Encompassing everything from Hamlet to Romeo and Juliet, Othello, King Lear, Julius Caesar, and a Midsummer Night’s Dream – Christie’s New York announces the successful sale of a complete and original copy of Shakespeare’s first collection of plays. Auctioned for approximately $10 million, the one-of-a-kind compilation of William Shakespeare’s most iconic work from 1623, contains a total of 36 authentic and untranslated stories.
Dubbed the First Folio, this book is one of six existing and complete copies in the world today. Purchased by American private collector and founder of the 19th Century Rare Book and Photograph Shop on the US east coast, Stephan Loewentheil, the book is expected to serve as “a centerpiece of a great collection of intellectual achievements of man.”
The book which was created by friends of the English playwright and poet seven years after his death, represents a compilation of comedies, histories and tragedies. Achieving results much greater than the expected pre-sale estimate of US$4 million to US$6 million, the First Folio auction marks a new world auction record for any printed work of literature, surpassing previous records of US$6.16 million for a Shakespeare First Folio that was set in 2001.