Provenance vs SLIGHTLY higher grade 0

[newshane]

16 minutes ago, woowoo said:

I had 2 to many last night. I still cant tell the diff  I put some in my coffee see if that helps but

= hangover

= possible hangover 

[woowoo]

1 minute ago, newshane said:

= hangover

= possible hangover 

 I got it. Thank you.  I love them both =ly

[newshane]

Thanks! I learned that as an undergrad. 

[Mmehdy]

On 12/29/2018 at 11:00 AM, Chicago Boy said:

Which would you choose and why ?

I would chose condition, especially if the grade was one of the top copies available on this condition...I think the real issue is what can top the PQ of Mile High, lower grade with better PQ would be a tough decision especially MH, however if the PQ of the higher grade was better no contest, I think the PQ is the key that would tip the balance and justify picking a lower grade Peg  copy especially a "white" pages copy.

Edited December 30, 2018 by Mmehdy

[Bird]

5 hours ago, woowoo said:

I had 2 to many last night. I still cant tell the diff  I put some in my coffee see if that helps but

Smokey and the Bear? 

 

[Jayman]

Years ago Metropolis had 2 copies of Black Cat Mysteries 37, one at 9.0 and another at 9.2. Both C/OW and of course the 9.2 was more expensive. However, the 9.0 was the Northford copy. This was my choice; less expensive and Ped = WIN in my book!

[ThothAmon]

19 minutes ago, Jayman said:

Northford copy.

Beauty and good choice. The pedigree is impeccable, the provenance not so much!

[batman_fan]

42 minutes ago, Jayman said:

Years ago Metropolis had 2 copies of Black Cat Mysteries 37, one at 9.0 and another at 9.2. Both C/OW and of course the 9.2 was more expensive. However, the 9.0 was the Northford copy. This was my choice; less expensive and Ped = WIN in my book!

you could have picked up both copies   

[Chicago Boy]

What about a Publishers File Copy ? 

[jimbo_7071]

9 hours ago, woowoo said:

I had 2 to many last night. I still cant tell the diff  I put some in my coffee see if that helps but

After a Tom Collins or two, I can't tell the difference between Strother Martin and Jackie Gleason, either. 

I think of a pedigrees as a subset of provenances, i.e., a pedigree is a provenance where the original owner is recognized.

Back in the day a pedigree was a big deal because some dealers called everything above roughly today's 8.0 level "mint," but if a book was a Mile High, you knew that it was nicer than the other "mint" books. Slabbing, numerical grading and page quality designations cleared up that situation. To me, there's no reason to pay more for a pedigree book just because it's a pedigree book. If it's high grade, has nice pages, and has nice colors. pay what you have to for those qualities, not because someone named the collection.

Edited December 31, 2018 by jimbo_7071

[jimbo_7071]

22 minutes ago, Chicago Boy said:

What about a Publishers File Copy ? 

Many of the Dell file copies have tanning of the inside covers and just average page quality; some of them are nice books, but they don't command a premium.

The Harvey file copies seem to have poor page quality; I wouldn't be surprised if they sell for less than non-ped copies.

Crowley copies are hit or miss. Many have a big ol' stamp across the front cover.

Edited December 31, 2018 by jimbo_7071

[bluechip]

Depends a lot on how rare the book is and how interesting the provenance is.   

If it's a book that is common in high grade then I might prefer one with a rare and truly interesting provenance even if the number on the label is far lower.   

I am differentiating provenance from collector pedigrees -- which are primarily about condition (books amassed by a prodigious and meticulous but otherwise anonymous collector) -- and provenance -- which is primarily about the "origin" of the copy (it might have been owned by a creator, collected by some very famous person, or acquired/used in some unique and historically/culturally interesting way.   Like a beat-up Action 1 owned by Jerry Siegel who gave it to Albert Einstein, who scribbled formulas in the margins (and before you ask, no I don't know of any such copy) 

I can think of only a couple collections wherein pedigree and provenance converge on books that are also rare, in general:

One would be the Gaines File Copies (creator/publisher owned copies that are also in high grade, and another would be the Okajimas, which were amassed by a collector under exceptionally interesting circumstances (a young Japanese girl in a WW2 internment camp who somehow looked past the irony when she bought and saved books depicting "Japs" as yellow monsters).   

I don't have any Okajimas but I would favor one of them over a copy in much higher grade, even where the book itself is rare in high grades.   

I have just one lesser Gaines file copy book and it's in high grade, because they all are.  If Gaines had saved only one beat up copy of the book I would probably prefer it over one in higher grade.  But Gaines saved a dozen of each book in high grade (and there's many more pedigrees and non-pedigrees in high grade), so that pedigree/provenance is an especially unique case.    

 

Edited December 31, 2018 by bluechip