Artunderwraps

First Edition Prices, Values and Auction Results

Master Humphrey's Clock by Charles Dickens began as a magazine first published in April 1840. Dickens served as an editor and contributed an occasional piece of writing. Fans demanded more from Dickens and eventually it evolved into an extension of an earlier piece, The Old Curiosity Shop. The 88 parts that make up the installments published from April 1840-November 1841 are penned under the pseudonym "Boz" and contain wood-engraved illustrations by G. Cattermole and H.K. Browne. Intact sets in good condition with original wrappers and housed in a full green custom clamshell for preservation are valued between $1500-$7500. The 3-volume first edition book form published in 1841 by Chapman and Hall (London) in excellent condition can sell for as much as over $1500 but are accessible at $200.

We collected a sample of 16 auction results of Dickens, Charles's Master Humphrey's Clock from 1 different auction houses. The lowest overall price realized in our sample was $150 and the highest overall price realized was $3500. The overall average price was $1674 and the median price realized for the book was $1646. There were 0 auctions (0%) with a price realized below the low estimate, 0 auctions (0%) exceeding the high estimates, and 0 auctions (0%) within the range of the low and high estimates. Auctions of interest include: a Bonhams sale on December 10, 2014 of a 1841 - Chapman and Hall edition for $3125 that described as near fine in original weekly parts; a Bonhams sale on September 22, 2014 of a 1841 - Chapman and Hall edition for $3500 that described as a very good copy overall; a Bonhams sale on October 18, 2011 of a 1841 - Chapman and Hall edition for $3500 that described as a very fine copy in original weekly parts;