National Geographic's Collectors Corner

Collaborative site for collectors, dealers, & anyone interested in our history.

I am a high school librarian.  Our school has a large bound collection of NG that we are interested in selling.  They are professionally bound in hard covers by year from dates:  Jan. 1942 through Dec. 1999. Supplements are included in the back of the book - not sure if all supplements are there. They seem to be in very good condition.  I also have just the loose magazines 2001-2007. Pictures attached.  Since we are public school, I am trying to find out if there is a market for these books and if so, how much.  We are located in Oklahoma. Thank you.

Views: 300

Attachments:

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

Bound volumes are far less desirable than loose issues for collectors.

Having said this, there is always someone out there looking for what you have, but are they looking for it in the middle of Oklahoma and would they be willing to pay for the shipping?

Better yet, could they afford it? It is usually a new collector that would be willing to purchase this type of collection.

Some thoughts about value:

It appears the magazines were bound "with" covers and ads (were they?). Were they "also" bound with Title page and Index?

If all the supplements are "also" present, the collection would be considered "complete."

The emphasized words are critical.

Having met the above criteria and if the bindings are in good condition, with minimal rubbing, your collection might be worth $5 to $10 per volume (1/2 year of magazines), again - only if you can find the buyer.

Those issues prior to 1960 are the most valuable and could go for twice this amount if sold as a smaller collection. Those issues newer than 1975 are less desirable in bound condition.

It truly is a roll of the dice trying to find a buyer for what you have.

I'd try eBay for a short time (three or four months) then possibly the smaller collection I suggested above for a couple of months then take them to an auction house (if they'll take them) in a big city (OKC may not be big enough but Tulsa might have the right kind of buyers).

I will admit I have a slight interest in your offer. My bound collection is composed of four different sets ending with 1995. However, that portion of my collection from 1909 through 1981 is bound without covers and advertising (this was the norm for binding NGM's).

If in-fact your volumes have the covers, ads, title page and index bound within, I would consider this offering with a pick-up date of early November (I'd have to coordinate a drive from Houston). I'd get all my cousins in OKC to help me load it up.

FYI:

I purchased that portion of my collection from 1909 through 1947 for $50 in 2001. It was missing most of the supplements and title pages and indexes. I subsequently made that portion of the collection complete (minus covers and ads) and purchased and/or bound the rest of my collection from 1948 through 1995 for a total of $750.

I gave you this information to emphasis the difficulty of finding the right person to purchase your collection, i.e. the most valuable portion of my collection was acquired at an auction for very little money because nobody else wanted it. The less valuable portion of my collection cost me more because I put together half of the missing volumes and bound them to match that newer portion I had just purchased for about $300. The actual binding of the newest 15 years cost me more than all the volumes I purchased from 1909 through 1981.

Whatever happens, I wish you luck!

Mel

Thanks for your reply. I appreciate your interest, and I will try to clear up some of your questions. 

Basically, the entire year of issues was sent to a book binder in Kansas for binding.  The complete magazine is bound together, month after month as far as I know with no pages torn out - all the covers, etc are intact.  The issues were all placed together and bound as a single book.  A single issue cannot be removed without somewhat damaging the binding.  As far as the supplements go,  I don't know what supplements should be included, but many of the volumes have pockets as the picture shows with the map, etc. inside. They are on a shelf in the storage room and I have not looked at each individual bound volume, but I don't have any reason to think issues are missing, etc.   I think it is a very nice set for someone's personal library.

Since we are a school, I have to get permission to sell these books.  I would have to present this information and any offer to my principal and superintendent.

Thanks again for your interest and information.  Let me know if you wish to pursue this.  I can also provide more photos if you need.

Barbara J.

Were title pages and indexes also bound within each volume?

As far as the indexes are concerned, It looks like we only have a hardback single volume index book titled NG Index 1888-1946, published in 1967 (pic attached).  We also have paper indexes for '94, '95, '97, '99, 01, '02, '03.  I'm not sure what you are talking about on the title page.  

Attachments:

The NGS published separate paper supplements from 1910 through 2010.

In the beginning they included a title page, list of contents and index. The formatting changed around 1917 and generally remained the same until 1993 when the use of the blue covered separate paper index began.

The separate indexes were separated during the binding process placing the Title page and List of Contents/List of Illustration in the front of the bound volume and the index in the back of the bound volume (thereby completing a formal book).

Here's an example of a title page:

OK. From what I can tell from our books, the are just the compete magazines stacked together and bound.  I don't know what happened to any indexes, other than those listed, that we may have had through the years. I hope this helps.  If you want, you may contact me at 580-772-3385.

RSS

Members

Legal notice about this site

Note: Any sales or trade arrangements are solely between users of this site; The National Geographic Society is not a party to and does not endorse or promote any particular sales or trade arrangements between collectors, dealers, or others. Due to the immediate nature of this medium, National Geographic Online also does not review, censor, approve, edit or endorse information placed on this forum. Discussion boards on National Geographic Online are intended to be appropriate for family members of all ages. Posting of indecent material is strictly prohibited. The placement of advertisements or solicitations unrelated to National Geographic also is prohibited. National Geographic Online shall review information placed on this forum from time to time and delete inappropriate material that comes to its attention as soon as it is practicable, but cannot guarantee that such material will not be found on the forum. By posting material on this discussion board you agree to adhere to this policy prohibiting indecent, offensive or extraneous advertising material, and to legally assume full and sole responsibility for your posting.

© 2024   Created by Cathy Hunter.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service