Bibliophilism

Ever thought a book could cost tens of millions Over the years book lovers, libraries and private collectors have paid astonishing prices to own a piece of human history. Here is a list of the world’s most expensive rare manuscripts and priceless books ever sold

The Birds of America A complete copy of the first edition of The Birds of America by naturalist and painter John James Audubon, containing hand-coloured, life-size prints, made from engraved plates was sold for Rs 5,26,475,355 approx. Around the age of 35, Audubon declared his intention to paint every bird in North America. He mainly used oil paints and occasionally pencil, charcoal, chalk, gouache, and pen and ink. As early as 1807, he developed a method of using wires and threads to hold dead birds in lifelike poses while he drew them.

Shakespeare’s First Folio Printed in 1623, it was the first collected edition of Shakespeare’s plays, popularly known as The First Folio. It was published seven years after his death and has proved the most enduring work in English literature. It fetched a record price of over Rs 4, 000,20,000 approx in 2001. It is arguably the only reliable text for about twenty of his plays, and a valuable source text even for many of those previously published.

The Codex Leicester The Codex Leicester is a rare collection of scientific writings by Italian polymath Leonardo da Vinci. American business magnate and philanthropist Bill Gates bought this handwritten notebook in 1994 in New York for more than Rs 20,02,363,500 approx. The manuscript does not take the form of a single linear script, but is a mix of Leonardo’s observations and theories on astronomy; the properties of water, rocks, and fossil; air, and celestial light. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer The first edition of the 15th century bawd-fest sold for approx Rs 5,00,279,625 at Christie’s in London in 1998. Produced by William Caxton, reputedly England’s first printer, this book by Geoffrey Chaucer fetched seven times its estimated amount. Only a dozen copies of the 1477 first edition, printed by William Caxton, still exist.

The Gutenberg bible The Gutenberg Bible, printed by Johann Gutenberg in Mainz, c.1455, was the first book printed from movable types in the western world. Reportedly, only 48 copies of the original Bible are still intact, out of which only 31 are perfect. Surprisingly, a single leaf of the text sells for a whopping sum of Rs 4,727,968! A complete version would be worth tens of millions of pounds. A two-volume paper edition of the Bible was looted by the Soviet Army after World War II from the Library of the University of Leipzig, Germany, and is estimated to be worth in excess of Rs 1,361,056,380.

Book of Psalms One of the finest surviving copies of a Puritan book of psalms created a record by being auctioned at Sotheby’s in New York for Rs 9,67,693,025 approx. The first edition was printed in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1640, and Sotheby’s sold one of the 11 surviving copies. The buyer of the Bay Psalm Book, as it is known, was David M. Rubenstein of the Carlyle Group, an investment firm in Washington. The Psalms in it are metrical translations into English. The translations are not particularly polished, and not one has remained in use, although some of the tunes to which they were sung have survived.