An educational and informational site about rare, old and antiquarian books.
Ever since the Codex Seraphinianus was first published in 1981, the book has been recognized as one of the weirdest and most enigmatic art books ever created. Luigi Serafini , the book’s author and illustrator has also taken on projects as an architect, ceramist, glazier, painter, sculptor, designer, opera director, set designer, and critic. As […]
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Luigi Serafini’s tribute celebration to Jules Renard’s Histoires Naturelles or The Natural Stories of the eternal vitality of natural history is a whimsical book of botanical constructions, with leaves forming a forest of enchanted trees and animated and mutant plants. This herbarium of imaginary plants comes to life in a botanical fantasy painted by the […]
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It was exactly 100 years ago at about this time that the first book by famous, German-language author, Franz Kafka was published. Contemplation (Betrachtung in German) was published towards the end of 1912 and it included 18 short stories that Kafka wrote between 1904 and 1912. In fact, this was the only book published during […]
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It should come as no great surprise to the avid rare book collector that one of the most desirable and well received gifts to present on Father’s Day is a rare book. Whether you are a first generation rare book collector, or you are a chip off the old block who has emulated your […]
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A century before Luigi Serafini’s Codex Seraphinianus perplexed readers worldwide, another very unusual moveable, hand-colored rare book by Dean’s of London had a similar effect in intriguing readers. Dean’s New Book of Dissolving Scenes, London: Dean & Son, (1861), featuring five, bright working transformations which have their scenes “dissolve” into another when tabs are pulled, […]
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As is the case with Luigi Serafini’s Codex Seraphinianus Franco Maria Ricci (1981) edition, Pulcinellopedia Piccola is extremely scarce (only 5000 copies) and incredibly valuable. It is written in Italian text by Serafini’s imaginative co-author, “P. Cetrulo,” and contains over sixty extraordinary pencil illustrations (approx. 9.5″ x 12.5″), some depicted in comic strip style. It […]
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Have you been bitten by the bug yet? The rare book collecting bug that is. Once bitten, the unsuspecting individual is euphorically transfused with a passion for observing and collecting old master and modern firsts, literary and music manuscripts, illuminated texts, or early examples of the printed book. Another telltale sign of the bug is […]
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Does weird content perpetuate rare book status? For some ideas on this topic one must closely examine the most famous weird book ever printed – Codex Seraphinianus. It is the creation of the Italian architect, artist, and designer Luigi Serafini, who can perhaps be best described as more of a visionary than a designer. Besides […]
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