Jeremy Mason's Oscar Wilde collection, sold at Bonhams on 18 February, fetched both expected and unexpected high prices. Letters from Wilde, books from his own library and inscribed copies have been fetching record prices since his centenary in 2000, but other items, such as a photograph of Wilde on his deathbed, also fetched prices that exceeded expectations. At least, those of some of the underbidders.
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| Oscar Wilde, A House of Pomegranates (1891) cover design by Charles Ricketts Jeremy Mason's copy (photo: Bomhams) |
One of the books that is not rare in itself is his 1891 collection of short stories, A House of Pomegranates, illustrated by Charles Ricketts and Charles Shannon. Copies of this book can be purchased at reasonable prices, ranging from £600 to £3,500. The Mason copy ultimately fetched £8,960.00 (including premium).
That is a considerable amount, especially since it is not a pristine copy, described as 'light spotting to a few pages, publisher's pictorial cloth gilt, lower cover unevenly stained and faded'.
However, hidden in plain sight, a special feature was mentioned: '4pp. pictorial prospectus loosely inserted'. This captured the imagination, because although 250 copies of the prospectus were printed, it is now extremely rare.
