Books & Paper Form New Show Capping Brimfield Week

STURBRIDGE, MASS.

:The Sturbridge Book & Ephemera Fair, a new show, was conducted at the Host Hotel and Conference Center on May 12-13. Tina Bruno, show manager of Flamingo Promotions, said, "For a paper show, it was very successful with more than 35 dealers and a good crowd." She added, "When you consider it was the first time, we were very pleased with our results, and the dealers were asking us to do it again in September."

The gathering was for dealers selling all things collectible on paper. There were books, letters, advertising and more. Bruno pointed out, "This show gives collectors of special interest categories, such as textiles or trains or toys, a source for the paper that goes with their collections."

Kuenzig Books, Topsfield, Mass., had an unpublished manuscript, which was a narrative on Jacquard looms and their patterns, featuring page after page of the paper cards that were used to control the loom's weaving. This bound volume was all handwritten in French, circa 1851, and priced at $10,000. John Kuenzig said it was found by a picker in Europe.

Bookworm & Silverfish from Wytheville, Va., is a dealer of old and rare books, but also offered some other interesting paper items. One book in his collection was a small emblem book in German and Latin, with page after page of short sayings and reflections, printed in the Eighteenth Century. "The 218 leaves were reproduced from wood engravings with the emblem and embellished with both Latin and German verse, seemingly identified by the individual orators who wrote them," explained the seller's written description of the piece. The price was $2,500.

Ron Cozzi is the owner of Old Edition Bookshop from Buffalo, N.Y. While his exhibit covered the last 200 years, there was a great deal of work from the Twentieth Century. When asked to show the most interesting items he brought, he showed several early children's pop-up books. "Because these were made for children, their survival rate was very low, at least in this excellent condition," he said.

In the paper collecting business, Peter Luke is well known for the variety and depth of his collection. The Baltimore, Md., dealer was on hand with prints and paintings, books and pamphlets and early advertising materials. His offerings included some pulp fiction paper backs from the Nineteenth Century; and hand bills. Plantsville, Conn., dealer Dennis Coyle of the American Historical Collection had an original "Taft for President" poster for sale.

There were many letters for sale at this fair. Margaret O'Connell of Tenney River Books had letters from the curator of a Boston museum, circa 1890, discussing yarn content in Native American woven rugs and blankets. She said the interest in them would be by anthropologists, who would use them for their content as source material in a study of the subject. Handwritten with their provenance, the two were priced at $125.

Ontario, Canada, dealer Rare Books and Prints Gallery had numerous first editions of children's books along with some novelties, such as holiday window decorations. Homestead House Antiques, Madison, N.Y., was offering a collection of paper toys and children's items.

Kit Barry Ephemera Archive was exhibiting at the show to sell while there, but also to publicize the standing exhibit at its Brattleboro, Vt., location. Owner Kit Barry was distributing a brochure that said, "Ephemera depicts all aspects of American life relating to people, places, manufacturing, politics, social issues... The Archive has 2,000 topics, with new ones as needed." He pointed out that his Archive collection has more than 250,000 pieces and is open to researchers for free with fees for reproduction of the collections.

Flamingo Promotions will repeat this show September 8-9, again at the Sturbridge Host Hotel. For information, 631-261-4590 or www.flamingoshows.com.