October 26, 2020Swann CommunicationsBooks & Manuscripts Fine Books & Manuscripts: November 2020 Highlights Read more about Fine Books & Manuscripts: November 2020 Highlights Featuring Major Works by Jane Austen & Charles Dickens, Autographs & Manuscript Items from John Hancock, Igor Stravinsky & more
Read more about 2010-19: The Decade in Review January 13, 2020 Swann 2010-19: The Decade in Review The 2010s brought Swann a number of notable moments including memorable sales, the establishment of two new departments, and the celebration of the 75th anniversary of our first sale. Here we take a look at some of favorite highlights from the last ten years.
Read more about 2019 Spring Season in Review July 1, 2019 Swann 2019 Spring Season in Review A season of firsts. The 2019 spring auction season at Swann Galleries delivered an impressive range of sales, rife with auction premiers and record prices. We started our season off…
Read more about 2017-18 Year in Review June 25, 2018 Swann 2017-18 Year in Review The 2017-18 auction season at Swann Galleries was replete with record prices and rediscovered paintings, offering works created as early as the fifteenth century and as recently as last year.…
Read more about Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature May 17, 2018 Books & Manuscripts Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature Science fiction ruled on May 15 at our auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature. Selections from the Estate of Stanley Simon, featuring 84 rare and first editions of cornerstones…
Read more about The Sci-Fi Collection of Stanley Simon May 10, 2018 Books & Manuscripts The Sci-Fi Collection of Stanley Simon Stanley Simon of New York City was a passionate life-long collector of sci-fi, thriller and fantasy first editions. His paramount collection of almost 100 first editions, nearly all of them signed,…
Read more about A Look Inside the Catalogue: 19th & 20th Century Literature April 10, 2018 Books & Manuscripts A Look Inside the Catalogue: 19th & 20th Century Literature At Auction May 15 Cornerstones of science fiction from the Estate of Stanley Simon form the backbone of our May 15 auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature; of special…
Read more about Charles Dickens Reveals His Inspiration March 19, 2018 Autographs Charles Dickens Reveals His Inspiration A very formal letter by Charles Dickens to Lord Robert Grosvenor was a highlight of our March 22 auction of Autographs. The letter, dated July 9, 1838, was…
Read more about The Top Five Fahrenheit 451s January 4, 2018 19th & 20th Century Literature The Top Five Fahrenheit 451s According to our Literature specialist John D. Larson, there are five first editions of Fahrenheit 451 of interest to collectors. As with all important modern first editions, a set of criteria…
Read more about 2017: Year in Review December 28, 2017 Swann 2017: Year in Review In our diamond anniversary year, we offered a star-studded roster of 30 auctions, setting nearly 100 records and introducing countless items to the market, including a previously unknown photograph of Harriet…
Read more about Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature November 16, 2017 Books & Manuscripts Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature Our auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature on November 14 offered a veritable library of scarce first editions and inscriptions by authors from the last two centuries. More than…
Read more about Children’s Literature for Adults November 13, 2017 19th & 20th Century Literature Children’s Literature for Adults Children’s literature is a perennially popular genre. We were all children once, and the antics of Willy Wonka and imagination of Max shaped our early lives in a way that…
Read more about Records & Results: Spring 2017 June 16, 2017 Swann Records & Results: Spring 2017 The spring 2017 season at Swann Galleries marked the 75th anniversary of our first auction. On March 27, 1942, Benjamin Swann held an auction dedicated to rare and antiquarian books.…
Read more about Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature May 18, 2017 Books & Manuscripts Records & Results: 19th & 20th Century Literature First editions and inscribed copies filled the shelves at our May 16 auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature. The sale broke several auction records and encompassed a variety of genres,…
Read more about George & Robert Cruikshank, Early Caricaturists May 11, 2017 Books & Manuscripts George & Robert Cruikshank, Early Caricaturists Brothers George and Isaac (who often went by his middle name of Robert) Cruikshank were famed early nineteenth-century caricaturists. Their work appears in two of our sales this season, 19th…
Read more about Dearest Marlene: Letters & Photos from the Collection of Marlene Dietrich May 1, 2017 Autographs Dearest Marlene: Letters & Photos from the Collection of Marlene Dietrich Swann is honored to commemorate the legacy of Marlene Dietrich by offering for the first time select items that have touched her life and that of her family. Our May…
Read more about What is a Cosway-Style Binding? April 26, 2017 Books & Manuscripts What is a Cosway-Style Binding? It’s hard not to judge a book by its cover when it is encased in a fine Cosway-style binding. Two of these sumptuous decorative tomes will be coming to auction…
Read more about Signed First Edition of Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet November 7, 2016 19th & 20th Century Literature Signed First Edition of Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet One of the highlights in our November 10 sale of 19th & 20th Century Literature is a scarce first edition of The Prophet, signed by its author, Kahlil Gibran, in…
Read more about Grimm’s Fairytales Signed by Anne Frank Comes to Auction May 4, 2016 19th & 20th Century Literature Grimm’s Fairytales Signed by Anne Frank Comes to Auction Through her poignant writing and tragic story, Anne Frank has become a source of inspiration for millions. Two of our upcoming auctions feature items related to Frank, including Anne and Margot’s…
Read more about Top Lots: Melville’s Whale, Signed Flannery O’Connor Firsts, Rex Stout Titles June 23, 2014 19th & 20th Century Literature Top Lots: Melville’s Whale, Signed Flannery O’Connor Firsts, Rex Stout Titles Topping our June 19, 2014 auction of 19th & 20th Century Literature was a first American edition of Herman Melville’s seminal Moby-Dick, which brought $40,000 against a pre-sale estimate of $18,000…
Read more about Celebrating Bloomsday 2014 June 16, 2014 19th & 20th Century Literature Celebrating Bloomsday 2014 To celebrate the life and literary oeuvre of James Joyce on the international holiday that is Bloomsday, we are looking back on some of the many editions of James Joyce’s…
Read more about Herman Melville: Neighbor November 20, 2013 19th & 20th Century Literature Herman Melville: Neighbor Thanks to John D. Larson, Swann’s 19th & 20th Century Literature Specialist, for contributing this post: It’s a fine thing (call it geographic serendipity) to share a similar address with someone who…
Read more about Penises and Pompadours: The Erotic Art of Franz von Bayros November 3, 2011 19th & 20th Century Prints & Drawings Penises and Pompadours: The Erotic Art of Franz von Bayros Decadent! Erotic! Phantasmagoric! Fin-de-siècle grotesqueries! Gents and ladies disporting themselves, occasionally with a zealous attention by attending friends from the animal kingdom! The provocative work of Austrian artist Franz von…