How to buy rare books : a practical guide to the antiquarian book market

Oxford : Phaidon ; Christie's, 1985. 1st edition. Hardcover. Near fine cloth copy in a near-fine, very slightly edge-nicked and dust-dulled dust-wrapper, now mylar-sleeved. Remains particularly well-preserved overall; tight, bright, clean and strong. Series: Christie's collectors guides. Physical description: 159 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 25 cm. Notes: Includes index. Includes bibliographical references (pages 152-155). Contents: Preface -- 1. The Art and Practice of Book Collecting: Why Collect Books? -- The Antiquarian Book Trade -- How to Read a Catalogue -- Buying and Selling -- Good and Bad Taste -- Pitfalls -- 2. Tastes and Trends in Book Collecting: Early Printers -- English Literature -- Scientific and Medical Books -- Americana and Australiana -- Travel and Natural History Books -- The History of Ideas -- Fine Bindings -- 3. The Book: Printing -- Paper -- Folding and Gathering -- Illustration and Plate-making -- Binding -- 4. Care and Conservation: Storage -- Paper -- Bindings -- Environment -- Glossary and Abbreviations -- Useful Addresses -- Further Reading -- Index -- Acknowledgement. Subjects: Book collecting; Rare books; Antiquarian booksellers; Booksellers and bookselling; Bibliofilie; Bookselling & publishing, England; Handbooks and Manuals.