Philosophy
Rare Philosophy Books for Sale Online
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First English edition of Leo Tolstoy's The Great Iniquity
TOLSTOY, Leo. Translated by V. Tchertkoff and I. F. Mayo.
A Great Iniquity.
London: The Free Age Press, n.d.
First English edition of Tolstoy's work on peasant welfare in Russia. Octavo, original wrappers. In very good condition.
Price: $175.00 Item Number: 135472
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The Weimar edition of The Works of Friedrich Schiller; elaborately bound in full morocco
SCHILLER, Friedrich.
The Works of Friedrich Schiller.
Weimar and New York: The Northern Press, Printed for Subscribers only, n.d.
The Weimar edition of the collected works of Friedrich Schiller. Octavo, 10 volumes bound in full morocco with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in five compartments within raised bands, elaborate gilt tooling to the front and rear panels, gilt inner dentelles, watered silk endleaves and doublures with central gilt mongrams "EHR", top edge gilt, illustrated with numerous hand-colored photogravures. One of 100 numbered copies of the Weimar edition, this is number 2. Provenance: from the collection of Fred and Kay Krehbiel. In very good condition.
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 143624
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RARE HANDWRITTEN ETHIOPIAN COPTIC GE’EZ BIBLE ILLUMINATED WITH FULL-PAGE MINIATURE PAINTINGS
Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible.
Ethiopia: C. 18th Century.
Rare illustrated Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible. Duodecimo, bound in full leather with elaborate tooling stamped in blind to the front and rear panels, parchment manuscript in black and red ink, with six full-page hand-painted miniatures depicting the Annunciation, the Madonna and child, Saint George slaying the dragon, Michael striking down Lucifer, Saint Tekle Haymanot of Ethiopia, and the Transfiguration of Jesus. The book measures 5 inches in height and 3.75 inches in width. Writing to the final two leaves with a hand-hemmed corner on the last leaf from a previous owner.
Price: $3,500.00 Item Number: 145311
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First edition in English of Johann Jacob Wecker's Eighteen Book of the Secrets of Art & Nature
WECKER, Johannes Jacob.
Eighteen Books of the Secrets of Art & Nature, Being The Summe and Substance of Naturall Philosophy, Methodically Digested. First designed by John Wecker Dr in Physick, and now much Augmented and Inlarged by Dr. R. Read. A like work never before in the English tongue.
1660: Printed for Simon Miller at the Starre in St. Pauls Church-yard, London.
First edition in English of Reade's 17th century adaptation of Johann Jacob Wecker's De secreti libri xvii [Book of Secrets] of 1582. Folio, bound in three quarter polished calf over marbled boards with gilt titles and ruling to the spine, woodcut printer's device to the title, woodcut head and tailpieces and initials, numerous woodcut diagrams in the text. In near fine condition. Lacking the engraved frontispiece, title page supplied. Exceptionally rare.
Price: $7,500.00 Item Number: 127083
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"Reader if thou wilt do the fame, thy profit will be as great as mine": Exceptionally rare printing of Benjamin Franklin's An Old Man's Experience, or Poor Richard's Maxims Improved
SAUNDERS, Richard [Benjamin Franklin].
An Old Man’s Experience, or Poor Richard’s Maxims Improved.
: , .
Rare printing of Benjamin Franklin's An Old Man's Experience, or Poor Richard's Maxims Improved, published under the pseudonym Richard Saunders in full, "An Old Man's Experience, or, Poor Richard's Maxims Improved. Reader, if you buy this Book, and seriously consider its contents, though it cost thee but a Trifle, it may save thee Many Pounds." Small octavo, original wrappers as issued. No publisher or date listed. In very good condition with tape repair to the spine and rear panel. Exceptionally rare, no other copies matching this title and pagination have come to auction.
Price: $7,500.00 Item Number: 96182
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RARE HANDWRITTEN ETHIOPIAN COPTIC GE’EZ BIBLE ILLUMINATED WITH TWO FULL-PAGE MINIATURE PAINTINGS
Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible.
Ethiopia: C. 18th Century.
Rare illustrated Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible. Duodecimo, bound with twine between two wood blocks, parchment manuscript in black and red ink, with full-page hand-painted miniatures depicting the Transfiguration of Jesus, Saint Tekle Haymanot of Ethiopia, Saint George slaying the dragon, the Madonna and child, Jesus and Mary, the Annunciation, the Birth of Jesus, and the Journey to Bethlehem. Housed in the original leather chemise slipcase with leather carrying handle.
Price: $3,500.00 Item Number: 145316
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Rare First Edition of Herodotus' Historiae, in Greek
HERODOTUS; EDITED BY ALDUS MANUTIUS,.
Historiae, In Greek.
Venice: Aldus Manutius, September, 1502.
Rare first edition of Herodotus' history of the Persian Wars, one of the most important texts edited by the great scholar-printer-publisher. Folio, bound in contemporary vellum, woodcut title in Greek and Roman letter, verso with dedication in Latin, text in Greek letter throughout with spaces for capital letters, woodcut device on title and last page. Aldus claims in the dedication that he corrected the text from multiple exemplars, one of the few instances where such a claim by him is justified and can be verified. He was the first to have access to the 'Florentine' codices, where Valla had used the…
Price: $32,000.00 Item Number: 96588
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RARE HANDWRITTEN ETHIOPIAN COPTIC GE’EZ BIBLE ILLUMINATED WITH TWO FULL-PAGE MINIATURE PAINTINGS
Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible.
Ethiopia: C. 18th Century.
Rare illustrated Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible. Octavo, bound with twine between two leather covered boards, parchment manuscript of approximately 126 leaves in black and red ink, with full-page hand-painted miniatures depicting Jesus and his sheep, David decapitating Goliath, King David playing the harp, King Solomon, Saint Jerome and the lion, Saint Tekle Haymanot of Ethiopia, the Madonna and child, and the battle of David and Goliath.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 145320
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Rare early printing of Richard Hooker's monumental Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Politie
HOOKER, Richard.
Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Politie. [Of the Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity].
London: Printed by William Standbye, [1622].
Early printing of this important work by the influential English theologian. Quarto, quarter morocco with gilt titles and ruling to the spine in seven compartments within raised bands, red morocco spine label lettered in gilt, engraved title, divisional titles, and woodcut initials. In very good condition. Bookplate and period ownership inscription. Rare.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 130372
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RARE HANDWRITTEN ETHIOPIAN COPTIC GE’EZ BIBLE ILLUMINATED WITH TWO FULL-PAGE MINIATURE PAINTINGS
Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible.
Ethiopia: C. 18th Century.
Rare illustrated Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible. Octavo, bound with twine between two wooden boards, wrapped in full floral cloth, parchment manuscript in black and red ink, with full-page vibrant hand-painted miniatures depicting the Madonna and child, Saint George slaying the dragon, the journey to Bethlehem, and the Nine Saints of Ethiopia.
Price: $3,800.00 Item Number: 145322
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First edition of Volume 24 of the Journal of Symbolic Logic; Including The First Appearance of Saul A. Kripke's Landmark Essay A Completeness Theorem in Modal Logic
KRIPKE, Saul A.
The Journal of Symbolic Logic: A Completeness Theorem in Modal Logic.
New Haven, New Jersey: Association for Symbolic Logic, Inc, March 1959.
First edition of Volume 24 of The Journal of Symbolic which includes the first appearance of Kripke's landmark paper, A Completeness Theorem in Modal Logic. Presentation copy, inscribed by Saul A. Kripke on the first page of his theorem, "For Thorild Dahlquist, Saul Kripke." In this paper, Kripke both proves the formal completeness of modal logic (supplemented by first-order quantifiers and the sign of equality) and “create[s] a semantics, now called Kripke semantics” (Hurley, Logic: The Essentials, 217). “Of great importance is the paper “Semantical Analysis of Modal Logic I” where normal systems are treated. It is here that Kripke…
Price: $6,000.00 Item Number: 88076
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RARE HANDWRITTEN ETHIOPIAN COPTIC GE’EZ BIBLE ILLUMINATED WITH TWO FULL-PAGE MINIATURE PAINTINGS
Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible.
Ethiopia: C. 18th Century.
Rare illustrated Ethiopian Coptic Ge’ez Bible. Small octodecimo, original leather boards, parchment manuscript in black and red ink, with full-page hand-painted miniatures depicting Saint George slaying the dragon, the Madonna and child, Jesus and Mary, and Jesus preaching. Housed in the original leather chemise slipcase with twine carrying handle.
Price: $3,200.00 Item Number: 145189
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“THREE THINGS CANNOT LONG BE HIDDEN: THE SUN, THE MOON, AND THE TRUTH": The Philosophy of Confucius; finely bound in full morocco by Maurin
CONFUCIUS. TRANSLATED BY JAMES LEGGE. ,.
The Philosophy of Confucius.
Mount Vernon and New York: The Peter Pauper Press, n.d..
First Peter Pauper edition of Legge's translation of the Analects of Confucius. Octavo, bound in full pebbled morocco by Maurin with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, double gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges gilt, marbled endpapers, illustrations by Jeanyee Wong. In near fine condition. Housed in a custom slipcase.
Price: $650.00 Item Number: 130503
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"Moreover, trust is, I suspect, too deep to explain": Rare Autograph Letter Signed from John Rawls to Annette Baier
RAWLS, John.
John Rawls Autograph Letter Signed.
Cambridge, Massachusetts: January 14, 1985.
Rare autograph letter signed by one of the most influential political philosophers of the 20th century. Small octavo, one page on Harvard University Department of Philosophy letterhead, the text reads in full, "Jan 14, 1985 Dear Annette Many thanks for your review of Parfit's Reasons & Persons with your splendid & illuminating appreciation of this work. You provide some ways to focus on it which had not occurred to me. I agree with you on its importance & no doubt it will have major effets on contemporary discussion, & into the future. On the other hand, I find myself in certain…
Price: $2,800.00 Item Number: 146554
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"Keep true to the dreams of thy youth": The Connoisseur Edition of the Works of Schiller; One of only 150 sets; Bound in Full Morocco
SCHILLER, Friedrich.
The Works of Friedrich Schiller.
Boston: Francis A. Niccolls, c.1900.
Finely bound example of the Connoisseur edition of the works of Schiller, number 34 of only 150 sets printed. Octavo, 10 volumes, bound in full red morocco, ornate gilt tooling to the spine, with pastedowns of red leather borders and central green morocco panel, with floral decorations at the corners and a central gilt sprig of flowers, plates in two states, printed on laid paper with deckled edges. Bookplates on versos of the moire green silk endpapers of New York industrialist John K. MacGowan. In fine condition. An exceptional set.
Price: $7,500.00 Item Number: 129287
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A LANDMARK IN THE HISTORY OF PRINTING, AND ONE OF THE GREATEST ILLUSTRATED BOOKS EVER PUBLISHED: FIRST EDITION OF THE MONUMENTAL NUREMBERG CHRONICLE; Published in 1493 and containing over 1800 splendid woodcuts illustrating the history of the world from the Creation of man to the invention of the printing press
SCHEDEL, Hartmann.
Liber Chronicarum [Nuremberg Chronicles].
Nuremberg: Anton Koberger, 1493.
First edition of the most fully realized illustrated book of the fifteenth century and one of the most impressive volumes ever published. Imperial folio, bound in three quarter calf with five raised bands to the spine, morocco title labels lettered in gilt to the spine and front panel, copiously illustrated with 1,809 splendid woodcuts by Wohlgemuth and Pleydenwurff (the teachers of Durer), some full page, others double-page, illustrating Schedel's year-by-year account of notable events in world history from the Creation to the year of publication, including the creation of Adam and Eve, birth of Jesus Christ, invention of printing at Mainz,…
Price: $92,000.00 Item Number: 143505
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Rare 16th century printing of Aristotle's Posterior Analytics; bound with Antonius Andreas's Quaestiones super XII libros Metaphysicae Aristotelis
ARISTOTLE; ANTONIO ANDREAS. EDITED BY WALTER BURLEY AND ROBERT GROSSETESTE,.
Analytica Posteriora [bound with] Quaestiones super XII libros Metaphysicae Aristotelis.
Venice: Gregorium de Gregorijs, 1514.
Rare 16th century printing of Aristotle's Posterior Analytics; bound together with Spanish Franciscan theologian Antonius Andreas's best known work, Quaestiones super XII libros Metaphysicae Aristotelis. Quarto, bound in contemporary parchment over handmade paper-covered boards, woodcut initials, text in two columns. In very good condition. A rare and desirable collection.
Price: $6,000.00 Item Number: 104082
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Rare early 16th century Venetian printing of ARISTOTLE'S INFLUENTIAL WORK ON ZOOLOGY: THE HISTORY OF ANIMALS
ARISTOTLE,.
Aristoteles de Animalibus.
Venetiis: Octaviani Scoticiuis, 1525.
Rare early 16th century Venetian printing of Aristotle's pioneering work on zoology which had a powerful influence on zoology for over two thousand years. Folio, bound in full vellum, illustrated with woodcut initials. In very good condition. Deaccessioned from the Harvard College Library with their stamps and bookplate.
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 133419
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"The father of logic": Rare 16th century French printing of Aristotle's Prior Analytics
ARISTOTLE,.
Logica: Aristotelis Ex Tertia Recognitione. Libri Logicorumad Archetypos Recogniti.
Parisiis: Petri Vidouei, 1531.
Rare 16th century French printing of Aristotle's third book of logic. Folio, bound in full vellum, elaborate woodcut vignette-border title-page, illustrated with numerous in-text woodcut diagrams, and woodcut initials. Ownership inscriptions, including that of American philosopher Allan Gotthelf. Gotthelf received many honors for his work on Aristotle, including in 2004 an international conference on "Aristotle on Being, Nature, and Life", held "in celebration of his contributions to the study of classical philosophy and science." In very good condition with some dampstaining and period marginalia throughout.
Price: $2,500.00 Item Number: 133411
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Rare 16th century French printing of Aristotle's influential work of zoology: The History of Animals
ARISTOTLE. TRANSLATED BY THEODORO GAZA,.
Aristotelis De Historia Animalium Libri. IX. [Bound with] De Partibus Animalium, & Earu Causis, Libri IIII; De Generatione Animalium Libri V; Hoc Volumine Continentur.
Parisiis: Ex officina Prigentii Caluarini ad Geminas Cyppas in Clauso Brunello, 1542.
Rare 16th century French printing of Aristotle's pioneering work on zoology which had a powerful influence on zoology for over two thousand years. Octavo, bound in full polished calf, engraved title pages. Rebacked. In very good condition.
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 133014
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“For anyone who loves intensely lives not in himself but in the object of his love, and the further he can move out of himself into his love, the happier he is": Exceptionally Rare first edition in English of Erasmus' in Praise of Folly; elaborately bound in full crushed levant morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe
ERASMUS, Desiderius. Translated by Sir Thomas Chaloner.
In Praise of Folie: Moriae Encomium. A book made in latine by the great clerke Erasmus Roterodame. Enlightened by Sir Thomas Chaloner, knight. [In Praise of Folly].
London: Thomas Berthelet, 1549.
First edition in English of one of the most notable and popular works of the Renaissance which played an important role in the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation and swiftly brought its author international fame. First printing with 'latine' and the printer's initials 'TB.' to the title page. Octavo, bound in full crushed levant morocco by Sangorski and Sutcliffe, gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, triple gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges gilt, wide woodcut border to the title page signed…
Price: $275,000.00 Item Number: 139476
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Scarce First edition of Commandino's commentary of Ptolemy's Planisphaerium; one of the few extant examples from the Aldine Press in Roman type
PTOLOMAEUS, Claudius. Edited and with Commentary by Federico Commandino.
Ptolemaei Planisphaerium. Iordani Planisphaerium. Federici Commandini Urbrinatis in Ptolemaei Planisphaerium Commentarius.
Venice: Paulus Manutius (Aldine Press), 1558.
First separate edition and first edition of Commandino's commentary of Ptolemy's Planisphaerium, the original Greek text of which is no longer extant. Octavo, two volumes bound into one in eighteenth century vellum, all edges speckled red, Aldine device on both titles and both final pages, woodcut initials, numerous woodcut diagrams. The Ptolemaei is printed in Roman type and the Planisphaerium in Italics; examples from the Aldine Press in Roman type are scarce as the press's founder, Aldus Manutius, invented the Italic type which he used almost exclusively. The Aldine press was also the first to issue printed books in the small…
Price: $8,800.00 Item Number: 95289
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Rare 16th century printings of John Wolfe's Fictitious Italian editions of Machiavelli's Discourses and The Prince; finely bound together in full morocco
MACHIAVELLI, Niccolò.
Discorsi Di Nicolo Machiavelli Pra La Prima Deca Di Tito Livio [bound with] Il Prencipe di Nicolo Machiavelli. [Machiavelli’s Discourses bound with The Prince].
Palermo: Apresso gli heredi d'Antoniello degli Antonielli , 1584 [London: John Wolfe].
Rare 16th century printing of John Wolfe's famed fictitious Italian editions of Machiavelli's fundamental works of political history and philosophy. Octavo, elaborately bound in full crushed morocco with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, double gilt ruling and central motifs to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins. In near fine condition with occasional contemporary marginal notes. Rare.
Price: $40,000.00 Item Number: 129484
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Rare First Edition in English of The Machiavelli's Florentine Historie
MACHIAVELLI, Niccolo.
The Florentine Historie. Written in the Italian tongue, by Nicholo Macchiavelli, Citizen and Secretarie of Florence. And translated into English by Thomas Bedingfield Esquire.
London: Printed by T. C. [Thomas Creede] for W. P. [William Ponsonby], 1595.
Rare first edition in English of this classic work. Quarto, bound in full calf, decorated with woodcut engraved ornamental title page and engraved head and tailpieces. In near fine condition with some light browning and wear, title trimmed and laid down. Translated by Thomas Bedingfeld. First editions are scarce, especially in this condition.
Price: $9,800.00 Item Number: 135317