Once, years ago, I visited Bauman Rare Books in the Venetian Hotel and Casino here in Vegas. It's an incredible family-owned book store, one of three locations - New York, Philadelphia and Las Vegas. I can totally understand the first two cities, but Vegas? Well, we have more culture here than one would think, or at least the hope of real culture. That's why I try to support anything of this nature that comes to town. But, that's a story for another day.
Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed my visit, and put my name on their mailing list, and ever since, I receive lovely catalogues of books available to purchase. well, I am certainly flattered, but they are way beyond my purchasing power! At least for now.....one can always hope! Bauman sells historic books, first editions, anything unusual, etc.
Recently, their catalogue featured Sir Isaac Newton's "Opticks,: Or, a Treatise of the Reflections, Refractions, Inflexions and Colours of Light". This book was printed in London for Sam. Smith and Benjamin Walford Publishers, in 1704. Leather bound (calf back), red morocco spine label, a quarto (a book produced from full 'blanksheets', each of which is printed with eight pages of text, four to a side, then folded twice to produce four leaves). It is a first edition, and its price is a mere $85,000! Wow! It has 19 copper-engravings. It was in the collection of William A. Ole, a distinguished collector and bibliographer, but now it will make it's way to another lucky book-shelf in due time.
Newton was a physicist and mathematician, and lived from 1642 - 1726, to the ripe old age of 83. His theory and this book was ground-breaking. Everyone thought light was white, but he proved that assumption wrong, that "white light, far from being simple, is a compound of many pure elementary colors which can be separated and recompounded at will”.
So, if you are willing to put out a "bit" of cash, you might like to add "Opticks" to your library. I know I would!
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