Ian Ehling

What do you do at Bonhams?

I am the Director of the Books and Manuscripts department in New York and an auctioneer. We hold between 8-10 sales per year and our next sales are a Fine Printed Books and Manuscripts sale on 22 June and an online-only no reserve auction taking place 13-23 June.

Where are you from and what inspired you to go into the auction world? 

I was born in Oak Ridge, Tennessee and grew up in Munich, Germany where I began working as an apprentice in my favorite bookstore in 1982. I attended my first auction in Munich in 1984. The fast pace of the auction and the amazing books offered for sale were inspiring. I then worked in the antiquarian book trade in Berlin and transitioned to the auction world when I started at Christie’s in New York in 1993.

Name one of your triumphs.

The most recent triumph was setting world record prices for scientific manuscripts by Johannes Kepler in 2022, with each selling for close to a million dollars. It was also exciting to be the auctioneer for both sales.

What has changed in the business since you first started?

I typed my first catalogue descriptions and client correspondence on an IBM electric typewriter. Since then, online sales have revolutionized the market. 

Our company was founded in 1793 by the book specialist Walter Bonham and one of the first items sold online was probably a book. The most successful online business started by selling books. In other words, books have always been at the forefront of technological developments and changes in the market.

What is your biggest strength as a specialist?

My 40+ years of experience on two continents. During my 30 years in New York, I have worked on more than 100 sales, catalogued thousands of books and turned millions of pages while collating books. I have worked on some of the most extraordinary books and collections to come to the market on this side of the Atlantic in the past three decades. 

Do you have a hidden talent?

I like to bike and commute regularly to work on my bike. Last year my son and I cycled from Berlin to Copenhagen and this summer we will continue the trip from Copenhagen to Skagen, the northern tip of Denmark. 

Which work of art has changed your life?

Meeting Joseph Beuys at the Documenta art festival in Kassel, when I was a child, has stayed with me to this day.

As a bookseller I would like to rephrase the question: which book has changed your life? That is equally difficult to answer. One author I regularly read is Goethe, who was also a manuscript collector. I am lucky to have sold three copies of the first edition of Faust. 

What is most exciting to you about your upcoming auctions?

Our Fine Books and Manuscripts sales comprise several small and interesting private collections by named and unnamed collectors, as well as single consignments. We begin with a choice collection of orchid books, followed by the medical and Franklin library of Dr. William von Valtier; Americana; manuscripts documenting the history of Israel; literature including highlights from the collection of Delmer and Mary Lou Davis, and beautifully illustrated books of art, architecture, and fine press books.

One of the most amazing items to come to the market in the past decades is Lot 66, a previously unknown manuscript by John Morgan, the founding father of medicine in the United States. Most of Morgan’s papers and manuscripts were lost in a fire during the Revolutionary war, making this a rare and incredible discovery. We take a closer look at Morgan's manuscript here.

Benjamin Franklin was one of Morgan’s greatest supporters, and we are proud to offer a selection of Franklin’s scientific books and books printed by Franklin, including Lot 34, Franklin’s print of Cicero’s Cato Mayor, 1744. This is the first classical work to be printed in North America and the most beautifully printed book up to the date.

The choice collection of orchid books includes for example, Lot 10, Sander, Orchids illustrated and described, London, 1892. This is a monumental publication with 192 chromolithographic plates by the best botanical artists of the time.

A highlight in the literature section is the first edition of Hemingway’s The Sun also Rises (lot 142) from the collection of Delmer and Mary Lou Daves. The fine unrestored condition of the dust jacket makes this a particularly desirable copy.  

The live sale is accompanied by a no reserve online sale that ends on 23 June. The sale features similar subjects at a lower price. 

Register to bid now in Fine Books & Manuscripts on 22 June.
Bid on Fine Books & Manuscripts Online 13-23 June.

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