A rare and extensive library of Renaissance-era books amassed by T. Kimball Brooker, a Chicago collector of early printed works and president of Barbara Oil Co., is expected to achieve more than US$25 million through a series of Sotheby’s sales beginning in October.
Described by the auction house as “one of the most significant” collections of its kind, it consists of more than 1,300 French and Italian books printed in the 16th century in their original bindings.
The “crown jewel” of the sales event is the largest private collection of editions from the acclaimed Renaissance bookmaker Aldine Press to come to the market in a century, according to Sotheby’s. Established in Venice in the late 1400s, the printing operation is considered a precursor to contemporary publishing. Its innovations include italic type and paperback-sized volumes.
Brooker’s collection features around 1,000 Aldines that were published between the 1490s and the 1590s. Works include titles by Cicero and Julius Caesar. “One Aldine highlight is Baldassarre Castiglione’s 1528 Il libro del cortegiano del conte (Venice: Heirs of Aldo Manuzio & Andrea Torresano), which is expected to sell for between US$180,000 to US$250,000.”
“This is an extraordinary generational event,” says David Goldthorpe, Sotheby’s head of books and manuscripts, who calls Brooker “the perfect custodian” for these printed treasures.
“I don’t think we’ll see another collection that shows this connoisseurship and this level of quality and condition,” Goldthorpe adds. “What’s incredible about this is he did it on his own by sheer determination.”
Brooker’s large collection of books dedicated to art will also hit the block.
“Collecting the books to be offered in this series of sales has been an enduring source of satisfaction and enjoyment,” Brooker said in the Sotheby’s announcement.
“This pursuit of the rare and the beautiful has also given me countless marvelous memories and lifetime friendships with librarians, booksellers, academics, and fellow bibliophiles and collectors,” he said, adding that he had “mixed feelings” about parting with these prized possessions.
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On Oct. 11, live sales at Sotheby’s New York will kick off with an auction of 90 works representing highlights across the collection. On Oct. 12, the first of a series of three sales dedicated to the Aldines will follow.
Bibliotheca Brookeriana, as the series of sales is called, comes at a time when the “rare book market is in a very healthy state,” Goldthorpe says. “Books cover all different subjects. There’s something for everyone.”
The collection will be on display at Sotheby’s York Avenue galleries from Oct. 5 to 11. Additional sales will take place in New York and London through 2025.
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