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Centuries of knowledge and culture in pages with history
The antiquarian book market also gets carried away by fashions, but the classics are still the classics and few can compete with them.
Only those who really take pleasure in reading and literature can appreciate what it means to hold in their hands a book printed centuries ago. Leafing through a 1614 edition of Novelas Ejemplares by Miguel de Cervantes or a Lazarillo de Tormes with 400 years in its pages is a treat that few can enjoy. Partly because of the price (though there are centuries-old volumes sold for 200 euros), but also because of the scarcity of such books.
The passage of time and a lack of care are merciless for such objects. This is well known to Guillermo Blázquez, chairman of the Madrid Guild of Antiquarian Booksellers. A specialist in old and rare books, he points to damp as the worst enemy. Accordingly “Madrid is a perfect place for keeping books, because of its dry climate.”
Valuation criteria
One of the first criteria is a book’s age. The Spanish National Library regards anything prior to 1830 as antiquarian. From this baseline, Blázquez lists what is considered when a book is valued: “Content, rarity, state of preservation, type of binding and previous owners.” The chief aspect among these is content, i.e. the material should be interesting. The others are added values. It should be noted that in speaking of rarity we are referring to a unique copy, or, though there are more copies, one which is the first to come onto the market.
Blázquez says it is not as common as it was a few years ago for whole libraries to be sold. “Though it is said that people don’t read in Spain, the cultural standard has gone up,” he notes. So he has to rummage in book fairs, other booksellers’ catalogues and auctions, and also in his own customers’ collections. “One by one, in a slow trickle.”
Sometimes it happens that one buys a book sold previously, and which has gained in value. “When I do that, I normally have it sold beforehand,” says the chairman of the Madrid Guild.
What is in greatest demand
Like most markets, the antiquarian book market is also driven by fashions. There were a few years in which books on hunting were the most sought-after. But their stock has fallen and the latest vogue is to get hold of a copy of Spain’s Constitution of 1812, with a view to its bicentenary. That year seven editions were published (all regarded as first editions), but even so there is a waiting list.
In constant demand, the most valued and sought-after subject areas are Renaissance literature, the Spanish Golden Age, history books, science books (especially astronomy as from Kepler and Galileo), Spanish genealogy and history, travel literature, American subjects and the history of law. A demand which normally comes from university lecturers, economists, politicians, lawyers, notaries, architects, etc. – all with high intellect and purchasing power.
Enlaces de interés
•www.libreriablazquez.com
•www.bne.es
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Published in Hobbies and Collecting by M. J. Arias on 24/06/2010
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