the bidforwine.co.uk website, technology and client base, in a joint venture with Auction Marketer, owned by web developer Star Digital.

Stephan Ludwig, Forum chief executive, said: “It has long been my belief that digital ventures in the auction industry work best when marrying technology, product expertise and an established pipeline of business.”

Ludwig first teamed up with the Bid for Wine business around five years ago when he ran Dreweatts & Bloomsbury.

Brierley was previously at Sotheby’s, Christie’s and Vanquish Wine and in recent years worked as a consultant. He said: “Bringing all facets of a wine trading service into a single online offering addresses the needs of collectors at all price levels in the digital age.”

Roger Martin, chief executive of Auction Marketer, said: “Our auction technology already runs Forum’s digital presence and we will develop the Bid for Wine platform significantly, integrating it into the larger wine auction venture at Forum Auctions.”

 

Personal pictures of Royal life which were taken more than 100 years ago when King George VI was a young boy on the Sandringham Estate in Norfolk, have gone up for auction. The photographs were taken by Prince Albert's tutor Kenneth Fry around 1912, the time of Albert's confirmation.

"This is a lovely little personal record of the life of the future King, providing a human glimpse into the life of the royals. It is a stunning collection of photos which we believe were mainly taken at around the time of Prince Albert's confirmation at Sandringham in 1912."
– MAX HASLER, SPECIALIST AT FORUM AUCTIONS

Among the photos up for auction include a number of letters and notes in later years between Kenneth Fry and members of the Royal Family. Albert's brother Henry, the Duke of Gloucester, wrote to Kenneth Fry thanking him for his sympathy letter after the death of his youngest brother George, the Duke of Kent in a plane crash in 1942.

"George VI's note is very interesting when he speaks of his loneliness because it shows he was just like any other boy of that age. That isolation he was experiencing was entirely typical of someone having to find their way away from home.'
– MAX HASLER, SPECIALIST AT FORUM AUCTIONS

Prince Albert ascended to the throne on December 11th 1936 after his older brother Edward VIII abdicated to marry the American Wallis Simpson. Henry died in 1974 at the age of 74, while George was killed in an air crash in Scotland in August 1942. He was 39-years old.

The photos and letters sold at auction for £2,000.

Candid pictures were taken by King George VI's tutor Kenneth Fry at Sandringham estate in Norfolk in 1912 

One photo shows Prince Albert, who ascended to the throne as George VI in 1936, posing by a cricket net

Other family images in the set include one of brothers Henry and George alongside each other riding horses

Archive has emerged for auction and is tipped to sell for £800 tomorrow in Battersea, South West London 

 

Charming never-before-seen photographs of a teenage King George VI and his brothers enjoying themselves away from the public gaze have come to light after 106 years.

 

The candid pictures were taken by his tutor Kenneth Fry at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk in 1912, and have been unearthed alongside letters written by the young princes.

These include a sombre note the 16-year-old future King penned to Fry telling of his 'loneliness' at naval college. The archive has emerged for auction and is tipped to sell for £800 tomorrow in Battersea, South West London.

In one of the photos, Prince Albert, who ascended to the throne as George VI in 1936 and was the Queen's father, poses in front of a cricket net. Another shows brothers Henry and George alongside each other riding horses.

Cricket seems to be an important part of the young royals' lives as they demonstrate their batting stances. Their father George V, mother Queen Mary and grandmother Queen Alexandra of Denmark also appear in the photos.

However, a note found in the archive reveals not everything was as rosy as it seemed for Prince Albert. The future monarch was in fact going through a tough time at the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, Devon.

Prince Albert and Fry were very close and he poured his heart out to him in a note dated May 4, 1912. He wrote: 'Dear Mr Fry I am very sorry that you left here yesterday as I am feeling very lonely up here.'

In another letter to his tutor, he bemoaned the 'monotony' of life at naval college, where he would do 'the same routine week in and week out'.

Fry also taught Prince Albert's brother Henry, the Duke of Gloucester, and they remained in contact long after their teacher pupil relationship ended.

The tutor kept a card from Henry thanking him for his sympathy letter following the shocking death of his youngest brother George, the Duke of Kent, in a plane crash in 1942.

Henry wrote: 'Thank you so much for your letter of sympathy. It is indeed a terrible blow to us all.'

The archive has belonged to a collector from London for several decades who has decided to put it on the market.

Max Hasler, manuscripts specialist at Forum Auctions, of London, who are selling the archive, said: 'This is a lovely little personal record of the life of the future King, providing a human glimpse into the life of the royals.

'It is a stunning collection of photos which we believe were mainly taken at around the time of Prince Albert's confirmation at Sandringham in 1912.

'George VI's note is very interesting when he speaks of his loneliness because it shows he was just like any other boy of that age.

'That isolation he was experiencing was entirely typical of someone having to find their way away from home.'

George VI enrolled at the Royal Naval College in Osborne on the Isle of Wight as a naval cadet in 1909. In 1911, he came bottom of the class in his final examination at the college.

But he still progressed to the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth - and served as a turret officer on board the HMS Collingwood in the First World War, taking part in the Battle of Jutland.

Prince Albert ascended to the throne on December 11, 1936 after his older brother Edward VIII abdicated so he could marry American socialite Wallis Simpson.

His battle to overcome his stammer was brought to the big screen in the Oscar-winning film The King's Speech in 2011. He reigned until his death in 1952, when he was replaced by Queen Elizabeth II.

Henry, a talented sportsman, died aged 74 in 1974, while George was killed in an air crash in Scotland aged 39 in August 1942. The timed auction finishes on January 17.

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This may be the year of Emily Brontë--her bicentenary, that is, with a major exhibition opening at the Brontë Parsonage Museum on February 1--but Forum Auctions has me dreaming about her brother Branwell. At its forthcoming January 25 sale, Forum is offering Branwell’s own copy of The Odyssey (Pope’s translation, c. 1840). The title page bears an ink inscription: “To P.B.B. from his dear friend J.B.L.” P.B.B. being Patrick Branwell Brontë and J.B.L. thought to be his friend, Joseph Bentley Leyland. 

Branwell has long been considered “the failure of the family,” although last year (hisbicentenary) there was a push to “tone down the Branwell bashing.” He had his flaws and addictions, but, like his sisters, he also had a brilliant mind and a particular talent for art. He is responsible for the only surviving group portrait of his three more famous sisters. 

In addition to the inscription noted above, the association copy on offer at Forum also contains an original pen and black ink portrait study on the front pastedown, and a further small portrait sketch on the rear pastedown that bears some similarity to Branwell’s portrait of his friend James Fletcher. 

The auction estimate of £600-800 ($792-1,056) seems quite affordable for the legion of Brontë buffs out there. 

 

Forum Auctions’ Banksy sale in New York last night set a new record for a Banksy print. Girl with Balloon (2004) set a record when it sold for a mid-estimate $110,000 (£82,400).

A numbered edition from 150, it was one of 40 lots offered at the Manhattan sale.

Other highlights included NOLA (Pink to Yellow Rain) (2008) which sold at a hammer price of $85,000 (£63,680), and Rude Copper (Anarchy) which sold at $34,000 (£25,470). It was one of the artist’s first commercially produced prints and carried an estimate of $20,000-30,000.

In total, 37 out of 40 lots sold for a premium-inclusive $1m (£750,000). All lots are accompanied by a certificate of authenticity issued by Banksy’s official Pest Control Office.

US interest

Forum said around half of the lots sold to US buyers and several auction records were set. 

In October 2016, Forum’s white-glove Banksy sale in London made more than £600,000 and set 15 records. The auction was the first for Forum’s Modern & Contemporary art and Editions department.

The December 12 New York sale meant there was no Artist's Resale Right (ARR) fee, UK import duty or VAT for European buyers taking delivery of purchased lots in London. However, New York City sales taxes of 8.875% will apply if a buyer takes delivery of purchased lots in New York. 

Forty artworks by the street artist Banksy are up for auction in New York on 12 December. It’s the first time that an auction has been devoted exclusively to the artist, and the prints on sale cover his career from the earliest Rude Copper to his latest works from his Walled Off Hotel project in Jerusalem.

London’s Forum Auctions is taking 40 works by British street artist Banksy to New York. The exact time of the auction is not announced yet. New Yorkers have a particularly strong affinity with the artist following his 31 day “Better out than in” residency in the Big Apple during 2010, Artdaily.com reported.  The works on offer provide a solid cross section of his commercially produced prints from the earliest Rude Copper (2002) to his most recent open edition Box Set, available for purchase only from the ‘gift shop’ of his Walled Off Hotel project in Jerusalem (opened 2017).

Forum Auctions has become a leading auction house for Banksy editions having sold over 100 examples over the past 12 months for a total of $2 million. All works in the sale are offered with certificates from the artist’s authenticating body, Pest Control Office.

Banksy is an anonymous England-based graffiti artist, political activist and film director of unverified identity. His satirical street art and subversive epigrams combine dark humor with graffiti executed in a distinctive stenciling technique.

 

The novel from the spy thriller series The Saint was written in summer 1941 by Leslie Charteris

 

A LOST novel of the spy thriller The Saint which predicted the attack on Pearl Harbour but was scrapped for political reasons has been rediscovered.

Written in summer 1941, the story by Leslie Charteris was based around the charming detective known as The Saint foiling a military attack by Japan on America.

At the time the two countries were still allies and the publishers, worried about endangering that relationship, decided against releasing the book.

A few months later on December 7 1941 Japan attacked the Hawaiian navy base, leaving 2,300 people dead and forcing America into the Second World War.

Even after the attack Charteris decided against publishing the book, fearing it would appear he was trying to cash in on the disaster.

At the end of his writing career the author gave away many items relating to his most famous character, Simon Templar, who was famously played by Roger Moore in the 1970's TV version.

He gave the unpublished manuscript to a friend who has owned it ever since.

It had been assumed the novella, titled 'The Saint's Second Front', had been lost forever after the later author revealed he never kept a copy of it because it had been rejected.

Now six decades on, the 237-page manuscript has been put up for sale by the unnamed friend for £10,000.

Max Hasler, specialist in literature with London-based Forum Auctions, said: "This story has been pretty well known in collectors' circles for many years.

"The story was ultimately feared lost when Charteris revealed he did not keep a copy himself after it was rejected.

"So this sale will be a real surprise to his fans and the manuscript will be high on the wishlist for many of them.

"It's not just the fiction that makes it so desirable but the whole story around it has become legend almost.

"It's amazing how Charteris had a weird way of predicting the future.

"After Pearl Harbour was bombed he almost felt like the novel would seem like old hack, or that he was trying to cash in on what had happened.

"He therefore decided not to release it at all.

"Now it's fallen into our hands and it's amazing to handle something so special.

"It's attracted a good interest already and we're expecting it to do very well."

Charteris wrote dozens of novels and short stories about the charming anti-hero Simon Templar, who was known as The Saint from the 1928 to 1963.

In the story featured in the manuscript The Saint unearths a plan by a clandestine Japanese army known as the Black Dragon to attack southern California as a prelude to a larger invasion.

The character then sets about his own plans to thwart their efforts.

At the time the publishers, Cosmopolitan, refused to publish it as it could have aggravated tensions between America and Japan.

The working script was written by Charteris on a typewriter and their are annotations in pencil.

The sale takes place tomorrow

 

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