The only known handwritten copy of Arthur Conan Doyle’s second book in the four-novel Sherlock Holmes series, The Sign of Four, could sell for up to US$1.2 million at a June Sotheby’s auction.
The edition, of more than 170 pages, includes notations and markings from the British author, who is widely regarded as one of the great mystery writers. The book is offered with a collection of autographed letters between Doyle and J.M. Stoddart, an American businessman and editor who chronicled the development of the book.
According to Sotheby’s international senior specialist for books and manuscripts Selby Kiffer, this particular edition carries a higher estimate compared to past sales because it is a complete edition, and most Doyle-related works are only fragments of a complete work. In one example, Sotheby’s sold four pages from Doyle’s The Crooked Man in February 2023 for US$95,250.
The manuscript leads “The Library of Dr. Rodney P. Swantko” sale, with 50 lots from the late, Chicago-based collector’s private collection.
Main Image :Courtesy Sotheby's
Anna Melnykova, "Palace of Labor (palats praci), architector I. Pretro, 1916", shot with analog Canon camera, 35 mm Fuji film in March 2022.
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