What is this- some kind of secret code? Collectors and dealers in various fields often develop and use terms and abbreviations that, to the cognoscenti (those who know the secret handshake), are meaningful and very descriptive. However, to the casual collector, these same words and acronyms can seem like a foreign language. The above hypothetical brief description is actually telling the knowledgeable collector quite a bit about an historical document. As cataloguers, we try to make our auction lot descriptions understandable to everyone but sometimes we fail, lapsing into easy and comfortable terms that we assume everyone knows. Let's take a brief tour of this special lingo; examining some of the collector terms used in the current 2006 February Dallas Books, Autographs and Manuscripts Auction #626:

First, a look at the abbreviations commonly used in describing autograph and manuscript material. Keep in mind that in this series of terms, "Autograph" is used synonymously with "handwritten" not "signature":

• AD (Autograph Document): A document (not a letter) handwritten by the person to be collected but not signed by them.
• ADS (Autograph Document Signed): A document handwritten and signed by the person to be collected. The exact form of signature will usually be noted in quotes and italics.
• AES (Autograph Endorsement Signed): A handwritten and signed comment or notation made by the person to be collected, usually found in the margin or on the back of another letter or document.
• AL (Autograph Letter): A letter (not a document) handwritten by the person to be collected but not signed by them.
• ALS (Autograph Letter Signed): A letter handwritten and signed by the person to be collected. The exact form of signature will usually be noted in quotes and italics.
• DS (Document Signed): A document signed (but not handwritten) by the person to be collected. This document can be either printed, partly printed, or manuscript (handwritten, but by another person).
• LS (Letter Signed): A letter signed (but not handwritten) by the person to be collected. A secretary or clerk usually handwrites the body of these letters.
• TLS (Typed Letter Signed): A typed letter signed by the person to be collected.

In autograph material, the date and place written can often be important and they are always noted in the description whenever available. If not available, abbreviations are usually used:

• np (no place): Used when the place of origin of a letter or document is not given.
• nd (no date): Used when the date of origin of a letter or document is not given.

A few additional terms that are often used in our descriptions include:

• Docketing: Documents and important papers are usually kept flat in a file folder nowadays; in earlier times, they were folded multiple times (usually to the size that would easily fit into a modern envelope) and a summary of what the content entailed was written at the top of the back on the short edge. This summary is called the docketing information and it sometimes contains important details about the item. Occasionally, a signature or endorsement will be found there.
• Integral (Address) Leaf: Most letter or notepaper of the 18th and 19th centuries consisted of a large sheet folded once vertically into a booklet of four pages. The letter (document, etc.) would be written first on what was essentially the cover page and then continued inside (or on the back). Before manufactured envelopes came into wide use in the 1850s, these lettersheets were then folded, sealed with wax, addressed, and posted. In this situation, the original address information (often in the collected person's handwriting) and any postal markings show up in the center of the back of the folder or on what's called the integral address leaf.
• Verso: The back of a document or letter as opposed to the Recto that is the front of a document. In book terms, the verso is the left hand page and the recto is the right hand page.
• (Free) Franking: The president and various other government officials have franking privileges, that is, of sending mail without paying postage. In times past, they would often sign their name (and sometimes "Free") in the upper right corner of the envelope to evoke that privilege. These are very desirable to collectors.
• 4to (Quarto): An old-fashioned size designation for a book page or document that is 10" to 12" tall.
• 8vo (Octavo): Another old-fashioned size designation for a book page or document that is 8" up to 10" tall.

Now we can all "translate" the description at the top of the article. It is (obviously now): A three-page letter handwritten and signed by Andrew Johnson, approximately 8" tall, with comments on the back handwritten and signed by Abraham Lincoln. There is no date or place given, but we can ascertain that it was written in 1865. See, that was simple!

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Join us in Dallas for the Luhrs/Americana Auction

Lot Viewing:
Friday, Sunday and Monday (Feb. 17, 19, 20)
9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Heritage Auction Galleries
17th Floor
3500 Maple Avenue
Dallas, TX 75219

The Henry E. Luhrs Collection of Important American Historical Manuscripts will begin our 626 Signature Auction on Monday, February 20. The session will be held at 5:00 p.m. in our Dallas 1st Floor Auction Room and will be simulcast to New York City (6:00 p.m. ET). In New York, the simulcast will be held at Shreve's Galleries at 145 W. 57th Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues), 18th Floor. During the simulcast, New York guests will view a live video feed from our Dallas Auction Room, with direct audio connection to Dallas, and bids will be accepted from the floor.

On Tuesday, February 21, the auction will resume at 1:00 p.m. CT with over 200 rare books and manuscripts, also simulcast to New York at the same location. And at 5:00 p.m., the third and final session of historical autographs and manuscripts will be held.

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Michael's Top Three for 626
By Michael Riley

I've had the privilege to not only be part of the team that traveled to Shippensburg a few months ago to pick up the incredible Henry E. Luhrs collection but I've also been part of the team that lotted, researched, and described this magnificent collection. I almost feel like I know Mr. Luhrs from perusing his collection and reading the original correspondence he exchanged with the leading book and manuscript dealers of his era. He had a great knack for picking out the most interesting and important items from the published catalogs and, as his correspondence shows, most of these legendary dealers offered him their very best acquisitions before ever placing them on sale to the general public. It's nearly impossible to pick my favorite lots in this auction but here are three lots from the Luhrs collection that I would personally love to own!

Lot 25843- Original Leaves from Famous Bibles Nine Centuries 1121-1935. As a longtime collector of early Bible (and book) leaves, this lot is incredible. It's a ready-made collection consisting of sixty wonderful leaves from various Bibles dating all the way back to 1121, four of which are manuscript (handwritten). All are completely identified, matted, and ready to frame. Many of these are rarely seen in today's market. What an historical and educational display this would make for a church, museum, or institution!

Lot 25858- Fore-edge Painting on a 1760 Book of Common Prayer. Leonardo DaVinci's The Last Supper is my favorite single work of art and I've always been fascinated by fore-edge painted books, so this has to be one of my favorites. In case you've never seen one of these, the book's long edge is painted with a scene that only appears when the pages are fanned. This is a particularly nice example on a handsome leather-bound Church of England Book of Common Prayer formerly owned by Lady Boston (Christiana Methuen).

Lot 25041- Abraham Lincoln "Valentine's Day" Prisoner Release Endorsement Signed- Lincoln-signed prisoner releases are always in demand and this one is particularly interesting because of what Mr. Luhrs did with it. Apparently, he had been looking for a February 14th-dated Lincoln document for some time. A leading document dealer of the period, John Heise, came across one in 1937 and sold it to him. Luhrs then had it reproduced and incorporated into a small Valentine card that he sent to his friends, customers, and fellow Lincoln collectors. Above and below the image the text states, "Here's a Real Valentine. Big Hearted President Lincoln Sent This Note February 14, 1865. This Pardon Gave Liberty to a Prisoner of the North During the Civil War." One of these Valentines is included in the lot.

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Jared's Top Three for 626
By Jared Green

Jared Green serves as the Vice President of Business Development for Heritage Auction Galleries. Even with such a lofty position, Jared is always willing to roll his sleeves up and pitch in wherever needed. He was a great help in getting the 626 catalog to press and we are grateful to him for that. Here are three lots that caught his eye:

Lot 25218- [Judaica] (Martha Washington) Solomon Levy, New York merchant, Autograph Document Signed. Martha Washington buys Cotton from Samuel Levy, creating an early tie from the First Family to Jewish merchants.

Lot 26632- Aviation Lot: Orville Wright signed picture of first flight. This signed Orville Wright photo from his first flight - as I am a North Carolina native, both literally and figuratively, this hits close to home.

Lot 26541- Edward Hopper Autograph Letter Signed. A fan of Fine Art, this Edward Hopper signed letter also interested me, as Hopper sketches alone routinely sell for over $30,000.

Those are my top three picks for this auction. While perusing through the hundreds of items that will no doubt amaze and intrigue, I hope you stop a while to look over some of these! Enjoy the auction.

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Website tips: Bidding Between Increments

The current bid on any item in a Heritage Auction will always be calculated as the lesser of:

1. The maximum bid on the item, or
   
   
2. One increment above the second highest bid on the item.
   
   

In our Signature Auctions, we receive bids from many sources, such as faxes, mail bids, absentee phone bids, and podium bids - written bids left by someone present at the auction site. These bidders may not know the current bid at the time they place their bid; however their bid must be on-increment or at a half increment (called a cut bid). Any podium, fax, phone, or mail bids that do not conform to a full or half increment will be rounded up or down to the nearest full or half increment.

The rules for Internet bidders are a little different. Internet bidders need only bid an amount equal to or greater than the next increment. Internet bids greater than the minimum required next bid can be any whole dollar amount. It is possible under several circumstances for winning bids to be between increments, sometimes only $1 above the previous increment (see below).

When the auction closes, the winner of the item will be the person with the highest bid, but the hammer price of the item will be the calculated current bid on the item, regardless of what the actual high bid was. This allows you as a bidder to win items for less than your maximum bid. Our Signature Auctions open up on the auction floor at the Current Bid. We will execute the high Internet bidder's secret maximum bid on his behalf until he either wins the lot or is outbid.

Bidding increments in Heritage auctions follow this table. Note that this is calculated without regard to the current bid; if an item has a current bid of $50, then the next bid will be $51, then $54, $57, $60, $65, etc.

Sometimes, astute Internet bidders will place a bid between increments with the idea that they may be able to win a piece for less than a full increment above another bidder. Take the example of a bidder looking at a lot that he thinks is worth roughly $110 plus the 15% buyer's premium. The current bid on the piece is $1, which always means that there is only one bidder on the item. Our bidder has no way of knowing what the actual maximum bid on the item is, but he decides to place a bid of $111. This bid is designed specifically to outbid somebody that might have already bid $110. Once our bidder has placed this bid, he will see one of the following:

1. If the previous maximum bid was $109 or less, the new bid will become the high bid and the current bid will become the bidding increment above the previous bid.
   
   
2. If the previous maximum bid was exactly $110, the new bid will become the high bid and the current bid will become exactly $111.
   
   
3. If the previous maximum bid was between $111 and $119, the new bid will be immediately outbid, and the current bid will become the previous bidder's high bid.

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