Antiquarian Ramblings: A Diamond in the Rough

Posted by admin on 07.31.2009 at 12:58 pm

When the American Archives Series books came to the ARC department, many of them had missing boards and other issues compromising their structural integrity.  They also smelled of the ancient organic dust that accompanies old leather bound books, reminding me that I was due for a Tetanus booster shot.  That said, my expectations were low.

A quick glimpse of the market revealed a value for these volumes at around $100-200 a piece.  Not bad, but given their present state, and the collective need for some TLC from a sympathetic binder, these tomes were destined to be sold for scrap at auction.  After plowing through a few of these, I came across American Archives; Fifth Series, Volume I.  A cursory glance of this item suggested it would fare the same fate as its siblings.  Since I literally couldn’t judge this book by its cover as it didn’t have one, I dug right in.  And to my surprise,  the latter half of the book revealed a true diamond in the rough.

There in the back, just waiting to be discovered was a pristine facsimile copy of the Declaration of Independence encapsulated within Read more…

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Seeing is Believing

Posted by Rudy on 09.02.2008 at 11:31 am

In the course of our days in the Antiquarian, Rare, and Collectable Books (ARC) section at Better World Books, we come across a number of gems and treasures. At least once a day, one of our bibliographers or cataloguers will excitedly share the latest and greatest tomes to come our way. I suppose one could liken it to Christmas morning: each box that we open is sure to contain a delight, though unknown until the moment it is revealed.

When I was a young child, I recall an oft-heard response from my mother: “I’ll believe it when I see it.” While she was mostly referring to my empty promises to clean up my room, practice the piano, or finish my homework, I usually find myself expressing that same sentiment when one of our ARC team members describes the latest ‘find’. Sure enough, once I see it, I am in awe.

We’ve taken that adage to heart and, for the last 8 months, have been putting a number of finer items up for public inspection on eBay. I know, I know, eBay?! It wasn’t until I obtained some obscure items for my personal collection of ecclesiastical history on eBay that I really became a believer. There are lots of advantages to eBay: a plethora of images, unlimited text descriptions, an open forum for Q&A, not to mention lots of exposure for obscure items and open-market competition. We’ve found such great success there that we have hired a full-time ARC Specialist with a focus on the eBay market.

So far, ARC’s presence on the eBay marketplace has connected a collector of antique Chinese drawings with an extensive collection of rare facsimiles. It has found a home for a hand-made collection of Walt Whitman photographs and a volume of plates from medieval Gospel books. And, it significantly augmented the collection of one researcher with the addition of facsimiles of the Washington Manuscript of the Minor Prophets in the Freer Collection and the Berlin Fragment of the Book of Genesis to his private collection. And, lest you think that all that we offer is from dusty and little known nooks of libraries, we’ve also been known to list limited edition prints of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, along with collectable editions of Popular Mechanics, TIME, and Harper’s Monthly – ok, ok, and a few MAD magazines and comic books as well.

While we will continue to list our entire ARC collection on BetterWorld.com – now more than 60,000 items – be sure to visit our eBay auctions and store where you will find some of the more interesting items that just have to been seen to be appreciated.

Have your say » | Tagged Antiquarian Ramblings, Antiquarian Ramblings, ARC, eBay, Rudy Reyes Jr.

ARC at the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminars

Posted by admin on 08.20.2007 at 1:13 pm

Two members of Better World Books’ growing Antiquarian, Rare, and Collectable Department (ARC), Ryan van Plew-Cid and Rudy Reyes Jr., along with Dustin Holland, Director of the Library Division, recently attended the 29^th Annual Antiquarian Book Seminars in Colorado Springs , Colorado , directed by Rob Rulon-Miller Jr., proprietor of Rulon-Miller Books and internationally acclaimed rare book dealer.

The Seminar, begun in 1978, featured experts from every aspect of the booktrade, from internet selling to accounting, from bookmaking and preservation to shipping, and from database management to bibliography and cataloguing. In addition to Rulon-Miller, the faculty included Prof. Terry Belanger, Honorary Curator of Special Collections and Director of the Rare Book School at the University of Virginia and Daniel De Simone, Curator of the Lessing Collection at the Library of Congress.

Highlights of the week included Old Books and New Technology: The View from Here, the keynote presentation by former labour under-secretary Marty Manley, Chairman and CEO of Alibris. Manley’s presentation focused the week around the promise of books in general for society and the place of booksellers in the social and economic landscape. Also, an interesting workshop on book preservation and conservation was led by Angela Scott of Fine Binding & Custom Design in the District of Columbia . Scott had numerous exempla of raw materials for book making and demonstrated the techniques for binding and covering books.

Future professional development opportunities for ARC include an upcoming visit to the University of Notre Dame Libraries ’ Special Collections Department, Rare Book Room, and Reyniers Preservation Facility.

For more information on Better World’s ARC Department, please contact us at ARC@BetterWorldBooks.com or see our ARC FAQs.

Have your say » | Tagged Antiquarian Ramblings, Dispatches from the Green House, Antiquarian Ramblings, ARC, Colorado, Rudy Reyes