I have, what appears to be, an old theological text book published in latin. It was published in 1656 and the title page reads "Colleguim Theologicum; SIVE SYSTEMA Breve Universae Theologiae. The type is obviously hand set. All the interior pages are intact but the cover has been replaced with generic board and wax paper. It was signed by a man named Nathaniel Dummer in 1743 and by another person, in 1701 but his name has been scratched out. There is a handwritten note on the second fly sheet that has been inserted into the spine with glue. It is very faint but says something to effect that the books original owner was born in Baton in 1679 and his last name isXXXXX in 1699 and recieved his doctorate at Whecht Bateria, Holland. Where he probably left this book - was preacher & their in Eng politician (?). There are additional notes on the second fly sheet, recording a short family history of the Rev Moses Hale of Byfield and his son, Rev. Moses hale of Newbury. I have traced the family tree back to the father of Moses and it all seems to fall in line with the first notes. I can't find any reference for this book anywhere. Any ideas? I can also send you detailed pictures of the book at your request. Thanks, Bill.
Good evening,I am an expert in rare and collectible books and am looking forward to assisting you with the valuation of this book.It would be very helpful if you could send the photos XXXXX@XXXXXX.XXX with ChrysalisTM in the subject line. They will have to be forwarded by customer service to me so it might take a little while.
Thank you for the pictures. They are very helpful.As you mentioned in your inquiry, the book would have been hand type set. The printer is the name listed on the bottom of the title page: Francisci Bronchorstii. The illustrations were all done by woodcuts. The two color pages would have been run through the press once, and then a second time with the different color. A blank space would be left for the illustrations which would be done separately. Sometimes when you look at books from this period you will notice the illustrations cutting into the words, or uneven printing of the woodblocks. This book was published in several editions. There are two libraries that have all editions: University of St. Andrews and University of Oxford. There are also a couple versions in private research or rare book libraries. There are currently no copies of this book for sale through private dealers. The last time this book came up for auction was in 2005. The auction estimate was 150-200 Euros but it sold for 600 Euros. The copy was in very good condition with original binding.There are several condition issues on your volume. The book world is more forgiving of condition issues in volumes of this age but you will have some difficulty selling this book with it's current issues. The spine is broken (as shown in the index page), there is a stain and some tearing on the bottom of the spine and there appear to be some loose pages. There are no pictures of the binding - which is very important.In good condition, I would place a retail value of $400-500. If it's missing it's binding, etc., the value would decrease. If you are interested in selling it, I would recommend contacting an auction house that specializes in books such as Swann Gallery, Heritage, or National Book Auction.Please let me know if you have any further questions.
The book is perfect bound. But it appears the original cover was replaced , unless that's the way the original cover looked. Ther are only a few loose pages in the back, but all the numbered pages are there. Would this help the value? I was just going to list it on Ebay and come what may.
Can you attach a picture of the binding?
The spine is completely detached from the binding. I can't tell from your pictures what it is bound in - if original or more recent. The sewing on the spine seems to be recent. The detachment of the spine from the binding decreases the value as does the lack of original binding. A collector (or dealer) buying the book would have to have it repaired and rebound. I would estimate $200-300 retail. Usually an auction will bring 50% of retail value unless something out of the ordinary occurs. My experience with eBay is unless you have a strong following of buyers you will end up selling your book for very little. I would personally go the route of an auction house. You have done the research on the provenance and that alone will help their cataloging. Best of luck.
Experience: Antique store owner specializing in books; USPAP