First book printed in US sells for record $14.2 mn at Sotheby’s auction

Boston’s Old South Church sold the Bay Psalm from its collection to cover the cost of building repairs and to fund its ministry. Photo: Carlo Allegri /Reuters

New York: The Bay Psalm Book, one of 11 surviving copies of the first book printed in the US, sold for $14.2 million on Tuesday evening at Sotheby’s in New York, setting a new world auction record for any printed book.

Although it had been estimated to fetch up to $30 million, it easily surpassed the previous mark of $11.5 million, paid in December 2010 for John James Audubon’s Birds of America.

“We are thrilled that this book, which is so important to our history and culture, is destined to be widely seen by Americans who can appreciate its singular significance,” said David Redden, chairman of Sotheby’s books department.

“We are of course also thrilled to have achieved a new world auction record price for any printed book, which affirms that books remain a vital part of our culture,” he added in a statement.

Printed in 1640 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the Bay Psalm is one of the rarest books in the world and among the finest surviving copies of original 1,700 that were printed.

It is also the first copy to be sold since 1947 when it set an auction record for a book at $151,000.

 

Amit kumar pandey

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