Stacy Conradt
The Quick 10: 10 Really Pricey Books
by Stacy Conradt - January 7, 2010 - 5:22 PM

q10

I have this fantasy that I am harboring a rare, insanely valuable first edition of some obscure book somewhere on my overstuffed bookshelves. I’ll decide I don’t need it someday and take it to trade in at Half Price Books and the overly-honest guy behind the counter will give me a look like I’ve lost my mind and say, “Are you crazy? Do you know what this is worth? There must be only five of these in the entire world!”
Yeah. It’s not very likely to happen. But you can bet that I’m going to devote some time to combing through the den this weekend to see if I have any of these pricey pages in my possession.

firstfolio1. Shakespeare’s First Folio. It’s the 1623 collection of the Bard’s comedies, histories and tragedies. It cost just one pound at the time, which is about $220 these days – expensive, yes, but a bargain considering the $6.1 million it’s worth today. A stolen copy popped up last year and was estimated to be worth $15 million, but it hasn’t yet been sold, so whether it tops the 2001 $6.1 million selling price remains to be seen.
2. Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Codex Leicester” was purchased by one of the few people who could afford to shell out $30.8 million for a notebook – Bill Gates. At 72 pages, that’s about $420,000 per page. Each pages is filled to the brim with Da Vinci’s handwriting and sketches.

3. Cosmography, based on the work of Ptolemy, is a pretty rare find: there are only two known copies in the world (maybe one of them is in my den. No?). The 1477 book was worth $4 million the last time it was sold.

4. James Audubon’s Birds of America sold for $8.8 million in 2000. Only 200 complete sets were ever issued, and most of them were broken up to sell individually, which is why a complete set is so valuable.

5. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens. If you discover one of these in your hot little hands, consider yourself lucky – Christie’s auction house in New York sold a signed first edition of the book for $229,000, making it the most valuable Dickens book ever.

Hobbits6. Lord of the Rings. Likewise, a signed first edition of that book about Hobbits could garner you a lot of cash – probably enough to buy your own “Precious.” One of these dedicated in Tolkien’s hand to the “Queen of the Hobbits” fetched $104,000.
7. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Now we’re getting into literature I’m more likely to own. The most expensive Harry Potter book to date is an unread first edition of HP1 – only 500 copies were published in the first round, long before Mr. Potter and his magical friends were household names. If you have one of these lurking in your attic, it could be worth about $37,000.
8. The Great Gatsby. A first edition copy of this Roaring ‘20s classic with a dust jacket in very good condition was sold for $180,000 just last year.

9. Moby Dick. At the same auction, an original version of Melville’s whale tale in blue cloth binding went for $30,500. It’s no Codex Leicester, but I’d say $30,500 is nothing to sneeze at.

ulysses10. Ulysses. The first edition was signed by James Joyce and had been stored away, allegedly unopened, for years. Because it was signed, because it was a first edition, because the color on the cover was so brilliant and unfaded, and because it was #45 of the first 100 printed, this particular copy of Joyce’s epic went for £275,000 last year – that’s roughly $437,260.

Do we have any book-collecting _flossers out there? I’m not one myself, but I’m thinking it might be a fine time to start.

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Comments (28)

  1. Don’t forget the book by “A Bostonian” that sold for $662,500 in December. It is a first edition of Edgar Allen Poe’s “Tamerlane and Other Poems”. See my link.

    posted by Leah on 1-7-2010 at 5:32 pm

  2. I really want to be – someday when I’m not a poor grad student. My two prized possessions, though, are first American editions of two Virginia Woolf books. Someday, with employment, British editions. Reaching for the stars.

    posted by Amy on 1-7-2010 at 5:34 pm

  3. I would fork out some money for a copy of “The Great Gatsby” as read by Andy Kaufman during one of his shows.

    I dont really know why, it just seems like something I would own.

    posted by Tyler on 1-7-2010 at 5:59 pm

  4. Best I can claim is the hardcover editions of the first two books in Robert Jordan’s Great Wheel series. Sold the first for $450 and the second for $250.

    posted by toddes on 1-7-2010 at 6:17 pm

  5. I have a copy of Tom Wolfe A Man in Full autographed bought it before the book was published have always wondered if its worth anything,or if he just signed a stack of them to sell at a inflated price

    posted by Tabitha on 1-7-2010 at 7:56 pm

  6. I have a few really old books dating from the 1800′s. One is by a local poet and is signed. I’m sure I could get a pretty penny for it at the local museum, but think I’ll wait on that. I LOVE books, to the point that I’m running out of shelf space!

    posted by tinkerschnitzel on 1-7-2010 at 10:48 pm

  7. Hmm, I think we’ve got a book written and signed by Winston Churchill… I wonder what it’s worth.

    posted by roi_ratt on 1-7-2010 at 11:14 pm

  8. I have the 1st edition wizard of oz series, and also no idea of it’s worth…

    posted by Lauren on 1-7-2010 at 11:49 pm

  9. I have most the books by Dr. Stanley Burns, including Sleeping Beauty I and II. I have a number of much older books, some dating from the 1820′s – not sure of their “worth” but they are very valuable to me.

    posted by Dianne on 1-8-2010 at 12:04 am

  10. I have, from my great-great-aunt, a signed copy of Lawrence Welk’s biography, titled “Wunnerful, Wunnerful!” Any takers? :)

    posted by Elizabeth on 1-8-2010 at 12:45 am

  11. My aunt has always been active in the children’s book scene, and loves to share her passion. I have well over 100 children’s books signed by author, illustrator, or both. My favorites are a signed (by the American illustrator) copy of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, a signed copy of John’s Sweet Dreams (a children’s book about John Lennon’s life) and my signed Arthur books. She, on the other hand, has several thousand signed books in her collection, including many first editions.

    posted by Amauriel on 1-8-2010 at 1:32 am

  12. i have a first edition hardcover of Rudyard Kipling’s “Life’s Handicap” that i “liberated” from my high school drama prop room many years ago. i’m not one to pilfer goods, but i’ve always loved Kipling and i realised it’s value even at 16 years old. it’s in remarkably good condition, and there’s still even the faint reminder of a swastika imprinted on the cover (which was common of Kipling’s books as the swastika was a symbol of good fortune in India. and this was published a couple decades before WWII.)

    it’s also not for sale.

    posted by Cat MacKinnon on 1-8-2010 at 4:06 am

  13. the 1 book i didnt seen in the article or anyone else mention is Gutenberg Bible

    have always heard this is supposed to be the most expensive book ever !

    posted by Scott T, on 1-8-2010 at 7:41 am

  14. I collect books just for the fun of it. :) My antique book collection is bigger than my collection of modern books! I have books dating from the early 20th century all the way back to the 18th century. I also have some old school books that have been in my family for years. I love the quaint poems penned on the inside, calling curses down upon those who would steal the book.

    posted by Sands on 1-8-2010 at 9:09 am

  15. I have several first edition Mark Twains and an autographed Gilbert and Sullivan score among my collection. Last time I checekd, my collection contained upwards of 2,000 autographed volumes.

    posted by Steven on 1-8-2010 at 9:11 am

  16. How did Joyce sign Ulysses without opening it?

    posted by Patten on 1-8-2010 at 9:50 am

  17. I have the first editions of books 1-12 of the Nancy Drew series, and a few stragglers after that. I don’t think they’re worth much.

    posted by Caitlin on 1-8-2010 at 10:12 am

  18. I have a first edition of The Secret Garden, given to me by my grandmother when I was about 9. No idea if it is worth anything, but sentimentally is worth a great deal.

    posted by Jenny on 1-8-2010 at 10:36 am

  19. I have some pretty old books in my massive collection but most of them are pretty worn due to multiple readings over the years. I doubt they would be worth anything because of their condition!

    Why own a book and not read it?

    posted by BorgQueen on 1-8-2010 at 11:58 am

  20. I have a signed first edition of To Kill a Mocking Bird. It was just signed in 1998 by Harper Lee.

    One day it might be worth something but unfortunately it is not in great condition. it looks like it has been read hundreds of times.

    posted by James on 1-8-2010 at 12:05 pm

  21. I would think that from an author’s perspective it would be better to see your books well loved than signed and put on a shelf.

    posted by FrankieA on 1-8-2010 at 12:39 pm

  22. I have a first edition of Make Way for the Ducklings signed by the author. Probably not worth much outside the Boston area, but quite the treasure for anyone who grew up there.

    posted by Dave on 1-8-2010 at 1:19 pm

  23. I do some minor collecting. I have an 1880s copy of Poe’s Poems and some British Empire history books from the same period.

    My real love, though, is collecting pulp magazines from the 1920s-1950s. I’ve got a few copies of Smashing Detective Stories and Famous Detective Stories with really neat covers, (a woman popping out of a coffin at a funeral with guns blazing, etc.) and a 1947 Weird Tales with stories by Ray Bradbury and Robert Bloch.

    And Dave– I grew up very far from Boston but I loved Make Way for the Ducklings.

    posted by Rob on 1-8-2010 at 1:37 pm

  24. I have fantasies of being rich and building my own home, solely for the purpose of building my own library. Complete with temperature-controlled containers for the most valuable items, of course, of which there would be many.

    In reality, I have a few old books, both gifts from my dad (who well knows his daughter is a book nerd!). One is a copy of Great Expectations, the other a Bible dictionary. At least one doesn’t have a date on the inside, so I’m not entirely sure how old they are, but I think the 1800s, early 1900s at the latest. I also have several kid/adolescent books in my parent’s basement signed by the authors. They’d come to my dad’s school and he’d always bring a copy home to me. I really need to check the stash and see if there are any goodies!

    But, if all else fails, I’m graduating soon with my Master’s of Library Science, complete with archival work under my belt. With luck, I’ll get a job in a library with a special collections section, or if I’m REALLY lucky, a museum. Get paid to help researchers study with originals? Yes, please!!

    posted by Kate on 1-8-2010 at 2:03 pm

  25. Unfortunately no old, signed books in my collection (yet!) Kate – weird that there would be two people pursuing Master’s degrees in Library Science with emphasis in Archiving posting to Mentalfloss.

    posted by Jomaque on 1-8-2010 at 2:23 pm

  26. Jomaque-guess the profession attracts nerds. :)

    posted by Kate on 1-8-2010 at 2:57 pm

  27. I have a copy of Pollyanna that’s got to be close to being a first edition, at least – Pollyanna was originally published in 1913 and I think that’s when my copy’s from. Unfortunately, I have no clue where it’s at right now – probably in a box, probably with my 1895 copy of Black Beauty. But now I’m really curious to find it and see if it’s worth anything. It’s in great condition, I would guess it’s only been read a couple times, and one of those was by me.

    Recaptcha: Greeks meddle (wow, is ReCaptcha racist?)

    posted by Kate H on 1-9-2010 at 3:28 am

  28. How is it posible to verify that a book is unread?

    posted by Paul on 1-11-2010 at 12:08 pm

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