The personal library formed by numismatic bookseller George F. Kolbe will be sold at auction on Saturday, October 26, 2019. The sale will be conducted by Kolbe & Fanning Numismatic Booksellers and will feature a printed catalogue and live online bidding. The catalogue will be available by the beginning of October, but clients are advised to save the date as we expect intense interest in the sale.
The Kolbe Library was catalogued by George himself in his 2012 book, The Reference Library of a Numismatic Bookseller (now out of print). The auction will feature not only those works discussed in that volume, but additional items acquired in the years since. Also featured will be various related collectables not included in the Reference Library volume, such as ANA Convention photographs, a fine coin cabinet, and a very well-preserved Fractional Currency shield. The sale catalogue is being written by David Fanning, using George’s book as its basis.
The sale will be of considerable importance for numismatic bibliographies from around the world, and will also include exceptional special editions of both standard and specialized numismatic references, annotated sale catalogues, numismatic biographies, rare and unusual private catalogues, numismatic ephemera, and other archival materials amassed over a career spanning more than half a century.
Kolbe & Fanning are also announcing at this time that the entire run of George Frederick Kolbe / David F. Fanning / Kolbe & Fanning catalogues will soon be available for online use at the Newman Numismatic Portal. This considerable scanning project is underway at this time and should be completed in the near future.
Details on the upcoming auction sale will follow in the coming weeks. To sign up to receive Kolbe & Fanning’s occasional email announcements, please visit numislit.com or email Maria Fanning at .