Collection: Literature and General Antiquarian

Time. Most of us have had a lot of it recently. Time to think. Time to reset. Some would say we’ve almost had too much of it.

In the Literature department here at Sotheran’s, we have thought carefully about time, and how best to spend it. And while over the last few years there were times in which the world seemed to be grinding to a halt, we took the opportunity to spend a lot of it squirrelling away, finding books; from behind a screen, over the phone or, as soon as it was safe to do so, scouring the land high and wide in a quest to restock our shelves. And the result is this: our first devoted Literature catalogue in a little over two years.

We start with our top ten, a selection of our favourite items ranging from a lavishly bound Don Quixote, to a personal note from Kipling concerning his inspiration behind some of the themes in the ‘Just So’ stories. Next follows a collection of classic literature, esoterica and ephemera, featuring all of those popular names that we would love to pitch against each other around a dinner table: Austen and Bronte, Keats and Hardy, Cicero and Homer, to name but a few. Following that, we cover drama, private press, counterculture and even include a small section in homage to our favourite capital city. For those of you out there looking for a bargain, we have a whole section right at the back just for you, in which all books are priced just £100 or less.

William Morris once said: “To enjoy good houses and good books in self-respect and decent comfort, seems to me to be the pleasurable end towards which all societies of human beings ought now to struggle.” We couldn't agree more. It’s been a long couple of years, but as we take the first tentative steps back towards normality, the books are still here, alive, and very much kicking. Because you can never spend too much time looking at beautiful books.

We hope you enjoy reading through it, just as much as we have enjoyed putting it together. 

See PDF Version