Shelf Life: Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper from the Library of Stanley J. Seeger and Christopher Cone

H.G. Wells Two volumes: (i) The Invisible Man: A Grotesque Romance. London: C. Arthur Pearson Limited, 1897. 8vo (183 x 121 mm), FIRST EDITION, title-page printed in red and black, 2pp. publisher's advertisements at rear, original red cloth lettered in gilt on spine and on upper cover with design in black, clear dust-jacket, blue inkstains to pp. 26–27, endleaves lightly browned, hinges split, top edge browned, extremities slightly rubbed and bumped (ii) The Invisible Man: A Grotesque Romance. London: C. Arthur Pearson Limited, 1897. 8vo (183 x 121 mm), FIRST EDITION, title-page printed in red and black, 2pp. of publisher's advertisements at rear, original red cloth lettered in gilt on spine and on upper cover with design in black, endleaves renewed, minor staining to upper cover, spine sunned and soiled, extremities slightly rubbed and bumped The Invisible Man, the tale of a scientist who turns himself invisible but is unable to reverse the process, was first printed serially in Pearson's Magazine in June and July 1897. Written shortly after the successful publication of The Time Machine, the story has been adapted numerous times for film and television. "Boldly melodramatic and intellectually provocative, Wells's early scientific romances... remain unsurpassed for their imagination and visionary power" (ODNB). LITERATURE: Wells 11

View 1 of Lot 147: H.G. Wells | The Invisible Man, 1897, first edition, 2 copies

h.g. wells | the invisible man, 1897, first edition, 2 copies

An <a href="https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/luxury/books-&amp;-manuscripts/book?locale=en&amp;Book%20Type=Signed%2520and%2520Inscribed" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">inscribed</a> <a href="https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/luxury/books-&amp;-manuscripts/book/first-edition?locale=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">first edition</a> of The Common Sense of War and Peace by <a href="https://www.sothebys.com/en/search?query=h.g.+wells&amp;pfilters.dateRange=upcoming" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">H.G. Wells</a>.<ul><li>H.G. Wells (English).</li><li>England / New York: Penguin, (1940).</li><li>116, [6] pages.</li><li>Inscribed by Wells in ink to copyright page: "To Dorothy Thompson. / bless her. / &amp; she is not to leave / it behind her. / H.G. Wells / Aug. 19. 41"; under copyright notice, Wells has additionally written "(with full rights to reproduce / in any form / HG.)"</li><li>Original orange and white typographic wrappers, publisher's ads at rear, housed in custom quarter navy goatskin clamshell box.</li></ul> Inscribed first edition of this World War II-era thesis on creating a new world federation to bring about lasting peace — presented to American journalist Dorothy Thompson, who "had gone into battle almost single-handedly against the Nazis" (Kurth). "Mr. Wells' job is to think [...] In this book he has been thinking about the war — why we are fighting, what will happen when it is over." Wells's inscription in this copy seems to suggest that it was given to Thompson with the idea to publish an American edition of the work; his handwritten note on the copyright page emphasizes that he has "full rights to reproduce [the book] in any form." The holograph annotations that follow in the text, most likely made by Thompson, are editorial in nature, further supporting that it was meant to be used for a new edition: typos are corrected, and portions deleted or updated to reflect changing data from the book's 1940 publication to circa 1942 (e.g. "When England and France declared war [last September] [crossed out]"). The last two chapters (#13, "That New World After the War" and #14, "A Lesson from 1918") have been crossed out entirely and, perhaps most notably, the annotator has removed a few phrases critical of Russia (e.g. "From their [doctrinaire, stupid and suspicious, but] [crossed out] not altogether ill-informed point of view"). A tremendous World War II association copy, evidence of the networking and strategy of two influential public intellectuals during the political upheavals of the epochal conflict.

The Common Sense Of War And Peace Inscribed First Edition

Books, Manuscripts & Music, from Medieval to Modern

British Antarctic "Terra Nova" Expedition, 1910-1913

British Antarctic "Terra Nova" Expedition, 1910-1913 Adelie penguin egg, circa 75 x 55mm diameter Housed in a black carboard presentation box with a glass lid (117 x 117 x 65 mm), including a typewritten note signed by Herbert Ponting ("H.G. Ponting"), reading: "This box contains the egg of an Adelie Penguin,—the most grotesque bird in all the world,—which was brought back by me from the Antarctic regions, where I was a member of Captain Scott's Expedition on which he and four comrades—Captain Oates, Dr Wilson, Lieut Bowers and Petty Officer Evans—perished on their return journey from the South Pole. The Adelie Penguin breeds farther South than any other known creature. This egg was found by me, in November 1911, seven miles from Captain Scott's Winter Quarters, Lat:77.30 S., 750 miles from the South Pole." A SPECIMEN FROM SCOTT'S NOTORIOUS EXPEDITION TO THE SOUTH POLE, COLLECTED BY THE MAN WHO CAPTURED MANY OF THE MOST POWERFUL AND ENDURING IMAGES OF THE HEROIC AGE OF ANTARCTIC EXPLORATION. Herbert Ponting (1870-1935) is famed for his role as the expedition photographer and cinematographer for the British Antarctic Expedition, also known as the Terra Nova Expedition, led by Captain Robert Falcon Scott. Ponting took some of the first known colour photographs of Antarctica, and was also among the first men to use a portable movie camera in the region. Having helped set up the winter camp at Cape Evans in 1911, Ponting took many photographs of Scott and his men, as well as over one hundred photographs of Adelie and Emperor penguins. Whilst the tragic deaths of Scott and his men are central to the legend of the Terra Nova expedition, one of the expedition's major objectives was scientific, as this object reminds us. The Terra Nova returned laden with specimens of plants, animals, and fossils, of which more than four hundred were new to science. Penguin eggs were prized for their alleged importance in revealing evolutionary links between reptiles and birds. The perilous lengths that Scott's men went to in order to collect such specimens are vividly recounted in the memoirs of Apsley Cherry-Garrard. The box and accompanying typewritten note signed by Ponting suggest that this item was presented as a gift. Intriguingly, the Scott Polar Research Institute holds another Adelie Penguin egg housed in a box of apparently identical construction, with a near-identical typed note signed, stating that the specimen was found at the same location as the present egg ("Lat:77.30 S., 750 miles from the South Pole"). The two specimens may well have been removed by an expedition member from the same clutch of eggs. REFERENCES: For a similar specimen, see catalogue of Scott Polar Research Institute, Accession no. Y: 71/1; Ian Christie, "Ponting, Herbert George (1870-1935)", ODNB, Web, Accessed 18 June 2026

View 1 of Lot 51: British Antarctic "Terra Nova" Expedition, 1910-1913 | An Adelie penguin egg, with typewritten note signed by Herbert Ponting

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