Artem Rare Books

01/04/2026

Gorée Island lies in the bay of Dakar, Senegal and served as a Dutch (slave) trading post from the late 1500's until the French took it in 1677. This drawing shows the two forts, Nassau and Oranje, of which the latter was finished in 1639. Certain details indicate that this was drawn from observation rather than derived from examples.
More on the website.

14/08/2025

Some Amsterdam women - 8 of 25 drawings in a book we just got in. More to come!

02/04/2025

Some fun doodling in the 1559 Livre d'architecture. Turns out the doodler was the Master Mason (architect) of Chartres!
Now on our website and soon in the new Artworks catalogue.


Thank you

17/02/2025

Pro-slavery publications are certainly one of the most fascinating - and relevant - items we're working on at the moment. Choosing economics over human rights unfortunately continues into the present.
We will publish some of these rare pamphlets in our upcoming catalogue, "Abolition of Slavery".

To get first access, sign up your email on our website at www.artemrarebooks.com, or send us a DM.

14/02/2025

Austrian architect Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg made only three prints, all spectacular etched architectural fantasies. Copies are almost nowhere to be found, but this pair has just become available on our website. Visit www.artemrarebooks.com for more about these gems.
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Johann Ferdinand Hetzendorf von Hohenberg (1733-1816).

Les Ruines d'un mausolée. [and] Décombres de bâtiments antiques. [Pair of architectural fantasies, proofs before the letters.]

Vienna?, circa 1770.

Etching on laid paper, ca. 36 x 27 cm. (platemark), 44,5 x 31 cm. (sheet).

10/12/2024

New Catalogue.
Find it at the link in bio 📚

10/10/2024

NEW CATALOGUE - LINK IN BIO

In 1798 the French invaded Egypt, under the command of General Napoleon. They first occupied Alexandria and installed a printing press, marking the introduction of modern printing to the Arab world. Although the French presence lasted only three years, their influence proved catalytic.
We're very pleased to introduce our new catalogue, featuring ten key publications from this pivotal moment in the global spread of printing. The incunabula offered here were printed in Malta, Alexandria, Cairo and Gizah and are of the greatest rarity - some have not been documented at all.

20/09/2024

An unfilled copy of the petition that ended slavery in the French colonies.
This booklet was created by the Société pour l'Abolition de l'Esclavage and was used by their activists to collect signatures by going door to door in Paris
This remarkable piece of civic engagement is extremely rare: we found only one other copy, in the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

19/09/2024

OUT NOW!
Our catalog for the Empire State Fair on September 27th-29th in City College, New York.
-- See link in bio.

08/07/2024

03/05/2024

One of the greatest portraits of a Black woman ever made.
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This 1829 engraving was made after the famous painting in the Louvre (2), which inspired Beyoncé for her Ap***it video filmed there (3), and a Bridgerton episode (4).
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The print is now available on artemrarebooks.com

***it