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I am having posting paralysis on an item that I was interested in hearing the groups feedback on. I bought a box of ephemera that has a unique newspaper commemorating the June 28, 1838 coronation of Queen Victoria. What makes it unique is that it was printed using gold ink on thicker than ordinary stock and my copy is near mint condition. I’ve been able to find solds ranging from $17 to over $500, but none in the pristine condition that this one is. Also notable is that it is a first printing when the other sales are later (it had over 12 printings due to its popularity). Any thoughts on what you would price this at? I am shying away from auctions due to its rarity. I’ve got my draft priced at $2000, but FOMO has me hesitating.
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I love it. If $500 is high but yours is in better condition, then $2000 makes sense with Make Offer. If you’re patient, you’ll hopefully see collectors send offers and help you determine the market. You can always lower the price.
This week, we sold a stuffed coyote for $500 (purchased at the dump for $20). The history of sales for stuffed animals was $300 at the highest, but our coyote was really cool because it was in a “growling posture”. We listed it at $650 with Make Offer.
It took eights months and we got an offer of $500 (plus $200 shipping). Result.
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The paper that poisoned its printers.
from The Economist, registration needed, so I don’t know how they got poisoned.
Some time back I did sell another newspaper printed in ‘gold’- I think it was a 1900 “News of the World” or something. The “Sun” nowadays is a down-market rag; old Queen Vic would definitely not be amused by page 3.
Go for 2,000 dollars- first printing in that condition with the red tax stamp, gotta be worth it.
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@antique-frog – I saw that, too. Frustrating that I don’t have a subscription. I’m curious, also.
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I’ve definitely learned that what Jay is saying is true: if yours is better and special, then you are likely to get more for it. People do pay for condition and quality. Sometimes, quite substantially. I’ve raised prices by up to 50 percent when I think something is really special. Although I don’t know if my cats would let me take home a growling stuffed coyote 🙂
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Thanks for the feedback. It feels like I’m on the right track. This afternoon I submitted it to two auction houses for appraisal, on the off chance that it is worth much more. I doubt I would sell it with one, however, having done this before and not gotten even what they estimated, not to mention the 30+% selling fees. It has sat in the box I received it in for years, it can wait a few more weeks.
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@lukastreasuretrove An Essay on Printing in Gold , mentions De La Rue about halfway down the page, with a rather detailed description of the effects. It turns the hair on your nether regions grass green…
The engraving of the Edward Lyon medallion of Victoria was done by a newly developed technique, which is mentioned in Bamber Gascoigne’s book on printing. I’ll dig my copy out later and give you the details; can’t remember them offhand.
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Medal engraving or anaglyptography, invented in the 1820s. It’s based on the ruling machine, which scribes parallel and evenly-spaced lines into a wax surface on a copper plate. The closer the lines the darker the resultant shading on the print. When connected to a needle travelling over a plaster relief the scribing needle produces lines giving an illusion of the contours of the relief, with the spacing between the lines providing a simulation of shading. (How To Identify Prints section 62)
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@antique-frog – I looked up the book you referenced. Sounds like it would be helpful. Is it worth the high price that I see people asking for it?
Here in the Washington region I come across so many old prints and it is always a struggle to decide whether they are just old, or really old. I have some interesting engravings that are marked 1798 and I struggle with whether they are later reprints or originals that were well cared for.
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@lukastreasuretrove I’ve got the first edition, which I bought secondhand years ago. The second edition of 2004 in paperback is being advertised by Blackwell’s in the UK at £22 with free p&p and there’s 8 used and 17 new on Amazon UK from £12 secondhand to £22 new. I think if someone wanted to get a good grounding in 18th and 19th century printing techniques it’s a good book, but the market for engravings in Britain is pretty slow, so I think there’s maybe not much financial incentive for people to learn this area of collecting here. Might be different in the US.
The book will certainly help you distinguish between prints from copper plates and those from steel plates, and shows the differences between an original pull from a plate and one where the plate has been re-cut in worn areas. Going by my experience buying prints in thrift shops, you most likely have genuine 1798 engravings!
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Thanks for the additional insight. I personally don’t think it’s possible to have enough research books. As good as the Internet can be, it is shallow and not very deep in many aspects when it comes to the types of things we find. On further search I found a few copies here for around $20, so I’ll be adding this one.
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