Casino Royale by Ian Fleming, £15,580
An unmarked 1953 Jonathan Cape first edition of Fleming's first 007 outing. James Bond takes on Le Chiffre, a member of the Russian secret service, at a French casino. Eleven novels and two short story collections followed. The most expensive Casino Royale to ever sell on AbeBooks was a signed first edition that went for $46,463.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, £13,500
A signed 1960 first edition of Harper's remarkable debut novel. The most expensive copy of this book to sell on AbeBooks went for $25,000 in 2011.
Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers, by Denis Diderot & Jean le Rond d'Alembert, £13,410
The title roughly translates as Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts but the book is usually just known as Encyclopédie. Published between 1751 and 1772 in 17 volumes, it had a huge influence on Europe.
Sanctuary, by William Faulkner, £9,940
A 1931 first edition with a laid-in author signature. This was Faulkner's breakthrough novel. The plot concerns the rape and abduction of a Mississippi college girl, Temple Drake, during Prohibition.
We Seven, by the Astronauts Themselves, £9,540
A 1962 first edition of this first-hand account of the birth of America's manned space program. Signed by each of the Mercury Seven astronauts on the front free endpaper. They were Scott Carpenter, Gordon Cooper, John Glenn, Gus Grissom, Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard, and Deke Slayton. Each member of Project Mercury contributed at least three essays to the book.
Canto General, by Pablo Neruda, £7,310
A 1950 limited first edition of the Nobel Prize-winning author's masterpiece. Signed by Neruda, and illustrators Diego Rivera and David A. Siqueiros. Canto General (General Song) consists of 15 sections, 231 poems, and more than 15,000 lines.
The Hound of the Baskervilles, by Arthur Conan Doyle, £7,150
A 1902 George Newnes first edition with a laid-in letter signed by the author, where Conan Doyle addresses a newspaper editor about writing an article. Bound in red cloth.
The Wood Beyond the World, by William Morris, £7,150
Printed by Morris' Kelmscott Press in 1894, this is one of just 350 copies famous for their wood engravings. The Wood Beyond the World is a fantasy novel.
Nobiliario Genealógico de los Reyes y Títulos de España, by Alonso Lopez de Haro, £7,135
Published in two volumes in Madrid in 1622, this is a book about the birthlines of Spain's royalty and aristocracy.
Sumo, by Helmut Newton, £6,780
The huge 1999 Taschen art edition of Newton's fashion photography book that comes complete with its own stand. Aptly named.
The Holy Bible, translated by Julia E. Smith, £6,750
This 1876 edition published by the American Publishing Company is notable because it was the first translation by a woman. It took Julia Smith, a student of Latin, Greek and Hebrew, around seven years to complete the translation, which she published at her own expense. Smith (1792-1886) was a noted Connecticut suffragist. A scarce book.
A complete run of this influential art and culture magazine. It started as a publication designed to highlight the cultural and recreational aspect of Aspen, Colorado. However, issue three was designed by Andy Warhol and David Dalton to resemble a box of Fab laundry detergent. From this point on, the publication became an experimental artists' magazine and included flexi discs, pamphlets, and super eight films among other items.
An Explanation of the Observed Irregularities in the Motion of Uranus on the Hypothesis of Disturbances Caused by a More Distant Planet; with a determination of the mass, orbit, and position of the disturbing body, by John Couch Adams, £6,685
An 1846 first edition. This book announced the discovery of Neptune when Adams was just 24. Adams began his investigation of Uranus in 1843, and in 1845 sent his calculations and observations to the Astronomer Royal, George Biddell Airey, who failed to recognize the importance of the paper. In 1846, Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier published his own research and reached the same conclusion, leading to the immediate identification of Neptune by J.G. Galle. Only then was Adams' work published.
Works of Vigil, £6,490
A 1529 French edition with woodcuts from the first illustrated edition of Virgil's work. It contains 205 woodcuts by the Grüninger workshop, initially prepared for the Strassburg edition of 1502 edited by Sebastian Brant. Virgil was a Roman poet in the 1st century BC, most famous for writing the epic poem, the Aeneid.
L'Oaristys, by Theocrite, £6,470
An 1896 French edition of a Greek text. Theocrite was a 3rd century BC Greek poet and this work concerns conversations between lovers. This copy is notable for its illustrations by Georges Bellanger.
Sumo, by Helmut Newton, £6,070
Another copy of this whopper. With only a thousand first editions copies printed, this book regularly appears on the AbeBooks most expensive lists.
Mechanismus der menschlichen Sprache nebst Beschreibung seiner sprechenden Maschine, by Wolfgang von Kempelen, £5,960
The first book on speech synthesis - yes, this 1791 book led to Alexa and Siri. This is the first edition in German, issued simultaneously with the French edition. It contains 26 copperplate illustrations of von Kempelen's voice synthesizer, the forerunner of electronic computerized devices that synthesize speech.
Collection of Books belonging to Carolyn D. Wright, £5,960
C. D. Wright wrote poetry for more than 40 years. The collection includes numerous first editions from modern era authors, including Carlos Fuentes, Mary Gaitskill, Michael Ondaatje, and Angela Carter.
The Natural History of North Carolina. With an Account of the Trade, Manners, and Customs of the Christian and Indian Inhabitants, by John Brickell , £5,960
A 1737 book printed in Dublin containing a folding map. Brickell accompanied Governor George Burrington to North Carolina in 1724, remaining in the region for six years and becoming one of the first doctors in North Carolina.
The Condition of the Working Class in England in 1844, by Frederick Engels & Florence Wischnewetzky, £5,960
Written during Engels' 1842-44 stay in Manchester and first published in German in 1845. This is the rare first British edition with a new introduction by Engels. Its release was timed to coincide with the 1888 British edition of the Communist Manifesto.
Barack Obama manuscript, £5,960
A printed manuscript with handwritten corrections. Obama was working on an editorial for the Chicago Tribune, which was published on May 21, 2007. This is more than a year before he became the Democratic candidate for US president. The article addresses the issues of lobbyists, special interest groups and campaign financing.
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