FALLS CHURCH, VA.- Along with the traditional fare of rare books,
Quinn’s Auction Galleries’ Waverly Rare Books and Maps Catalog #265 offers antique maps of European cities, North America and beyond. The highlight of the June 11 auction is an 18th-century orrery, an apparatus that shows the movements of planets around the sun.
The hand-cranked device shows the movements of Mercury, Venus and Earth around the Sun, and the Moon around the Earth, all above a printed, colored dial. W. & S. Jones, London, manufactured “A Table of the Principal Affections of the Planets,” which is dated Jan. 1, 1794. Contained in a mahogany case that measures 13 3/8in x 13 5/8in x 7 1/8in, the orrery is expected to sell for $15,000-$25,000.
Maps of a smaller scale include the circa-1740 Seutter Map of North America (Augsburg), also known as the “Mississippi Bubble” map. Matthew Seutter’s double-page “Accurata Delineatio Celeberrimae Regionis Ludovicianae Vel Gallice Louisane … ” shows France’s control of Louisiana from the Gulf Coast and Mississippi River to the Great Lakes. Exhibiting minor repair and a near-fine image, the map has a $400-$700 estimate.
The auction also boasts 18 16th-century Braun & Hogenberg maps of London, Paris, Rome, Moscow, Seville and other cities. Estimates range from $500-$800 for a map of Paris to $800-$1,200 for a map of London.
Another rarity is a 10-volume set of “La Biblia Vulgata Latina Traducida en Espanol,” 1790-1793, the first edition of a Spanish Bible printed on Spanish soil. Bound in uniform tree calf, probably 19th century, the set is estimated at $3,000-$5,000.
A 51-volume set of Walter Scott’s “The Waverly Novels,” an Extra Illustrated Edition featuring 50 original watercolors, all in full leather with large floral/leaf decorations, is expected to sell for $1,000-$1,500.
Also listed in Waverly Auctions’ 463-lot catalog are many first editions – some signed, including works by Helen Keller and Bram Stoker.
The auction will begin at 6 p.m. on Thursday, June 11. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
