BUILDING on the successes of recent years Greenslade Taylor Hunt is pleased to announce the return of specialist sales of books, maps and documents at its Octagon Salerooms in Taunton. The next is scheduled for Thursday, May 4th.

Among the more intriguing items included in the sale is a fascinating census of slaves belonging to William Miles (1728-1803) who ran a sugar plantation in Jamaica.

This detailed document of social history includes the names, ages and in some cases information on the slaves’ deaths.

Miles inherited much of his wealth from his father who is believed to have been Bristol’s first millionaire. The younger Miles was an MP for many years and also a partner in the family’s bank, Miles and Co, which later became part of NatWest.

He was a deeply religious man and proposed that trains should not run on Sundays on the newly proposed conceived Great Western Railway.

Items to be included in the sale will be on view this Saturday, April 29, from 9am-12.30pm and on Tuesday, May 2 and Wednesday, May 3, from 9am-5pm.

Important past discoveries by Greenslade’s experienced valuer, Dr Peter Rixon, have included a first edition of Thomas Malthus’s Essay on the Principle of Population (1798). This emerged from a group of damp children’s annuals in a garden summer house to sell for £31,500 and a first edition copy of A Tale of Two Cities (1859), by Charles Dickens, in its original red cloth binding, which made £5,500.

However, it is not only antiquarian books that may contain hidden value. The auctioneers are pleased to consider items from all periods, on any subject, in quantities large or small. The same comments apply equally to maps, plans, manuscript material, other documents and ephemera.

A folio Atlas of the Counties of England by C. & J. Greenwood (1834) sold for £1,900, and a map of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire by Christopher Saxton (circa 1640) fetched £1,100, but later Ordnance Survey sheet maps have also performed strongly.

All Greenslade Taylor Hunt’s antique and specialist sales benefit from fully-illustrated on-line catalogues and a live internet bidding facility, giving a global reach and a guarantee that each and every lot receives maximum exposure.

Bridgwater Mercury: GTH Octagon saleroom Taunton

If you have books that you are considering selling and would like to take advantage of Greenslade Taylor Hunt’s free valuation service simply ring 01823 332525 or e-mail antiques.saleroom@gth.net for friendly, confidential advice, without charge or obligation.