Each sold at auction for thousands, and in some cases, hundreds of thousands of dollars. I totally need the copy of the the wonderful wizard of oz in my life. Furthermore, it is one of those rare books that has a mistake in it, and we all know mistakes mean big money when it comes to collectibles. Also keep an eye on the latest superhero movies when digging through your vintage comic books. Original copies, called first editions, are very rare and sought after by collectors. I have been selling rare mormon books for almost 30 years. First editions of wellloved books can become the most prized in literature.
We will say that the golden age begins in 1938 and ends in 1956, when the. Theyre so valuable that buyers can pay thousands of pounds more than what the book originally cost. New listing the i ching book of changes easton press leather collectors edition rare. Along with the list, our expert has offered some helpful tips to prospectus book investors, on what to look out for when buying a book as a collectable or investment. For this list and the lists that follow lists that follow refers to lists in the childrens picturebook price guide of the twenty most valuable picturebooks from each decade, covering the 1930s up the 1990s. Extremely rare, kept in special conditions on the shelves of the worlds most famous libraries, first edition books are a slice of history, and their value can hardly be measured by money. It must be desirable from a famous author, most books published in the last century will never become valuable no matter how rare they get. The most valuable rare books in existence the telegraph.
Purchased by london dealer, simon finch rare books. The exceedingly rare first volume was the only one to be completed by marx in his lifetime, while the second and third volumes were completed posthumously by. The original declaration of independence, signed by thomas jefferson, benjamin franklin, and john adams, is easily one of the rarest, most. From 750 original copies, only around 228 remain today. Books can sell for millions of dollars, but only if.
Most valuable childrens books you might already own. Most collectible books of the decade published 20002009 1. This is the 2nd issue dust jacket very scarce because of the father cody mistake on the front flap later corrected in the 3rd issue to father callahan that was price clipped by doubleday and repriced. First edition of the federalist, the most soughtafter of. The top 10 rare and pricey stephen king books litreactor. Many of these valuable modern books are from early in the careers of authors who only later became widely read.
Top 100 most valuable comic books of the golden age 19381956 the 100 most valuable comic books from each age. First editions of birds of america have consistently been valued in the millions. These rare books cost thousands of dollars but heres where. But some books out there are so scarce, that their monetary value is simply eyewatering. The 10 most expensive books in the world the atlantic. Our friends at are definitely intheknow when it comes to sought after books. Johannes gutenberg, printed 1456, 180 copies known to exist. Paul allen, the cofounder of microsoft and evidently an. In the world of book collecting, old means very, very old. A book must fulfill several requirements to be valuable. The most valuable books you may have at home we have commissioned a book expert to compile a list of the most valuable antique books that exist and could be owned by members of the public. If you have any old, secondhand or rare books, then get in touch. The picture shown on this page is a fifth printing, but the first printing is identical. Most would never go through the trouble to obtain original copies, especially when reprinted versions contain the same information.
This is a list of printed books, manuscripts, letters, music scores, comic books, maps and other. Books are made rare when there is a high demand from buyers but few known copies in existence. The 20 most valuable books you might have at home daily. It all comes down to supply and demand and condition. His first folio is so rare because it is the first authoritative collection of his plays, compiled by his friends and business partners who helped run his theatre company. Diane hunter was one of the early 1950s most popular pinup models, having been featured in several calendars and finally the november 1954 issue of playboy. They say you cant put a price on a good book, but these works proved that some of us.
Rare and valuable books old and not so old books worth. Many of the rare and antique vintage childrens books featured below have beautiful illustrations, and many of. Books can be very valuable, and not only because of what they contain between their pages. Hidden treasures on your bookshelf bottom line inc. We are always looking for first 1st edition books in hardback, we buy single books or large collections. Lot 5 of green shades of green old vintage antique rare hardcover random. Youve probably read articles about all those insanely expensive and incredibly rare, collectible books like the highly covetable first edition of j. Amongst this list of expensive books, most are ancient texts that bear significant historical value and some are literature works by hugely celebrated authors. Most valuable us pennies highest value 1 cent coins. The very first edition of harry potter and the philosophers stone was. Did you know that some of your favourite books can fetch thousands of pounds at auction. This page will deal with the most valuable of all, golden age comic books. On friday, christies new york auctioned a copy of john james audubons birds of america, which already holds the title of most valuable printed book in. Many editions of h2g2 are worth are worth a fair sum of money.
Look out for first editions, a full set of volumes, or titles that were manufactured as a oneoff, as these tend to be the most valuable. Matthew haley, the director and head of books and manuscripts at auction house, bonhams, has shared his list of the twenty most valuable books in uk that could be lying in your own home. Below are four of the most valuable and bestknown rare books today. The most expensive books in the world readers digest.
Recently, a rare firstedition copy of harry potter and the. The worlds most valuable scientific books and manuscripts. We all have memories of those special books we read as children, and biblio is happy to present a large collection of rare and antique vintage childrens books in the biblio rare book room. Our most valuable pennies list includes coins starting in 1856 up to the present 2020 including rare penny errors and rare varieties that could still actually be found in pocket change. These lists provide a remarkable insight in the world of rare book collecting and. If you have one of these rare books sitting on a shelf, get ready to cash in. The 20 most valuable books of today loveantiques blog. After several months researching the marketplace, weve compiled a list of the 50 most valuable scientific documents sold at auction. They release an annual report of their findings, revealing what dusty volumes on our. Browse the gallery and read up on some of the most valuable rare books in existence. The original edition there are only seven handmade copies. Good to look out for at book swaps and garage sales. If you have one of these rare books sitting on a shelf somewhere, get ready to cash in. We also purchase from public and private libraries, and will.
Top 10 rare books these old rare books are the most unique, bizarre, and exotic. Apparently, the canadian alfred a knopf editions are the copies that matter most to collectors. Deemed as the most enduring work in english literature, the remaining copies are the some of most soughtafter books among book collectors around the globe. Abebooks periodically publishes a list of the most stunning books recently sold. Top 10 most expensive rare books sold one can ask himself what makes a particular book an expensive one. Through their powerful search engine, they keep track of what titles are in demand, compiling a comprehensive look at the outofprint titles most searched for. The demand for a book is created by a combination of factors, often including status as a first edition, signed book, or written by a famous historical figure, illustrated by a. These books are everything from banned misprint bibles to da vincis private journals. With a sixfigure price tag, i think that most people would be surprised to learn that on a list of the ten most expensive mormon books, a first edition book of mormon. In fact, these are some of the most expensive ever sold. Other books featured multiple times on the list are the gutenberg bible, the first folio of shakespeare s plays and the north american indian with four separate copies. Read up on the worlds rarest and most valuable books. Top 50 rare and valuable books the following books are considered by many collectors to be the most rare and valuable.
Even though the most valuable books of the 20th century predate the 1960s, there are a fair number of books published since 1960 that have significant value. Most collectible books of the decade 20002009 on abebooks. Cars, houses, jewelry, and watches arent the only ones that can fetch ridiculous amounts of cash. The first atlas by claudius ptolemy 1477 considered one of the worlds first printed atlases, this original version of this work was created by claudius ptolemy in 150 ad.
The works of william shakespeare are amongst the most influential in the world, continuing to have great precedence in western literature 400 years after his death in 1616. List of most expensive books and manuscripts wikipedia. In fact, according to the economist, a true list of the ten most valuable single books ever sold would have to include five copies of the birds of america. The king james bible, or the authorized version, was commissioned by. Of course, as with anything, rare comic books hold more value than common editions. The ten most expensive mormon books meridian magazine. Top 10 most expensive rare books sold topteny magazine. Rare or early editions by these famous writers are highly sought after. The rarest books in the world are highly sought after by collectors because theyre associated with a particular author or a major historical event or era, or simply because theyre incredibly old.
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