During September of this year, Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers will conduct two notable auction sales. The first, closing on September 12th, 2010, is comprised of the collection of early printed numismatic books formed by the late Anders Frösell of Sweden. Forty-eight works are featured, dating from the early 1500s to the late 1700s, with over half dated before 1600.

Condition covers the spectrum, allowing numismatists on modest budgets the infrequent opportunity to add a work to their libraries dating from the cradle period of numismatic printing. The roster of famous early numismatic authors represented in the sale includes Father Augustín, Anselmo Banduri, Guillaume du Choul, Sebastian Erizzo, Hubert Goltz, Johann Huttich, Adolph Occo, Fulvio Orsini, Onuphrio Panvinio, Charles Patin, Guillaume Rouille, Johann Sambucus, Ezechiel Spanheim, Jacob de Strada, Gabriel Simeoni, Jean Foy-Vaillant, Aenea Vico and others.

The second sale, closing four days later, on September 16th, features the outstanding and extensive numismatic library formed by the well-known ancient coin dealer, auctioneer and numismatic photographer Robert J. Myers. Devoted to works on ancient coins, art and antiquities, the 108-page catalogue of the Myers library features over 1300 lots. It is comprehensive in its coverage of ancient Greek numismatics, and also features a wealth of important reference books on Roman coins and ancient art.

Included among the truly important and often quite rare works in the Myers library are: a set of the Numismatic Chronicle, largely complete from 1881 to 2009; an attractive set of Mionnet’s sixteen volume 1806-37 classic Médailles Antiques, Grecques et Romaines; many rarely offered numismatic excavation reports, among them all of the Olynthus volumes featuring coins (and virtually all of the other volumes in that series), including a fine example of Robinson and Clement’s The Chalcidic Mint; a fine original set of the famous Jameson collection; original sets of the McClean, Hunterian and Weber collections; a comprehensive collection of Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum volumes; seldom encountered classic die studies such as Herzfelder on Rhegium, Ravel’s Vlasto on Tarentum, Regling on Terina, Boehringer on Syracuse, Calciati on Sicily, Imhoof-Blumer’s Antiken Nord-Griechenlands, May on Ainos, Calciati’s Pegasi on Corinth, Ravel on Corinth, Svoronos on Athens, Seltman on Olympia, Le Rider and Svoronos on Crete, Waddington on Asia Minor, Cahn on Knidos, Lederer on Nagidos, Naville on Cyrene and Svoronos on the Ptolemies.

Classic works on Roman coins include Mazzini and Robertson on the Hunter collection; a complete set of the series by Bastien and others of Numismatique Romaine; C.H.V. Sutherland’s set of Alföldi on contorniates; Burnett on Roman Provincials; and a fine original Dattari. The extensive selection of auction catalogues featuring ancient coins is perhaps highlighted by the first twelve fixed price and auction sale catalogues issued by Jacob Hirsch, one of the most notable ancient coin dealers of all time. All are Hirsh’s unique annotated sales copies, generally recording information about the coins in the sales and the collectors who acquired them that may be found nowhere else. Among other key auctions catalogues in the sale are all of Hirsch’s Ars Classica sales devoted to ancient coins; his other key ancient coin and medal sales, including Rhousopoulos, Weber I & II, and Löbbecke on medals; a nearly complete set of Leu ancient coin sales, 1971-2009; and classic sales by Cahn, Egger, Florange, Ciani, Hamburger, Helbing, Adolph Hess, Münzhandlung Basel, Santamaria, Sotheby’s and many others. (more…)

On Thursday, June 3, Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers held the second sale of the Stack Family Numismatic Library, featuring many important and useful works on U.S., foreign and ancient numismatics. Nearly 200 bidders participated in the sale, including bidders from Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the Americas. The sale brought over $140,000, slightly over the pre-­-sale estimated value.

Some highlights include:

• Lot 390, the Coin Galleries set of Stack’s catalogues, brought $21,000 on a $10,000 estimate

• Lot 517, a nearly complete set of Numismatic Notes and Monographs, brought $4500 on a $4000 estimate

• Lot 399, the Stack’s office copy of the Brobston fixed price list of United States half cents, identifying many purchasers from this important list, brought $3200 on a $1000 estimate

• Lot 389, a daybook and ledger used by the Stack Family to record the sales from their early years, including their first auction, brought $3000 on a $2500 estimate

• Lot 266, a bound volume of rare George A. Leavitt sales, brought $2700 on a $500 estimate

• Lot 642, a beautifully bound first edition copy of Dalton and Hamer’s important work on Conder tokens, brought $1750 on a $1000 estimate.

The catalogue and prices realized list for this sale can be found on the Kolbe & Fanning website at www.numislit.com.

This was the first sale conducted by the new joint venture between George F. Kolbe and David F. Fanning, who combined their respective numismatic literature businesses earlier this year. The firm’s next auctions will be the September 12 sale of select antiquarian items from the Anders Frösell library and the September 16 sale of the library devoted to ancient coins, art and antiquities formed by Robert J. Myers.

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Davis Sklow – Fine Numismatic Books was excited to announce the consignment by renowned author and numismatist, “The Master of Wolfeboro” Q. David Bowers, of his extensive libraries of source material.

The library will include: Limited Edition works; The California Gold rush 1848-1850’s; Comprehensive library of Civil War history; library of American Maritime history, Pirates, Treasure hunting, the era of Sailing and Steam Ships; vast runs and individual copies of historical reference materials, studies, dictionaries, encyclopedias, collected papers and much more.

In addition, many works on numismatics, including limited editions, papers, periodicals, journals will be included in the sales.

The sale of this vast collection (numbering in the thousands of volumes) will take place in multiple parts; Part I-February 2010; Part II-June 2010 and Part III-October 2010; The QDB consignment will occupy approximately 50% of each sale catalog.

All volumes will bear the special small format book plate of the Q. David Bowers research Library.

Imagine, the library used by the most prolific numismatic writer of the past fifty years! Be sure not to miss this opportunity to own a piece of numismatic history from the library of a numismatic legend!

More information about the consignment, sale dates, previews and terms of sale and other autions of Fine books can be found on David Sklow’s website, Fine Numismatics Books.
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