HotmailCopernicus book sells for more than $2.2M
Astronomer surmised (wrongly) that sun is at the center of the universe
 Hulton Archive via Getty Images Circa 1515, Nicolaus Copernicus (1473 - 1543), Polish astronomer. Eliptical in portrait format. Original Artist: By J Falch. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images) |
 | Special feature |
 | The lit list: Nobel Prize winners From American author Toni Morrison to French novelist Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio, meet the writers who have won the highest literary honor. |
 | Slideshow |
 | First-class confessions In his new book, “PostSecret,” blogger Frank Warren shares the juicy secrets that people have anonymously sent to him on postcards. more photos |
 |
 Whoa, baby! Pair welcomes 15-pound boy Nov. 29: Proud parents Wendi and Mike Dolton join CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla to discuss the family’s big bundle of joy. |
|
 Kid chef cooks holiday treats Nov. 27: A 13-year-old cook teaches the TODAY hosts how to whip up a turkey risotto that is perfect for the holidays. |
NEW YORK - A first edition of the Nicolaus Copernicus book that puts forth the theory that the sun — not the earth — is at the center of the universe has fetched more than $2.2 million at an auction, nearly double the expected price.
The 1543 copy of Copernicus' "De revolutionibus orbium coelestium" (On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres) was among more than 300 books offered Tuesday at Christie's auction. It was expected to sell for up to $1.2 million.
Christie's called the volume "arguably the finest copy in private hands."
The collection also included a New Haven, Conn., telephone book issued in 1878, two years after Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone.
Auctioneers had expected the phone book to fetch between $30,000 and $40,000, but the price skyrocketed to $170,500 in a bidding war among six collectors.
The 20-page, pamphlet-size book, published by the Connecticut District Telephone Co., contains the names and numbers of 391 New Haven-area subscribers.
Christie's initially billed the directory as the first multipage phone book in the country, but a historian said earlier ones were printed in San Francisco and Chicago.
Auctioneer Tom Lecky said the bidding war occurred after additional research showed that the Chicago directory was a reproduction and the San Francisco one, though earlier, was less comprehensive than New Haven's.
The collection, which spans six centuries, also contained works by Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin, Karl Marx, Sir Isaac Newton and Johannes Kepler.
The sale brought in a total of more than $11 million, which include the auction house's commission, known as the buyer's premium, Christie's said.
The buyers' identities have not been disclosed. The collection was sold by Richard Green, a retired physician and amateur astronomer from Long Island.
- Discuss Story On Newsvine
-
Rate Story:
View popularLowHigh - Instant Message
MORE FROM BOOKS |
 Books Section Front |
| Add Books headlines to your news reader: |
Sponsored links
Resource guide