January 2020 - AHPCS

“Ponderously” Rare (Part 2): Variation and Rarity in Music Title-Page Design

January 31, 2020

The Lynch Archives is one of the premier private collections of American sheet music. Kevin Hugh Lynch is a steward of the Lynch Archives, begun more than one hundred years ago by his father, band leader and art dealer Francis Lynch. The collection of published popular music dating from 1736 to 1987 is uniquely sorted... Read the full article

Yankee Volunteers Marching Into Dixie

“Ponderously” Rare (Part I): Variation and Rarity in Music Title-Page Design

January 24, 2020

Before radio, records, CDs, or MP3s, if most Americans wanted to hear music, they needed to create it themselves. As the growing American middle class of the 19th century eagerly purchased pianos and other musical instruments for their homes, they also bought sheet music. By 1855, one New York publishing house was advertising a stock... Read the full article

A Look Back: “The most important Currier & Ives sale to take place in Southern California …”

January 8, 2020

"I am Done Collecting—Now What?" contains great tips from appraiser and art historian Leah Tharpe on things to consider when preparing to sell or donate a print collection. Margaret Leslie Davis's new book, The Lost Gutenberg (TarcherPerigee, 2019), might be considered a cautionary tale for these same collectors getting ready to donate their collections. Davis's book tracks one surviving copy of the Gutenberg Bible known as “No. 45.” Read the full article