A significant auction of rare books and classic cars will take place in Ireland, attracting collectors from around the world. The event features a collection of approximately 6,000 books, including rare Bibles, early dictionaries, and beautifully bound historical texts. Additionally, a selection of classic cars, such as a Porsche Boxster, a Range Rover, and a Bentley R Turbo, will be offered to bidders.
Online book auctions have opened up the market to a whole range of international collectors, who previously spent their time trawling through bookshops, searching for rare or first-edition books. And Conor Purcell, who is selling a collection of about 6,000 books in his Co Offaly auction rooms on Wednesday, January 22nd, is hoping to attract some of them.
While Purcell is encouraging people to come to Birr to look at this “exceptional collection of rare books from an ecclesiastical vendor”, he is also reaching out to a worldwide audience, through five online bidding platforms. “I think it’s a cool thing to walk into an auction room and pick up a book dated 1615, but people are already bidding online for books in this collection,” says Purcell, adding that supervised viewing will be open to interested parties in the auction rooms over the next few days.One of the books drawing particular interest is a rare Russian Bible in Church Slavonic script called, the Empress Elizabeth bible (estimate €200-€400). “The book was taken from a church in Sevastopol in 1855 during the Crimean war. According to a manuscript note, the book was “liberated” from the church by a surgeon in the royal navy named TM Costello, apparently an Irish man,” says Purcell. The Holy Land by David Roberts (1855), with an estimate of €400-€600, is another key book for sale. Roberts, a 19th-century British artist, illustrated iconic ruins, temples and famous landscapes on his travels to the Middle East in the 1830s. His books were very popular in the English-speaking world as people craved knowledge of early Christian sites and landscapes. A first edition of one of the earliest Irish-English dictionaries, written by Conchúbhar Ó Beaglaoích, a priest and private tutor working in Paris; and Aodh Buí Mac Crúitín, a scholar from Co Clare, is another gem (estimate €800-€1,600). It was published in Paris in 1732, over 20 years before Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language, deemed to be the first modern English dictionary. A first edition of one of the earliest Irish-English dictionaries, written by Conchubhar Ó Beaglaoich and Aodh Buí Mac Cruitin (estimate €800-€1,600) An ornately bound book, The History and Antiquities of the City of Dublin (estimate €400-€600), published in 1767 by antiquarian Walter Harris, is another book that should attract interest. Complete with plates and early maps of Dublin, the quality of its binding is a particular appeal. Purcell also points to Hieronymus: Omnium Operum, an academic commentary on the Bible, published in Basle, Switzerland, in 1516 as one of the oldest books for sale. The auction features several other books from the 16th and 17th century, many of them bound in original vellum or pigskin. Sixty per cent of the books in the collection have ecclesiastical themes, many of which the collector (a retired priest) acquired from an uncle, who worked as a priest in Italy, Spain and Portugal during his lifetime. Purcell contends that, unlike paintings and antique furniture, books can easily be bought and sold online – once the auctioneer presents high-quality photographs of the books and is honest about any particular damage to bindings. On the day of the auction, Purcell and a colleague will view bids coming in on screens while managing live bids from the auction room in Birr, Co Offaly. “We already have bids coming in from collectors around the world including from Bible museums in America and Australia, which is new to me,” he says.Meanwhile, an auction of antique furniture, art and motorcars, on behalf of the Red Carnation Hotel Group and Ashford Castle, will go under the hammer of auctioneer, Aidan Foley, on Monday and Tuesday, January 20th and 21st at 6pm. The auction will attract classic car enthusiasts as it includes a Porsche Boxster convertible, a 2005 Range Rover and the 1997 Bentley R Turbo (€8,000-€12,000), which was symbolically parked outside Ashford Castle at the behest of its South African owner Stanley Tollman, who died in 2021.With almost 600 lots, the auction also includes prints by French artists Marc Chagall, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró, some of which were published in the famous French art magazine Derrière le Miroir, to promote exhibitions by the artists in the Parisian Galerie Maeght. “This auction will be the fourth we’ve held for the hotel over the last decad
BOOK AUCTION RARE BOOKS CLASSIC CARS ASHFORD CASTLE IRELAND PURCELL AUCTIONEERS
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ireland Christmas weather twist as Met Eireann warns of rare conditionsIreland is set for an unusually mild Christmas, with temperatures reaching up to 14C. However, Met Eireann has warned that colder weather could return by the end of the week, bringing a dramatic shift in conditions for the final days of 2024.
Read more »
Ireland Braces for 'Disruptive' Cold Snap with Rare Double WarningMet Eireann has issued a rare 'double' warning for low temperatures and ice as Ireland prepares for a severe cold snap. Temperatures are expected to plummet to -10C, bringing snow, sleet, and widespread frost. The warning highlights potential travel disruptions and animal welfare concerns.
Read more »
Rare celestial event: Full moon to occult Mars in Ireland tonightStargazers in Ireland can witness a rare celestial event tonight as Mars appears next to the full moon, known as the Wolf Moon. This phenomenon, called occultation, occurs when one celestial object passes in front of another. Mars will be visible to the naked eye glowing beside the moon.
Read more »
Ireland weather: The 9 storms that hit Ireland in 2024 and the damage causedStorm downpours that have caused devastating flooding in some communities are 20 per cent more intense as a result of rising greenhouse emissions
Read more »
Trump's Visit to Ireland: An Opportunity for Ireland to Strengthen US TiesThis article discusses the importance of Ireland strengthening its ties with the United States in light of Donald Trump's presidency. It emphasizes the need for an early and proactive diplomatic and trade offensive by the new Irish government.
Read more »
Northern Ireland Issued with Ice Warning as Winter Strikes UK and IrelandAll six counties in Northern Ireland are under an ice warning from the UK Met Office as winter weather is expected to hit Ireland and Great Britain. Temperatures are set to drop below freezing overnight in the Republic of Ireland, making it likely that weather alerts will be issued soon. A Status Yellow ice warning is in effect for Northern Ireland until Thursday morning, with icy patches on roads and potential travel disruptions expected. Meanwhile, a three-day snow warning has been issued for most of England, Wales, and parts of Scotland.
Read more »