Signed First Edition Books

Finding signed first edition books is a great collector's pastime, but it can be quite a costly one as well. Signed first edition books can range in price anywhere from $25 to thousands of dollars for rare signatures. Royal and historically significant editions with signatures are virtually priceless, and are mostly housed in museums and private collections.

First editions are prevalent among 17th and 18th century European and American literature. First editions are copies from the original printing of the book. They come with a stamp of inscription of the date of publishing, the number of the edition in the print order, and hopefully, a signature by the author with a date. These can be worth several thousand dollars if more than two centuries old and in good condition.

Research Before Appraisal
Many times, appraisers will value signed first edition books based on the number of the edition. In order to maximize the appraisal price, you should always ensure that the first print fulfilled the original order. Say, for instance, that you have a first edition English piece of literature from 1805. The copy says number 95 of 350, but the printing company only ended up making 150 copies ultimately. Your book can be twice as valuable if you or the appraiser can find out this information.

If you don't get the book appraised before you try to sell it, the general rule of thumb is that whatever a reseller will offer you is one-third of what they would sell it for, or its value. So if a reseller offers you $20 for your book, you'll can infer that it's probably worth (or will at least sell for) $60.