those who follow me on twitter know i found something at the thrift store yesterday. i really can’t believe my good luck, and could hardly believe my eyes when i saw it.
it’s a 2nd edition hardcover of jane eyre by charlotte bronte, which includes the author’s preface (her first, for that novel), dated 1847.
the book is in horrible condition. the cover is old and dirty and held on by a few threads, and there is a small burn mark at the top of the book. i have no idea what it might be worth, if anything, but it doesn’t matter because i don’t think i would sell it.
of course, not being an expert in these things, a little part of me wonders if it really is the real thing. and i’m sure one day i will have it appraised (will i have to smile and nod politely like those people on antique roadshow when they are told their great grandma’s ming dynasty vase was made in taiwan?)…
til then, i’m pretty sure this book is the oldest thing i own, other than my dna…
anyone have tips on cleaning old books? it’s a mess. and i adore it.
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that is so cool!!
There’s some good information floating around them internets about book repair. And lots of art supply stores now carry book binding tape and such. Book supplies are much easier to find than they used to be.
I learned last summer that books aren’t really worth much unless they are really good condition. I spoke to a bookseller who named a book I can’t remember and said that a pristine copy was worth about $600 but a customer bought in a beat up copy of said book and it was only worth about $20. I always assumed rare is rare but apparently, with books at least, condition is the deciding factor on value.
I tried the glass baubles in my second peacock (that sounds weird out of context!) – thanks for the suggestion. It seems to be holding up much better. I’m hoping to post pics on Friday.
it’s one of my favourite books (jane eyre, i mean).
one of my links above takes you to the “flops” section of the antiques roadshow. it’s so interesting. a mint condition of mark twain’s book with his handwritten markings is worth about ten bucks.
ooo an absolute treasure indeed!
My Dad was an avid civil war book collector back in the day … he would read several books at one time even (I KNOW!)
He bought lots of books from the Salvation Army on Capitol Hill in Wash DC, sounds fancy but he would always kid my Mom to not dress up too much or they would charge him more … what I wanted to share with you was this: my Dad would make a weak water/pneumonia mixture and wipe the books down with that … maybe vinegar would work equally as well … since that was a long time ago … you might want to try it on another book … how’s that for a ‘qualified’ suggestion ;)
oxo
i like that you said “pneumonia”! :-)
what great details you shared, especially about your dad asking your mom not to dress up too much!
i am so careful about not bringing too many “things” into the home, it can take over so quickly. but books are so hard to resist (and thank goodness for public libraries!).
I love that you found such a treasured piece! You must have eyes like a hawk – good finding!
Public libraries are the best, but there is still that thrill of finding and bringing home a treasured book of your own. I wish I had a better way of cleaning and caring for old books, One thing I do do is wait for a warm, sunny day and set them outside and let the sunshine do its thing. Helps with molds and odors.
Which reminds me, our library is having their biggest book sale of the year this month!
The book is beautiful! I hate to be a kill joy though, but I was going to mention that the Charlotte Bronte used the pseudonym “Currer Bell” until 1848. Are there any other markings on the book other than the foreword that you have photographed? Perhaps it was indeed from 1848, and they just reproduced the foreword from 1848…
In case you are interested, I posted about a Jane Eyre / Wuthering Heights find here http://sixballoons.blogspot.com/2010/01/vintage-copy-of-my-favourite-book.html
that is totally a possibility! thanks for sharing (kill joy! lol)
Sorry! haha. I’ve really enjoyed finding your blog; your couch is great! It sounds like Mr. madeitso is a lot like Mr.SixBalloons!
haha, no worries, i’m glad you found me! you should join in on the friday archive dive feature.. it’s today’s post. check it out, great group of people there :)