My book-buying "problem"

Discussion in 'Books, Films, TV, Radio' started by Chris C, Jul 6, 2018.

  1. JeremyC

    JeremyC Well-Known Member

    Good finds! Must have been one hell of a shop, to have a selection like that?
     
  2. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Complete disaster area.
    That 'Ohhhh' thing when you find the smashed up box plainly full of one (likely departed) man's shiny things...
    They've gone to a good home. :unsure:
     
    Nick the Noodle, stolpi and Chris C like this.
  3. JeremyC

    JeremyC Well-Known Member

    Ah - yes, my local auction house is full of lots like that. Someone's carefully-assembled lifetime collections of stuff, presumably being sold off by uncaring relatives. Makes you feel like a bit of a vulture . . .
     
    Nick the Noodle likes this.
  4. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    Ran across this in a local shop and bought it based on it being an artillery memoir. Stuart started off in AA guns near Dartford but then transferred to a unit sent to Narvik. Later sections include Gibraltar and Tobruk. I guess he settled in Canada after the war as this was published in Waterloo Ontario in 1981.
    IMG_20220730_132424_596.jpg
     
    Wobbler, Waddell, Orwell1984 and 3 others like this.
  5. papiermache

    papiermache Well-Known Member

    The trouble with books is that dealers aim to pay nothing for them and wait twenty years to sell them, making up a price by counting clouds, or so it seems. Or, you give them to charity: if they have a new shiny look they try and sell them otherwise they go straight to landfill or an assistant who has heard of Abe books who has a bit of time to spare. Then they go to landfill to make room for a 250th impression of an Agatha Christie whodunnit.

    At the May auction sale by Woolley and Wallis of Salisbury I don't understand why Lot 358 was way over the estimate. You can see the Shanghai book online for nothing online. Otherwise, carefully assembled collections have not achieved estimates.

    MA250522 25th May 2022 | Woolley and Wallis



    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 342 A good collection of gallantry medal rolls and reference books Estimate: £150 - £250 Sold for £120 + Buyers Premium A good collection of gallantry medal rolls and reference books, including: Bilcliffe, 'Irreproachable Character/ The Award of the Royal Marines Meritorious Service Medal'; Henderson, 'Heroic Endeavour/ A complete register of the Albert, Edward and Empire Gallantry Medals'; Seedie's Submarine Awards; Fevyer, 'Acts of Gallantry..... Medals and Clasps of the Royal Humane Society... Awarded from 1830 to 1871'; McDermott, 'Register of the CGM 1855-1992'; McInnes, 'The Meritorious Service Medal/ The Immediate Awards 1916-1928'; Webb, 'Recipients of Bars to the Military Cross 1916-1920'; Brown, 'The Register of the Distinguished Conduct Medal 1939-1992'; Bate and Smith, 'The Roll of the Recipients of the Military Medal from 1919 to 1991'; and many other titles, mainly hard covers. [39]


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 345 A collection of personnel lists and biographical references Estimate: £20 - £30 Sold for £20 + Buyers Premium A collection of personnel lists and biographical references, and similar books, including: Drew, 'Medical Officers in the British Army 1660-1960', two volumes, hard cover; Winton Thorpe, 'Handbook of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire... 1921'; Who's Who, six volumes (1933, 1937, 1940, 1945, 1953 and 1969); Markham, 'The Arctic Navy List 1773-1873'; Lummis & Wynn, 'Honour the Light Brigade'; and others. [17]


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 346 A collection of medal and militaria reference books Estimate: £30 - £50 Sold for £30 + Buyers Premium A collection of medal and militaria reference books, including: A.A. Payne, 'British and Foreign Orders, War Medals and Decorations'; Rippingale, 'French Campaign Medals of the Great War 1914-1918'; Neville, 'A History of the Early Orders of Knighthood and Chivalry'; Perkins, 'Military and Naval Silver'; Hutchinson (pub), 'The Army in India a photographic record 1850-1914'; Mitton, 'The Policeman's Lot/ Antique British Police Equipment etc..'; and other titles. [qty]


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 347 Royal Naval and other maritime history: a collection of books Estimate: £40 - £60 Sold for £40 + Buyers Premium Royal Naval and other maritime history: a collection of books, including: Benbow, 'Naval Warfare 1914-1918'; Wilson & Perkins, 'Angels in Blue Jackets'; Dugan, 'The Great Mutiny'; Grocott, 'Shipwrecks of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Eras'; Singlehurst, 'Afloat and Ashore: The Royal Navy During the Boer War 1899-1902'; Bainbridge (pub), a photographic copy of the diary of Coxwain Leslie Frank, in H.M.S. Amethyst on the Yangtse River 1949; and others. [qty]


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 348 A large quantity of military reference books Estimate: £50 - £70 Sold for £40 + Buyers Premium A large quantity of military reference books, histories, biographies and other subjects, including: Lt J.E.P. Wood, M.C. 'Detour'; Maurice, 'The Campaign of 1882 in Egypt'; Narbeth, 'Taku Forts'; Greenwell, 'An Infant in Arms'; Baker, 'Battle Honours of the British and Commonwealth Armies'; Peniakoff, 'Popski's Private Army'; Haythornthwaite, 'The Colonial Wars Source Book'; Fraser, 'And We Shall Shock Them'; Legg, 'Dorset at War'; and many other titles. [qty].


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    LOT 349 German Militaria: a small collection of reference books Estimate: £120 - £180 Sold for £100 + Buyers Premium German Militaria: a small collection of reference books, comprising: John R. Angolia: 'Cloth Insignia of the NSDAP and SA', 'For Fuhrer and Fatherland/ Political & Civil Awards of the Third Reich', 'Swords of Germany 1900-1945', 'For Fuhrer and Fatherland/ Military Awards of the Third Reich', 'Belt Buckles and Brocades of the Third Reich'; together with Ludwig Baer, 'The History of the German Steel Helmet 1916-1945' [6]


    Medals & Coins, Arms & Armour - 25 May 2022

    A small quantity of books and bound journals | Woolley and Wallis


    LOT 358 A small quantity of books and bound journals Estimate: £60 - £80 Sold for £1,700 + Buyers Premium A small quantity of books and bound journals, including: 'Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China'; 'The Royal Artillery Commemoration Book' (Great War); 'The Royal Artillery Commemoration Book 1939-45'; and other titles.
     
    Son of LAC likes this.
  6. idler

    idler GeneralList

    The XVIII Airborne Corps VARSITY order must've caught somebody's eye. Makes you wonder what the other bits are...
     
    papiermache likes this.
  7. L. Allen

    L. Allen Member

    I had the same thought, I had a quick look at the lots in a local auction house and found a No.38 Wireless set with a starting bid of £10
     
    papiermache and CL1 like this.
  8. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Couldn't really leave a sliver of Zaloga on early Abrams in the shop for a quid, could I.
    Bet I've already got it.
    Sigh.

    IMG_20220804_124006605.jpg
     
    papiermache and Waddell like this.
  9. dbf

    dbf Moderatrix MOD

    I wouldn't worry about being a vulture. Esp if the items are appreciated. I despair more of all the stuff that's ended up over time in skips/landfill sites.

    While I agree about how it's a shame that medal groups / collections are broken up, photos are removed from albums, etc, leaving no background or little context, for me it's more a case of how things are treated by the middlemen, either through ignorance or to maximise sales.

    Although it happens, it's not necessarily a case of "uncaring relatives". Some people die with no close family, leaving strangers to sort through belongings and decide what's 'valuable'. Some families are required by courts to itemise and then auction their relative's property in order to cover debts such as care fees. And there also comes a point when it's impossible to take in more stuff simply for sentimental reasons.
     
    Last edited: Aug 10, 2022
  10. JeremyC

    JeremyC Well-Known Member

    Ok - I've seriously blown my budget this month . . .
    First "Tank-Infantry Cooperation in the British Army 1935-1949"
    Then Brian Bond "British Military Policy between the two World Wars"
    Then "Wehrmacht weapons testing at Kummersdorf" (thanks to Von Poop)
    Plus I've fallen for an advance payment for Dick Taylor's "Armoured Warfare in the British Army 1939-1945" . . .
    And then we went to Bath today and I found these:
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Aug 4, 2022
  11. papiermache

    papiermache Well-Known Member

    The "Buyer's Premium" on the sums shown above, including the vat, comes to 30% so lot 347 ( estimate £40 to £60 but sold for £40 plus 30%) came to a grand total of £52. There were two original editions of Janes' Fighting Ships, a 1914 edition and a 1939 edition ( plus about 46 other books ). Amounts asked for original Janes's ( there are lots of facsimiles ) usually range between £50 and £250.

    Perhaps VP bought the lot: he likes a bargain. But no tanks, so no good. After all, it is the content of the book that matters, however it is wrapped up.

    By the by, I think admirers of Siegfried Sassoon ( of which I am one ) would give a good home to the items recently sold by the same auction house, but the reproductions of his caricatures in the catalogue are very well presented, and I have no wish to own one.

    PW310522 31st May 2022 | Woolley and Wallis

    "Our May sale is led by The Siegfried Sassoon Collection (lots 1-77), the highlight of which is a wonderful still life by his friend Sir William Nicholson (lot 77). The painting is a stunning demonstration of Nicholson’s ability to capture the nuances of tone and surface in response to light and shadow. The collection also includes over 40 of Sassoon’s own caricatures and drawings, which depict some of the most notable figures in the literary and social circles of the period, including the Sitwells, Rudyard Kipling, T. E Lawrence, William Butler Yeats, T. S. Eliot and John Masefield. There are also numerous first editions of his work, various items of correspondence, family photographs and notably Sassoon’s original handwritten manuscript of his poem The Child at the Window. These works have remained in Sassoon’s family since his death, available to only the occasional scholar, and will be offered for sale for the first time."
     
    Last edited: Aug 5, 2022
  12. Don Juan

    Don Juan Well-Known Member

    Finally got round to purchasing this epic tome, which has intrigued me for a while:

    ob.jpg

    Think I might post a review if or when I've finished it.
     
    Son of LAC, Waddell, Wobbler and 5 others like this.
  13. Orwell1984

    Orwell1984 Senior Member

    [​IMG]

    Just released. I find floatplanes/flying boats fascinating so I had to get this. Some great info on floatplane fighters.
     
  14. Wobbler

    Wobbler Well-Known Member

    With their detective in hot pursuit. :D
     
  15. Wobbler

    Wobbler Well-Known Member

    I blame Markyboy for telling us about Sapper Clack.

    Off I went to buy and it all went wrong from there really.

    5C9CC7CF-D0F0-4251-9D5B-7CB0B8C39058.jpeg
    3564F5B0-DA68-43BD-B453-81C4CE7CC04B.jpeg
    F320315B-FDE7-438F-8619-14C9BCD34AD7.jpeg
    7B2B3968-F493-4765-A34B-B088C9E60CB0.jpeg

    8B272870-3A90-4600-8B07-556A2FACD1ED.jpeg
     
    Son of LAC, TTH, Waddell and 5 others like this.
  16. Markyboy

    Markyboy Member

    Love it! Happy to take the blame. I’ve ended up out of pocket so many times due to write ups on here I’m glad I’m on the other side for once!
     
    timuk and Wobbler like this.
  17. Wobbler

    Wobbler Well-Known Member

    “I must not look at Battle Axe Blenheims, I must not look at…”
     
  18. JeremyC

    JeremyC Well-Known Member

    Have just posted a separate thread about this one, but thought I'd better repeat it here, just in case:

    https://ospreypublishing.com/chobham-armour

    CONTENTS
    (Subject to confirmation)
    Part 1. Main Battle Tank Development
    Centurion
    FV215 Conqueror
    Countering the Soviet Tank Threat
    FV4201 Chieftain
    Chieftain Variants
    Novel Concept Studies
    UK
    German Future Main Battle Tank
    MBT80 and the 4030 Programme
    Challenger 1
    Challenger 1 Variants
    Challenger 2
    Future Concept Studies

    Part 2. Medium and Light Tracked AFV Development
    Light Tanks and Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance Tracked 93
    Carriers and Armoured Personal Carriers
    Warrior
    AFV of the 80s Stage 1
    Other Light and Medium Tracks Concept Studies

    Part 3. Wheeled AFV Concepts and Development
    Saladin and Saracen
    Ferret and Fox

    Part 4. Other Vehicles Associated with Chertsey
    1 Ton Armoured 4x4 Humber
    FV180 Combat Engineer Tractor
    SP70: 155mm Self Propelled Howitzer

    Annex A: List of FV Numbers
    Annex B: Centurion Data
    Annex C. Chieftain Data
    Annex D: Challenger 1 Data
    Annex E: CVR(T) Data
    Annex F: FV430 Series Data
    Annex G: Warrior Data
    Annex H: Saladin Data
    Annex J: Saracen Data
    Annex J: Ferret Data
    Annex K: FV721 Fox Data
    Index
     
    Chris C likes this.
  19. JeremyC

    JeremyC Well-Known Member

    Yee-harr!! It's finally arrived! (But now I've got a copy of my own, that's the rest of the reading on the backburner for a while . . . Dammit!
     

    Attached Files:

    Waddell, BFBSM, Chris C and 1 other person like this.
  20. L. Allen

    L. Allen Member

    Just today I have acquired:

    Goodbye to all that
    Old Soldiers never die
    The war the infantry knew

    I shall never clear this book backlog.
     
    Wobbler, 14/264 and Dan M like this.

Share This Page