What’s it worth?
Rare book expert to give virtual talk, appraisals.
Quick quiz: Which of the following is true?
One: Books must be old to be valuable. Two: Book collectors need to have deep pockets.
Three: Book appraisals are expensive. Kenneth Gloss would say “none of the above.” Gloss is a frequent guest on “Antiques Roadshow,” as well as the proprietor of Brattle Book Shop, an antiquarian haven established in 1825 that helped turn an area then known as Cornhill into a thriving literary center in the heart of Boston.
Today, there are more than a quartermillion items in the shop’s inventory, including a rare book room with first editions and other collectibles. So, everything in the shop is really old, right?
“The only books that have value because of their age, and only because of their age, are books printed in the 1400s,” Gloss said. He’s talking about works like the first edition of the Gutenberg Bible — his personal multimillion-dollar value estimation of which once appeared, alongside his name, as a question on “Jeopardy!”
Ascertaining the value of works produced in the subsequent six centuries is more complex. Gloss considers, for instance, whether the book is important to its particular field. “If the book is contemporary to what it’s about, that’s a good sign … a book on the American Revolution in the 1770s is probably more valuable than a book on the American Revolution in the 1970s.”
He also might consider the timeline of the author’s career. “The first edition of the first Harry Potter book can be worth up to $100,000,” he said. “Nobody expected it to sell. … By the time you got to the last book, there were I think 10 million first editions.”
Books signed by authors can be more valuable, but it depends: “Some authors signed very willingly … there are some authors where it’s almost rarer to find the unsigned copy,” Gloss said.
In terms of what it takes to build a collection, Gloss notes the value of having a focus. “If somebody says they have 500 books on history, that’s … a little of everything. But if they say they have 500 books on the War of 1812, or 500 books on the Adirondacks … someone put a lot of time and effort and knowledge into what they were getting.”
Collections can also be built around an unusual angle. Gloss’ father, for instance, amassed a collection of old movie stills that individually had little value; what was interesting was their organizing theme: A book appeared somewhere in each photo.
As for book appraisals, as Gloss explains on one of the episodes of his audio
program, Brattlecast, shops like his regularly perform them informally for free — sharing that kind of information benefits all parties. Since the beginning of the pandemic, he’s been doing them virtually; that can make sizing up what people bring more challenging, but it can also open the forum to a larger audience.
Albany audiences will have the opportunity to experience this firsthand Thursday, July 8, during a Zoom presentation hosted by the Albany Institute of History & Art. Gloss will give a talk and Q&A session, followed by free appraisals for participants. For more information, or to register, visit the AIHA website at albanyinstitute.org.