In classical times, there were great libraries and an established book trade but much of this was lost with the decline of the Roman Empire.  By the 7th and 8th centuries, it was only in the monasteries on the fringes of the old Roman world, in Ireland and in the Byzantine Empire, that the art of book making survived. But the illuminated manuscripts, such as the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells, which these monasteries produced are among the most beautiful books ever made.

Over the next five hundred years, as monasticism spread throughout Europe, so too did the production of manuscripts. These were mostly books, such as musical and liturgical texts, made for the monks own use but some, including the famous Bedford Hours (ca 1423) were also made for wealthy patrons. Even after the introduction of printing, hand-made manuscripts continued to be produced and remained a significant part of book making until the late 17th century.

These manuscripts were generally made of vellum, paper being unknown in Europe before the 12th century. Paper did not become common for book making the the 15th century. 

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Old books are not valuable just because of their age but very old books will almost always be scarce and probably valuable for that reason. As a guide, any book is likely to be valuable if it was printed anywhere before 1500, printed in England before 1640, printed in America before 1800 or printed in Australia or the Western United States before 1850.

Our sister site, "The Menzies Era", has information, including bibliographies, on several collectable authors. These links will take you to the appropriate page:

Isaac Asimov
Edgar Rice Burroughs
Leslie Charteris
Agatha Christie
Ian Fleming
W.E. Johns
J.R.R.Tolkien
Patrick White

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More Bibles have been printed than any other book. Although copies may be treasured by their owners, very few are of value to collectors. Of course, there are exceptions, such as the first English Authorised (King James) Bible and a variety of early Bibles that are sought because of some misprint, or other oddity.

Encyclopedias are normally only of interest while their content is current. Again there are exceptions, such as the first edition (1776) of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Textbooks are rarely of interest to collectors. The exceptions are illustrated schoolbooks from before about 1850 and mint condition early editions of a few books that remained in use for a very long time, such as the American McGuffey Readers.

Collected works are usually published because an author is very popular. For this reason, large numbers are usually printed and they are unlikely to be rare.

Sermons and books of religious instruction are also usually printed in large numbers and, so, are unlikely to be scarce. A few such works were written by major figures in the history of religion or relate to historical events, and may be collectable for that reason.

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In classical times, there were great libraries and an established book trade but much of this was lost with the decline of the Roman Empire.  By the 7th and 8th centuries, it was only in the monasteries on the fringes of the old Roman world, in Ireland and in the Byzantine Empire, that the art of book making survived. But the illuminated manuscripts, such as the Lindisfarne Gospels and the Book of Kells, which these monasteries produced are among the most beautiful books ever made.

Over the next five hundred years, as monasticism spread throughout Europe, so too did the production of manuscripts. These were mostly books, such as musical and liturgical texts, made for the monks own use but some, including the famous Bedford Hours (ca 1423) were also made for wealthy patrons. Even after the introduction of printing, hand-made manuscripts continued to be produced and remained a significant part of book making until the late 17th century.

These manuscripts were generally made of vellum, paper being unknown in Europe before the 12th century. Paper did not become common for book making the the 15th century. 

Read the rest of this entry »

If you liked this item, please let others know: