Whaley’s Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic?

[Guest]

HB numbered copy of Whaleys Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic :help:

I saw a comb bound set of Whaleys Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic on an eBay auction in the last day or so and it closed at $510.00.
Does anyone have an opinion on the value of one of the 50 numbered copies of the hardbound limited edition of 500 of the same title?
I would appreciate any members input on my question.
Thank you for taking the time to read this, and, hopefully, providing a bit of guidance on this book.

W/D

[Guest]

Doc,

I have one of the 50 hardbound versions also, #196 copies were numbered in rotation reserved along with spiral bound. 500 books were printed, 50 of which hard bound. To me its priceless - almost. I guess everyone has a price at some point. I still have all the correspondence with Busby leading up to my purchase. One of the last letters from him states that the bound books will be late due to issues with the binder, and if I wanted to cancel my order I could. Needless to say, I didnt. Ive heard of the bound versions fetching in the $750 range. I remember seeing one go on Ebay a few years ago for around $400 a bargain I guess. $510 for the spiral bound seems high, but then again, I havent been pricing them.

I sure liked the good old days of dealing with a reputable book dealer for rare and out of print books. David Meyer was my favorite. What a class guy!!

Cheers, Mark Damon

P.S. As a reference book, I use Whaleys Whos Who In Magic (cd version) 10 times more than his Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic. Does that make it worth $5100 - maybe someday?

[Guest]

I have recently sold one of the 50 hardbound copies for $625 and the buyer was happy with the price. I have to agree that the combound version on ebay was a lucky shot for the seller....

[Guest]

I want to thank Mark and Wolfgang for their insightful replies to my query.

When I saw the amount that the comb bound set brought I had the same feeling in my gut that I experienced when the Hunt brothers were attempting to corner the silver market and the price of silver became not only astronomical but completely out of parity in relation to the price of gold.

The Hunt brothers' attempt to corner the silver market was only frustrated by the little old ladies that entered the supply side of the market en masse' to hock their wedding silver and cash in on the $100 per troy ounce bid price for any scrap silver.

The $510.00 closing price on this set will likely have the same effect on the owners of the same set and a period of serial offerings of the same edition will bring the price down again.

Given that it was indeed not a fluke.

Someone paid $600+ for a hardbound copy of the Reynold's book on magic posters at about the same time.
Perhaps it is the time to realize the paper profits that folks always speak of in the magic book secondary market.

Mark, I also own a numbered copy of the hardbound edition of this title and received an e-mail from an associate that knew it was in my library that included the question, Would I consider parting with it for.....$800.00.

The magic book collector's moment of truth.

Thank you both again for your input.

W/D

[John Kokot]

For Sale:

"The Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic," by Bart Whaley. Copy Number 258 of hardbound first edition, autographed by Bart Whaley. Mint condition. $700. Free shipping to addresses in the United States. No PayPal. Email inquiries to: johnkokot@aol.com

[John Kokot]

Copy No. 258 of "The Encyclopedic Dictionary of Magic" has been sold.