Catalogue of the Library Belonging to Mr. Thomas W. Field. To be sold at Auction... May 24th 1875
New York: Bangs. Merwin, Co., 1875. From the Bart Auerbach Collection. 8vo. 376 pages [without the supplement]. 20th-century blue buckram. Some chipping at sheet edges, spine faded. Item #409696
2663 lots, priced throughout in ink. "Field's fortunes declined in the mid-1880s and he was forced to sell his library at auction. Under careful management of master auctioneer Joseph Sabin, the books brought a fair return, although some items, like the handsome set of DeBry's 'Voyages', yielded only a fraction of their market value. The importance of the Field library can not be overlooked in any analysis of American book auction history. It was the first time a significant collection of Indian materials was offered on the open market" (Dickinson, 'Dictionary of American Book Collectors', p. 116).
Price: $200.00