Literary High Spots of Theodore B. Baum Total $9,657,875 at Christie's
An auction record was set by an inscribed first edition of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, which realized $275,000.
New York – The Exceptional Literature Collection of Theodore B. Baum, sold across two live and online sales, totaled $9,657,875, surpassing the pre-sale high estimate. The live sale achieved $6,703,375 and was 98% sold by lot and 218% hammer above low estimate. Bidders participated from 14 countries and 6 continents. A new world auction record for a printed work by a woman was established for the first edition of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, which sold for $1,170,000, above an estimate of $200,000-300,000. Another auction record was set by an inscribed first edition of Bram Stoker's Dracula, which realized $275,000.
The online portion of The Exceptional Literature Collection of Theodore B. Baum, Part Two: The Twentieth Century totaled $2,954,500, and was 95% sold by lot. The top selling work in the online portion was James Joyce’s Dubliners which sold for $400,000, above the estimate of $150,000-250,000. Night and Day by Virginia Woolf was another highlight which achieved $112,500, over the estimate of $40,000-60,000.
Heather Weintraub, Books and Manuscripts Specialist and Head of Sale, remarks: “It was a privilege working with this exceptional library and we are delighted by the outstanding results. The sale attracted bidders and buyers from around the world and showed that the market is strong for such fine examples of literary high spots.”
