First Edition
First Edition Books for Sale Online
Raptis Rare Books maintains an extensive collection of rare and first-edition books from a variety of authors and publishers. Navigate through our full selection of first-editions below to find a particular item you're looking for, ask a question, or order online today!
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"So the long collaboration between author and artist is ended; and it ends inevitable in an atmosphere of regret": Complete Set of Charles Dickens by the Nonesuch Press
DICKENS, Charles.
Complete Set of the Works of Charles Dickens Nonesuch Press.
London: The Nonesuch Press, 1937-38.
The complete set of Charles Dickens by the Nonesuch Press, one of only 877 sets. Octavo, 24 volumes, original cloth, woodcut illustrations, original variously colored buckram by Leighton Straker. Edited by Arthur Waugh, Hugh Walpole, Thomas Hatton and Walter Dexter. In near fine condition. A very sharp set.
Price: $9,800.00 Item Number: 140200
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First edition of Frederick Law Olmsted: Landscape Architect 1822-1903; inscribed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. to publisher George Haven Putnam
OLMSTED, Frederick Law. Edited by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and Theodora Kimball.
Frederick Law Olmsted: Landscape Architect 1822-1903: Central Park as a Work of Art and as a Great Municipal Enterprise 1853-1895.
New York and London: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1928.
First edition of the second volume of the autobiography of one of the foremost figures in American landscape architecture, Frederick Law Olmsted. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated, tissue-guarded frontispiece portrait of Olmsted. Edited by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. and Theodora Kimball. Association copy, inscribed by Frederick Law Olmsted on the front free endpaper, “To George Haven Putnam in appreciation alike of old friendships and of his constant helpfulness in the preparation of this book. Frederick Law Olmsted.” The recipient, American publisher George Haven Putnam, was the eldest son of George Palmer Putnam, the founder of G. P. Putnam's Sons. Putnam published…
Price: $4,000.00 Item Number: 129463
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Rare signed limited edition of David Bowie's Moonage Daydream: The Life and Times of Ziggy Stardust; signed by him and photographer Mick Rock
BOWIE, David. Photographs and Captions by Mick Rock.
Moonage Daydream: The Life and Times of Ziggy Stardust.
Guildford: Genesis Publications Limited, 2002.
First edition, signed limited issue of this profusely illustrated homage to one of the most influential musicians of the twentieth century, David Bowie. Folio, original quarter leathers over illustrated boards, photographic endpapers, all edges silver, illustrated with photographs by Mick Rock. One of 2,500 numbered copies signed by David Bowie and Mick Rock, this is number 683. Housed in the original publisher's decorative lidded box. In fine condition.
Price: $3,250.00 Item Number: 138421
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First Edition of "the Master of Modernism" Marcel Breuer's Sun and Shadow: The Philosophy of An Architect; Inscribed by Him
BREUER, Marcel.
Sun and Shadow: The Philosophy of An Architect.
New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, 1956.
First edition. Quarto, original cloth. Inscribed by the author opposite the title page, "To the Walter Paepcke with best regards, Marcel Breuer." The recipient, Walter Paepcke was an industrialist and philanthropist most noted for his founding of the Aspen Institute and the Aspen Skiing Company in the early 1950s, both of which helped transform the town of Aspen, Colorado into an international resort destination and popularize the sport of skiing in the United States. Near fine in a very good dust jacket with light rubbing and wear. Books signed and inscribed by Marcel Breuer are scarce.
Price: $2,750.00 Item Number: 22041
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First edition of Mary E. Phillips' Reminiscences of William Wetmore Story
PHILLIPS, Mary E.
Reminiscences of William Wetmore Story: The American Sculptor and Author Being Incidents and Anecdotes Chronologically Arranged. Together with an Account of his Associations with Famous People and his Principal Works in Literature and Sculpture.
Chicago and New York: Rand, McNally & Company, 1897.
First edition of Phillips' biography of William Wetmore Story. Octavo, original publisher's decorated cloth, gilt titles to the spine and front panel, illustrated, tissue-guarded engraved frontispiece portrait of Story. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "Inscribed with cordial good will by Mary E. Phillips for a very gracious Lady to give as a Christmas present of 1905 to Dorothy Place." In very good condition. Rare signed and inscribed.
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 122407
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First edition of Blanchard Jerrold's The Life of George Cruikshank; bound in full crushed levant morocco by Sangorski & Sutcliffe
JERROLD, Blanchard. [George Cruikshank].
The Life of George Cruikshank. In Two Epochs.
London: Chatto and Windus, 1882.
First edition of the definitive biography of famed illustrator and satirist George Cruikshank. Octavo, bound in full crushed levant morocco by Sangorski & Sutcliffe, gilt titles and 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, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, illustrated. In fine condition. Bookplates.
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 137182
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First edition of Frederick Law Olmsted: Landscape Architect 1822-1903; inscribed by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. to Calvert Bowyer Vaux
OLMSTED, Frederick Law. Edited by Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. and Theodora Kimball.
Frederick Law Olmsted: Landscape Architect 1822-1903: Early Years and Experiences Together with Biographical Notes.
New York and London: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1922.
First edition of the first volume of the autobiography of one of the foremost figures in American landscape architecture, Frederick Law Olmsted. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated, tissue-guarded frontispiece portrait of Olmsted. Edited by Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr. and Theodora Kimball. Association copy, inscribed by Frederick Law Olmsted on the front free endpaper, “C. Bowyer Vaux from [printed calling card: Mr. Frederick Law Olmsted. Brookline, Mass.] Philadelphia. December 13th 1922.” The recipient, Calvert Bowyer Vaux was the son of English-American architect and landscape designer Calvert Vaux, who brought in the elder Olmsted (who had never before designed a landscape) to plan…
Price: $2,000.00 Item Number: 129553
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Rare finely bound example of Detaille; inscribed by Edouard Detaille in French to Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor
VACHON, Marius. [Edouard Detaille; Edward VIII Duke of Windsor].
Detaille.
Paris: A. Lahure, 1898.
Finely bound example of Vachon's biography of Detaille from the library of Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor. Folio, bound in three quarter morocco, illustrated. Presentation copy, inscribed by Edouard Detaille in French to Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor in the year of Detaille's death. The inscription translates as: "My Lord, In my Boulevard Malesherbes Studio, where his Majesty King Edward Vii and His Majesty King George have often come, your Royal Highness found himself at home. It is a great honor for me and also a great pleasure that I am happy to witness. Your Royal Highness, with the assurance…
Price: $1,800.00 Item Number: 135461
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THE DIARY AND CORRESPONDENCE OF SAMUEL PEPYS; FINELY BOUND AND WITH A CONCEALED FORE-EDGE PAINTING TO EACH VOLUME
PEPYS, Samuel. With a Life and Notes by Richard Lord Braybrooke.
Diary and Correspondence of Samuel Pepys, F.R.S. Secretary to the Admiralty in the Reigns of Charles II. and James II. [Fore-edge Painting].
London: Published for Henry Colburn, 1854.
Finely bound fourth edition of the diary and correspondence of Samuel Pepys. Octavo, four volumes bound in red Russia with gilt titles and elaborate gilt tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, elaborate gilt ruling to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt, each volume decorated with a concealed fore-edge painting including a portrait of Pepys, the Great Plague, the Fire of London, and the Battle of Solebay, illustrated, folding map. In very good condition.
Price: $1,750.00 Item Number: 138281
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First edition of Philip Johnson's Writings; lengthily inscribed by him
JOHNSON, Philip.
Philip Johnson: Writings.
New York: Oxford University Press, 1979.
First edition of the acclaimed architect's collected essays and lectures. Quarto, original cloth, illustrated. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the title page in the year of publication, "To Paul Falken Levy high appreciation for his art history and also his editing also his love for Schnitzel Paul Johnson August 1979." Foreword by Vincent Scully. Introduction by Peter Eisenman. Commentary by Robert A.M. Stern. Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
Price: $1,500.00 Item Number: 132944
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"What is worth doing at all is worth doing well": Rare first edition of Frederic Kitton's Illustrations to Charles Dickens by Pen and Pencil and
KITTON, Frederic G. [Charles Dickens].
Charles Dickens by Pen and Pencil and A Supplement to Charles Dickens by Pen and Pencil.
London: Frank T. Sabin, 1890-1891.
First edition in book form of the most sumptuous presentation of Kitton's collection of Dickens portraits and illustrations which first appeared in serialized parts between 1889-1890. Folio, two volumes bound in full buckram with morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, containing 31 engraved portraits, 30 engraved remarque plates, 78 illustrations in the text and 67 'Additional Illustrations'. In very good condition.
Price: $1,500.00 Item Number: 122094
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First Edition of My Life; Inscribed by Marc Chagall
CHAGALL, Marc.
My Life.
New York: The Orion Press, 1960.
First edition in English of artist Marc Chagall's early autobiography. Oblong octavo, original cloth, illustrated with twenty drawings by the author. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, "For Lillian Friedman Marc Chagall 1960." Near fine in a very good dust jacket. Translated by Elizabeth Abbott
Price: $1,500.00 Item Number: 146789
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"THE MOST CELEBRATED BIOGRAPHY IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE": Boswell's Life of Johnson; decorated with a concealed split fore-edge painting
CROKER, John Wilson [James Boswell].
Boswell’s Life of Johnson: Including Their Tour to The Hebrides.
London: John Murray, 1860.
Finely bound example of the most celebrated biography in the English language, decorated with a concealed split fore-edge painting. Octavo, bound in full period morocco with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in six compartments within raised gilt bands, elaborate gilt ruling and fleuron cornerpieces to the front and rear panels, gilt turn-ins and inner dentelles, all edges gilt, decorated with a concealed split fore-edge painting revealing two maritime landscapes, illustrated, ribbon bound in. In very good condition. Bookplate. A unique example.
Price: $1,500.00 Item Number: 138277
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Rare 1949 Carnegie Institute of Technology Yearbook; containing one of only a few photographs of Warhol in his early years
[WARHOL, Andy].
The Thistle: Andy Warhol 1949 Carnegie Institute of Technology Yearbook.
Carnegie Institute of Technology, 1949.
1949 Carnegie Institute of Technology Yearbook featuring a rare photograph of Andy Warhol as a college senior. Folio, original boards, illustrated. Warhol is pictured as a member of Modern Dance club. The yearbook also includes a photograph of Philip Pearlstein, a fellow graduating senior. In near fine condition. Very rare, containing one of only a few photographs of Warhol in his early years.
Price: $1,250.00 Item Number: 134091
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Washington Irving's Oliver Goldsmith: A Biography; decorated with a double fore-edge painting
IRVING, Washington.
Oliver Goldsmith: A Biography. [Fore-edge Painting].
London: Henry G. Bohn, 1861.
Finely bound example of Goldsmith's biography of the famed novelist. 16 mo, bound in full polished calf 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, marbled endpapers, all edges marbled, decorated with a double fore-edge painting revealing two cityscapes. In very good condition.
Price: $975.00 Item Number: 138922
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Our New Music: Leading Composers in Europe and America; Signed by Aaron Copland
COPLAND, Aaron.
Our New Music: Leading Composers in Europe and America.
New York: Whittlesey House, 1941.
Early printing of the composer's classic work. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the front free endpaper, "To Mrs. Harold Moran Aaron Copland April 1944." Near fine in a very good dust jacket.
Price: $850.00 Item Number: 116734
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“The past is reinvented and becomes the future. But the lineage is everything": Signed Limited Edition of Music by Philip Glass
GLASS, Philip.
Music by Philip Glass.
New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1987.
Signed limited edition, one of 250 numbered copies. Octavo, original leather, in the original slipcase. Fine in a fine slipcase. With the musical score laid in, as issued. Signed by Philip Glass on the limitation page. Edited and with supplementary material by Robert T. Jones.
Price: $750.00 Item Number: 109279
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First edition of Richard R. Holmes' Queen Victoria; profusely illustrated with engraved portraits from the royal collections
HOLMES, Richard R. [Queen Victoria].
Queen Victoria.
London: Boussod, Valadon & Co, 1897.
First edition of this finely illustrated account of the life and reign of Queen Victoria compiled and edited by the librarian to the Queen, Richard Holmes. Quarto, bound in three quarter vellum over cloth-covered boards with morocco spine labels lettered in gilt, gilt tooling to the spine and panels, top edge gilt with others untrimmed, marbled endpapers, tissue-guarded frontispiece of the Queen and Prince of Wales, profusely illustrated with tissue guarded engravings, several after portraits from the Royal Collections, original wrappers bound in. In near fine condition.
Price: $750.00 Item Number: 137819
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First Edition of A Life of Picasso: Volume I 1881-1906; Signed by John Richardson
RICHARDSON, John; with the collaboration of Marilyn McCully [Pablo Picasso].
A Life of Picasso: Volume I 1881-1906.
New York: Random House, 1991.
First edition of the first volume in Richardson’s four-volume biography of the famous artist. Small quarto, original cream pictorial cloth, frontispiece portrait of Picasso in charcoal, illustrated with about 900 black and white drawings and paintings throughout. Boldly signed by John Richardson on the half-title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Rochelle Udell and Wynn Dan. Author photograph by David Bailey. Rare signed.
Price: $600.00 Item Number: 146213
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First Edition of The London Dore Saw; Inscribed by Eric de Mare
DE MARE, Eric.
The London Dore Saw: A Victorian Evocation.
London: Allen Lane, 1973.
First edition. Folio, original cloth. Inscribed by the author, "To Peggy and Frank Taplin with kind, associational thoughts from Eric de Mare Jan. 1973." Also laid in, is a page and half handwritten signed letter to the same recipients. Fine in a very good price-clipped dust jacket with a closed tear to the front panel and some nominal wear the the extremities.
Price: $450.00 Item Number: 2474
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First Edition of A Life of Picasso Volume II; Signed by John Richardson
RICHARDSON, John; with the collaboration of Marilyn McCully.
A Life of Picasso Volume II: 1907-1917: The Painter of Modern Life.
New York: Random House, 1996.
First edition of the second volume in Richardson's four-volume biography of the famous artist. Small quarto, original publisher's white embossed cloth, frontispiece of a self-portrait photograph by Picasso 1912, illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs. Boldly signed by John Richardson on the title page. Fine in a near fine dust jacket.
Price: $400.00 Item Number: 145269
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Leonard Bernstein's assistant and editor Jack Gottlieb's personal copy of the December 1997 Sotheby's auction catalog of the estate of Leonard Bernstein
[BERNSTEIN, Leonard; Jack Gottlieb].
A Legend: Property from the Estate of Leonard Bernstein Sotheby’s December 1997 Catalog.
New York: Sotheby's, Inc, 1997.
Leonard Bernstein's assistant and editor Jack Gottlieb's personal copy of the December 1997 Sotheby's auction catalog of the estate of Leonard Bernstein. Quarto, original pictorial wrappers. With Gottlieb's notes throughout including the hammer price for each lot that sold in the auction. He has also marked the page that has a lengthy quote from him describing a French provincial walnut style folding table in the catalog, "In the inner sanctum - the staging area for super-human accomplishment - stood that table, where the Maestro marked up his performing scores in crystal-clear intricate detail, like a a fine jeweler polishing precious…
Price: $400.00 Item Number: 135684
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First Edition of Daniel Libeskind's Breaking Ground; Signed by Him and twice by Jacket illustrator Chip Kidd
LIBESKIND, Daniel.
Breaking Ground.
New York: Riverhead Books, 2004.
First edition of the famed architect's autobiography. Octavo, original illustrated boards. Boldly signed by Daniel Libeskind on the title page. Additionally signed twice by jacket illustrator Chip Kidd, once on the front jacket panel and again on the rear jacket flap. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Chip Kidd.
Price: $300.00 Item Number: 122771
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First edition of A Life of Picasso: The Triumphant Years 1917-1932; Signed by John Richardson
RICHARDSON, John; with the collaboration of Marilyn McCully [Pablo Picasso].
A Life of Picasso: The Triumphant Years 1917-1932.
London: Jonathan Cape, 2007.
First edition of the third volume in Richardson's four-volume biography of the famous artist. Small quarto, original black boards, frontispiece portrait of Picasso in Saint-Raphael 1919, illustrated throughout with black-and-white photographs and a several color images of Picasso's paintings. Boldly signed by John Richardson on the title page. Near fine in a near fine dust jacket. Jacket design by Valentine Hugo.
Price: $275.00 Item Number: 145267
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First Vintage Books edition of Bob Colacello's Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up; inscribed by him to Bill Zwecker
COLACELLO, Bob. [Andy Warhol] [William Safire].
Holy Terror: Andy Warhol Close Up.
New York: Vintage Books, 2014.
First Vintage Books edition of "by far the best of Andy Warhol's portraits, including his own" (George Plimpton). Octavo, original illustrated wrappers, illustrated. Association copy, inscribed by the author on the front endpaper in the year of publication, "To Bill Zwecker, with fondness, Bob Colacello 2014 Chicago." The recipient, Bill Zwecker, was a longtime entertainment and celebrity journalist. A Chicago native and second-generation newspaper star (his late mother, Peg Zwecker, was the fashion editor of the Sun-Times and Chicago Daily News), Zwecker began his journalism career in the 1980s and has since interviewed some of the most renowned celebrities across…
Price: $200.00 Item Number: 133037
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First Edition of Rockwell Kent's Salamina
KENT, Rockwell.
Salamina.
New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1935.
First edition of Kent's boldly illustrated account of his visit to Greenland. Octavo, original cloth, illustrated with over eighty illustrations by Rockwell Kent. Very good in a good dust jacket. Ownership inscription.
Price: $50.00 Item Number: 131241
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"What is necessary is to speak about a man as though painting him": Limited First Edition of Arianna Stassinopoulos Huffington's Picasso: Creator and Destroyer
HUFFINGTON, Arianna Stassinopoulos.
Picasso: Creator and Destroyer.
Franklin Center, Pennsylvania: The Franklin Library, 1988.
Signed limited first edition of this ingenious biography of the prolific Cubist painter and hallmark of Surrealism, privately printed exclusively for members of The Signed First Edition Society. Octavo, bound in full top-grain leather with gilt titles and tooling to the spine in four compartments within raised bands, decorated gilt panels with designs by Martha Phillips inspired by Picasso's hand-decorated books, gilt decoration to the front and rear panels, all edges gilt, silk ribbon laid in, marbled endpapers, frontispiece painting 'The Old Man and Time' by Francoise Gilot, Picasso's companion and the mother of their children Claude and Paloma, illustrated…
Price: $50.00 Item Number: 146871