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David Bowie at EMI | Bayliss Rare Books

Wines of the World | 1969, number 223 of only 265 copies, signed by th

Origin of Species 

A rare first edition, first issue of A Christmas Carol in the original brown cloth, the holly-and-ivy boards gleaming exactly as Dickens intended when he set out to rescue both his career and Christmas in a single book. This is the true first appearance of the text, since unlike Dickens’s other novels, it never appeared in serial form. All the first issue points are here. Stave I as the opening chapter. The date in Roman numerals. The unbroken D in Dickens on the upper cover. The correct 15mm spacing between the gilt wreath and the blind-stamped border. And the scarce pale green endpapers that collectors always look for but rarely find. The book is complete with the four hand-coloured plates by John Leech, whose Scrooge and Marley have shaped the visual imagination of Christmas for more than a century. Condition is strong: Only defects to mention are light rubbing, a repaired spine head, a few small marks to the boards, and the usual gentle toning to the plates. The text is crisp, the cloth still lively, the gilt bright. An excellent example of this iconic work. A Christmas Carol is one of the most influential stories ever written. Dickens wrote it in a six week blaze of inspiration in late 1843 and effectively invented the modern idea of Christmas in the process. Copies like this, in original cloth and in first issue state, are increasingly difficult to find in collectible condition. Eckel was right when he called it the greatest Christmas book ever written in any language. Please note that this copy will be exhibited during my talks at Soho House later this month. If purchased, it would be shipped on the 19th of December.

A Christmas Carol | 1843, first edition, first issue, in the original cloth.

A superb example of Dickens’s most enduring work and the book that shaped the modern Christmas. This is a true first edition, first issue, made all the more remarkable by the presence of a tipped in signed note from Dickens that reads “Believe me always.” It is an unusually touching sentiment to accompany a story centred on generosity and renewal and it lifts this copy into rarefied company. Internally the book is in outstanding condition. The pages are clean, bright and notably fresh. It is the finest internal state I have handled. Handsomely bound in full red morocco by Riviere and Son, the binding is elegant and crisp and sits beautifully with the vibrancy of the text. A sumptuous presentation in every respect. All first issue points are present, including Stave I on the opening page and the title page printed in red and blue and dated 1843. First edition, first issue, octavo (160 x 100 mm). Complete with the half title, all four hand coloured etchings including the frontispiece, and the two pages of advertisements at the rear. Bound in full red morocco gilt by Riviere and Son with gilt dentelles, all edges gilt and marbled endpapers. The spine shows only the slightest touch of fading and the overall presentation is luxurious and finely executed. Most importantly, this copy carries a tipped in signed note by Dickens. A signature on A Christmas Carol is exceptionally scarce and the presence of a personal note transforms this from a desirable first edition into a genuine collector level prize. A beautiful and characterful copy of the book that defined the modern Christmas and one of the few enhanced by Dickens’s own hand. Please note that this will be exhibited during my talks at Soho House (16th and 18th Dec) later this month. If purchased, this would be shipped on the 19th of December.

A Christmas Carol | 1843, first edition, signed with a tipped in note: "Believe me always"

A superbly bound first edition of George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, presented in a striking full black morocco binding by Asprey with a sea green onlay of 1984 to the front cover and Japanese paper endpapers. A very fine copy with no foxing and pages that remain unusually fresh and bright. The quality of the binding is exceptional. Through a chain of mergers in the twentieth century, Asprey came to incorporate the Sangorski and Sutcliffe and Zaehnsdorf binderies, before the name was revived under Shepherds in the late 1990s. This volume therefore carries the Asprey name but was produced by the Sangorski team, a detail of real interest to collectors of modern fine bindings and one that adds a layer of prestige and provenance to the book. First editions of Nineteen Eighty-Four are increasingly sought after in superior condition. The novel’s influence has only grown as Orwell’s vision has embedded itself in political language and cultural memory. Bound at a high level, immaculately preserved and visually striking, this example offers both collectability and display power. An outstanding presentation of a defining work of twentieth century literature.

Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984) | 1949, first edition, finely bound by Asprey in full morocco.

A remarkable typed letter signed H. Matisse, dated November 22, 1949, with extensive red crayon and ink corrections in Matisse’s own hand. Very few Matisse letters survive, and fewer still show autograph markings of this kind. In this letter Matisse addresses the scandal surrounding Martin Fabiani, the Paris dealer convicted for his role in the Nazi looted art trade. Fabiani had published Matisse’s Thèmes et Variations during the war, but in the postwar years his name became entangled with looting and corruption. Matisse distances himself with clarity, writing that he has had absolutely no notice from the Court and no information from any other source regarding the Fabiani affair. It is rare to see Matisse speak so directly about the political and ethical aftermath of the war. He then turns to a separate matter: Draeger’s proposal to reproduce two of his paintings for medical advertising. Matisse asks whether the project has been carried out and what products were involved. The juxtaposition is striking. Here is Matisse in the late 1940s, navigating both the protection of his reputation in the wake of wartime scandals and the growing commercial appetite for his work. What sets this letter apart is the presence of Matisse’s red crayon and ink corrections. Words are underlined, struck through and reshaped by the same hand that produced some of the most influential images of modern art. It is as close as one can come to seeing Matisse think on the page, balancing caution, clarity and precision at a moment when the art world was reckoning with questions of provenance, ethics and commercialisation. Signed boldly H. Matisse. A rare and significant document, combining personal involvement in the Fabiani affair with direct commentary on the reproduction of his own art. Letters of this level, with strong content and visible autograph corrections, are collectors pieces of the highest order

Henri Matisse Letter | 1949, on Nazi-looted art scandal, signed with extensive autograph corrections

This first edition of Wuthering Heights was featured in The Financial Times, The World of Interiors and Country Life The earliest obtainable edition of Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, printed in New York in 1848 and issued anonymously under the line by the author of Jane Eyre. When Harper and Brothers published Wuthering Heights in America, they followed the lead of the London first edition and withheld the author’s name. Their attribution by the author of Jane Eyre was a deliberate marketing strategy intended to tap into the success of Charlotte Brontë’s novel, itself issued under the pseudonym Currer Bell. Emily Brontë’s authorship remained concealed and she would die later that year, still unknown to the public. This American edition therefore marks the first appearance of Wuthering Heights outside Britain and the only edition published in her lifetime that collectors can practically own today. The true first edition, published in London in December 1847, has become mythical. Complete copies in original state scarcely appear and are priced well above two hundred thousand pounds. By contrast, the 1848 Harper and Brothers edition remains exceptionally rare but survives as the earliest attainable form of the novel for collectors. Only two examples are currently available in original cloth, and this is by far the finer. These copies were cheaply made for a mass audience and very few have survived in presentable condition. This example is in the original publisher’s brown cloth, lettered in gilt to the spine, with the characteristic blind-stamped boards. Light wear to the extremities and rubbing to the cloth, as expected for a book of this construction and age. The text block shows mild toning with occasional spotting. Overall a remarkably well-preserved survival of an edition never intended to last. Wuthering Heights has become one of the defining works of nineteenth-century literature and a cornerstone of the modern imagination. As renewed attention gathers around Emerald Fennell’s forthcoming adaptation, copies of this calibre represent not only the foundation of Brontë collecting but the gateway through which most readers first encountered the novel in the nineteenth century. It is a powerful reminder of how the book travelled, how it was received, and how a novel published without an author’s name began its journey toward immortality. 8vo. Spotting throughout. Original red-brown wavy-grained cloth decorated in blind, the spine decorated and lettered in gilt. A few old tiny repairs to the spine ends and near the titling. Fore-corners rubbed and the extremities lightly sunned. Hinges starting with some stitching visible, as is often the case with this edition. Housed in a morocco-backed folding case.

Wuthering Heights | 1848, first edition, the earliest obtainable edition on the market of Brontë's masterpiece

A landmark of Gothic literature and one of the most important magazines ever printed. The earliest obtainable appearance of the first vampire story on the page and a turning point in the history of the fantastic. The true first appearance of John Polidori’s The Vampyre, published in the April 1819 issue of The New Monthly Magazine and issued under the explosive and false attribution to Lord Byron. This is the earliest obtainable printing of the first vampire story in English literature, created during the same 1816 weekend at the Villa Diodati that produced Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. An excellent example. On publication Henry Colburn credited Byron as author, a decision that ignited immediate fascination. Viets writes that the reaction at the time was electric and the misattribution generated controversy, celebrity and scandal in equal measure. Byron publicly denied authorship soon afterward, and the later book-form edition issued by Sherwood, Neely and Jones removed his name entirely. Although those Sherwood issues are often described as the first edition, this magazine printing is the true first appearance and far rarer. Only one other example is currently on the market and it is priced higher than this copy. Without Polidori’s story there is no Dracula. The Vampyre has only grown in stature and its influence continues to widen. With renewed interest in early Gothic cinema and adaptations of Frankenstein, collectors and readers are increasingly drawn back to that weekend in 1816, when the modern vampire was born alongside Mary Shelley’s novel. This April 1819 issue also contains the first published account of the Villa Diodati ghost-story challenge, the weekend that gave rise to both Frankenstein and The Vampyre. It represents the moment Gothic fiction changed direction and the vampire entered the English imagination. Few works have had a more lasting influence on literature, popular culture and the modern mythology of the undead. A complete single issue of The New Monthly Magazine, Volume XI Number 63, with The Vampyre appearing at pp. 193–94 on the usual cancel leaf. Contemporary calf, rebacked, gilt spine with red morocco label, lightly rubbed. Light toning and occasional spotting to the text as expected. An excellent example. Provenance adds a further layer of resonance. This copy bears the bookplate of Geoffrey Bond, the distinguished Byron collector whose library at Burgage Manor in Southwell focused on the world and writings of Lord Byron. For a work falsely attributed to Byron on publication and central to the mythology surrounding him, Bond’s ownership provides a fitting and highly desirable association. Oliver adds: ‘This might just be the rarest work I ever offer as a dealer. The first ever vampire story and in its earliest obtainable form. Remarkable.’

The Vampyre | 1819, true first edition, first state of the first ever vampire story

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James Bond

Lord of the Rings - The Two Towers

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