I WANT TO KNOW #2 - The most expensive books in history - Part I
Books provide the most valuable - knowledge. In today's digital world we often forget their importance, but that is why they are now more important than ever. But not all books are equally valuable. Some will remain in history as the most expensive in the world.
- "Urizen's First Book", William Blake - $ 2.5 million
Launched for the first time in 1794, "The First Book of Urizen" is one of William Blake's most famous and significant works. In its essence it can be seen as a parody of Genesis.
One of the eight copies that survived today was sold in New York in 1999 for $ 2.5 million to a private collector.
- "The Tales of Biddle Breeze," J. K. Rowling - $ 3.98 million
Before this book was widely circulated, it was mentioned in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. J. K. Rowling has created seven original copies, each handwritten and illustrated by her. Six she gave away to friends and editors, but in 2007, The seventh is being auctioned.
Amazon.com buys it for $ 3.98 million, making the book the most expensive modern handwriting auctioned. The money from the deal is donated to charity.
- "Geography", Ptolemy - $ 4 million
The first printed atlas and the first book in the world with engraved illustrations. Geography of Ptolemy is a collection of geographic knowledge of the Roman Empire until the 2nd century. In 2006 it sold for a total of $ 4 million.
- "Treatise on Orchard Trees" by Henri Louis Duhamel de Monsoa, Illustrated by Pierre Antoine and Pierre Turien - $ 4.5 Million
This is definitely the most expensive book of fruit trees ever written. Her copy - a set of five volumes with illustrations - was sold in 2006 for $ 4.5 million.
- "Gutenberg Bible" - $ 5.3 million
In 1987, At an auction in New York an unknown connoisseur pays a record $ 4.9 million for the first edition of the Bible printed by Johannes Gutenberg in the distant 1455.
It was in a circulation of 180 pieces. It is curious that the printer, the founder of modern printing, has almost gone bankrupt while creating the Bible. Its printing lasted three years. 42 Side Gutenberg's Bible is particularly valuable because of its aesthetic and technical qualities. It is assumed that the printer used a separate press made by him specifically for this case. On the other, he printed Catholic indulgences ordered by the church to feed himself. While he was engaged in creating the first Bible-printed machine, the impoverished aristocrat Gutenberg was accused of misuse of money. To create the printing house, he took a loan of 150 guilders. And while he was dealing with the Bible, his debts grew to 2000 guilders. Meanwhile, the creditor convicted him, and the court awarded him the printer, along with the specimens that had been printed.
Today, the Bible is the world's most printed and most popular book. Annually it sells 25 million copies. According to data from 2008. There are complete translations in 461 languages and partial translations in 2478 languages.
The first scrolls of it were in ancient Greek and were created in the 4th century.
The sacred book was divided into heads in the 13th century by Stefan Lantton, and by verses in the 16th century by the French printer Robert Estienne.
The word Bible is borrowed from the medieval Latin word bibli, which is an abbreviation of biblia sacra - a "holy book". The first part of the Christian Bible is the Old Testament, which contains the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, known as Tanah. The second is the New Testament with 27 books - the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the message of the Apostles, the Epistles of Paul l and Revelation.