AUCTION FRIDAY, DEC 6, 10AM
EXHIBITION
Mon, Dec 2, Noon – 5pm
Tues, Dec 3, Noon – 5pm
Wed, Dec 4, Noon – 5pm
LOCATION
Doyle New York
175 East 87th Street
New York, NY 10128
BIDDING SERVICES
Abigail Burner
212-427-4141, ext 242
Fax: 212-427-7526
Bids@Doyle.com
SALE SPECIALISTS
Peter Costanzo
212-427-4141, ext 248
Books@Doyle.com
Edward Ripley-Duggan
212-427-4141, ext 234
Books@Doyle.com
Noah Goldrach
212-427-4141, ext 226
Books@Doyle.com
MEDIA CONTACT
Louis LeB. Webre
212-427-4141, ext 232
Louis.Webre@Doyle.com
NEW YORK, NY -- Doyle will hold an auction of Rare Books, Autographs & Maps on Friday, December 6, 2024 at 10am. Among the diverse offerings will be printed and manuscript Americana, maps of all regions, early printing and incunabula, fine bindings and library sets, fine printing and private press, travel and sport, science and technology, children’s and illustrated books, English literature and American literature. Also featured are original autograph manuscripts and letters, illustration art and memorabilia.
The Jean Vounder-Davis Collection of Raymond Chandler
The Jean Vounder-Davis Collection offers the largest trove of unpublished Raymond Chandler stories, poetry, letters, books and personal artifacts to come to market. Best known for his Philip Marlowe detective novels including The Big Sleep (1939) and Farewell, My Lovely (1940) and as screenwriter of film noir classics such as Double Indemnity (1944) and The Blue Dahlia (1946), Raymond Chandler is considered one of the top writers in the hardboiled fiction genre alongside Dashiell Hammett and James Cain. Held for decades, the archive belonged to Jean Fracasse [later Vounder-Davis] who was first hired in January 1957 as Chandler's personal secretary but quickly became his close friend, confidant, fiancé and muse to whom he dedicated his last book (Est. $3000-5000). At the center of the archive is an extensive group of unpublished drafts of fantasy stories begun by Chandler in the 1920s, envisioned as a book in 1939, and retained by him until given to Sybil and Jean in 1957 (Est. $40,000-60,000). Nearly 800 typed and hand-annotated pages, the fantasy stories have compelling titles such as The Disappearing Duke, The Rubies of Marmelon, and The Carsbrook Mystery. Written during the period Chandler was honing his craft, the drafts offer much on the writer’s working method. Another excellent offering is Raymond Chandler’s Olivetti Studio 44 typewriter used to write his final novel Playback (Est. $10,000-20,000) and an inscribed copy of that novel to the dedicatee’s son. Unpublished poems, letters, inscribed books, and personal artifacts abound such as Chandler’s cocktail muddlers, jewelry gifted to Jean and her daughter Sybil, and Chandler’s 1945 Edgar Allan Poe Award. Now nearly seventy years since his death, this is the largest trove of Chandler papers to come to light, and the Jean Vounder-Davis Collection undoubtedly provides valuable insight to Raymond Chandler’s complicated last years. Institutions and collectors should take notice of the unparalleled opportunity to acquire unpublished material from this major 20th century author. A special preview of The Jean Vounder-Davis Collection of Raymond Chandler will take place on November 6-8 Doyle’s Charleston gallery during the Charleston Literary Festival. The New York exhibition will be held on December 2-4 and by appointment.
Consignments are currently being accepted. We invite you to contact us for a complimentary auction evaluation. Our Specialists are always available to discuss the sale of a single item or an entire collection.
For information, please contact Peter Costanzo at 212-427-4141 ext 248, Edward Ripley-Duggan at ext 234, or Noah Goldrach at ext 226, or email Books@Doyle.com