Sydney Rare Book Auctions

12noon, 25th August 2024

This auction we have an eclectic collection of books – many beautiful, others unusual and some inspiring.

We have the most stunning example of Bring in the Monkey by Miles Franklin and Illustrated by Norman Lindsay (Lot 1).

We have two unusual and intense bindings done by an Australian modern designer binder: Mein Kampf(12) and Donald Friend Signed Fine Binding(13). Other unusual things we have are a decoy duck; Blue and White Porcelain Paintings (82-83); Mary Ward’s book on microscopes(110); A history of Furs (134)

We have found some which have inspired more to come to Australia including a first issue of Governor Phillip’s Voyage (Lot 15) or Ludwig Leichhardt First Expedition News 1847 (Lot 342).

For the adventure there is Mawson Home of Blizzard 1st(223); North West Passage Arctic Exploration Ross(7) or Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand (22).

For those who used books to escape we have Deluxe edition Tolkein (23-25) or a first edition BFG by Roald Dahl(4).

This auction is well worth a look!

When Sunday August 25th, 12:00 PM
Where Timed auction
Viewing 10am – 4pm weekdays
At Sydney Rare Book Auctions Dalgety Square at C11/372-428 Wattle Street, Ultimo, NSW 2007
Bidding absentee, on Invaluable and on our website.
Absentee bids are due by email 23rd Friday 3pm Sydney Time.

The next instalment of Crime Fiction books from the estate of the late Gary Gorton is here! And just like the first batch, these are beautiful….

Paul took me to visit Gary when we helped organised the Hong Kong Book Fair. We sat in Gary’s lounge room and overlooked the twinkling city sky. Gary put on old records and we chatted about books and music. It wasn’t long before I was introduced to his pride and joy – A large room, filled with the most beautiful specimens of crime fiction books in dustwrapper. My mouth dropped…

The bookcases were triple shelved, with his favourites displayed like art in an art gallery. Gary pulled books off the shelves – his eyes glistened as he spoke about each one. Unforgettable and magical. Ellie Aroney

Gary collected any book listed in Hubin’s Crime Fiction: A Comprehensive Bibliography. He always bought the best that he could find so the books are in wonderful condition.

All of them are housed in a brodart cover. Some of the wrappers have professional repairs and some of the books have had the top stains refurbished. All of these individual faults and repairs have been noted in our description. Most of the repairs have been performed on the inside of the wrapper and are invisible to the naked eye.

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5.1

9.1

11.1

12.1

281.1

230.1

187.1

58.1

47.1

43.1

33.1

27.1

20.1

16.1

285.1

294.1

295.1

300.1

334.1

337.1

359.1

363.1

364.1

375.1

Crime fiction is a popular genre because it engages the reader to pop on their detective hat and seek out the truth.

Publishers have used this to their advantage promoting whoduits, murder mysteries and legal thrillers. Doubleday’s Crime Club makes a big portion of this auction, but we also have Hodder and Stoughton, Robert Hale, Herbert Jenkins, Mystery League. Each publisher have their own design style.

This is the second of several auction catalogues of crime fiction we will be offering over the next several months.

When SundayJuly 11th, 12:00 PM
Where Timed auction
Viewing 10am – 4pm weekdays
At Sydney Rare Book Auctions Dalgety Square at C11/372-428 Wattle Street, Ultimo, NSW 2007
Bidding absentee, on Invaluable and on our website.
Absentee bids are due by email 9th Friday 3pm Sydney Time.
Questions welcomed. Please get them in before 3pm Friday 9th.

Sydney Rare Book Auctions

Books: Beautiful, Unusual and Inspiring

Gary Gorton Crime Fiction Collection Part Two