The Book of the Pearl , George Kunz (1908)

Item Description

This specimen is part of the 2021 Dallas Mineral Collecting Symposium benefit auction, with proceeds benefiting Mineralogical Record, Rocks & Minerals, Tucson Gem and Mineral Society, and mindat.org. Thanks to all of our participants!

Billing for this auction will occur on Monday, August 23, for payment using PayPal or a credit card. Shipping will be billed at cost.

The famous Kunz tome, The Book of the Pearl: the history, art, science, and industry of the Queen of Gems. This is such a popular and important cultural work, that we just found a Paperback version available on Amazon, published in 2010, and much information is available elsewhere. It is a documentary book on the culture, science, and traditions of the pearl trade, heavily illustrated with old prints of royalty, famous pearls, and maps. Oversized hardback book (548 pages) bound in golden gild decorated boards with numerous color and black and white illustrations/photographs within. Published October 1908. Boards show moderate scuffing/rubbing but nothing major, and the spine is intact. Minor edgewear and foxing to the pages, but overall in excellent shape. This was from the personal library of collector Hubert Monmonier (note he paid $500 in the 1980s) and was recently in the library of Dr. Peter Megaw, one of our Symposium speakers this year. Note that other copies are selling online for between $775 to $2600 depending on condition (examples, see abebooks.com). Donated to the Symposium Auction by the Megaw family.