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Original hardback of Sahl and Masha'allah available

1 by Therese Hamilton
If anyone would like a new copy of Dykes' very attractive gold embossed red hardback of Works of Sahl and Masha'Allah, please PM me. I want to buy the paperback to match the other editions of Dykes' books. I bought the "Works," but have never used it. It's in mint condition. I happen to like the comfy feeling of reading paperbacks.

Therese Hamilton
http://www.snowcrest.net/sunrise/LostZodiac.htm

2 by Philip Graves
Therese, I bought the hardback too and am happy with it, but you should be aware that of the 500 copies printed, about 200 were damaged by a flood that affected Ben Dykes's place of residence, so the hardback in fine condition is pretty rare (probably only about 300 copies exist), and therefore valuable.

3 by Mark
Philip wrote:
...so the hardback in fine condition is pretty rare (probably only about 300 copies exist), and therefore valuable.
Good to know. Especially as I have one of these now rare copies! I know what Therese means though. I bought Ben Dykes HB 'Book of Astronomy' but still bought all the paperback editions of the separate tracts. Same with my Regulus edition of Christian Astrology. I tend to consult the ACA edition and/ or Deb's version. Its partly fear I will spill coffee or something over it and I also find it easier to consult such books. Especially when travelling.

Mark
As thou conversest with the heavens, so instruct and inform thy minde according to the image of Divinity William Lilly

5 by Philip Graves
Well-tended limited first editions of historical and academic works on astrology do tend to rise in value over the decades, Therese! I have no doubt that Ben Dykes' hardcover originals will do so. Indeed, I bought two copies of the hardback set of his translation of Bonatti's "Book of Astronomy" while it was available, and might be willing to part with the spare set in thirty years or so by the time I'm getting to retirement age.

The print-on-demand paperback model clearly involves fewer up-front costs and risks, but the absence of inherent scarcity to books published this way (so long as they continue to be available thus) means that they are never going to increase in value above inflation, unlike hardbacks, and will tend to lose value through wear in usage.

My estimate is that a hardback copy of the works of Sahl and Masha'Allah in fine condition is probably worth at least $125 today. Its value will only continue to rise as Ben publishes more and more works and his early hardbacks become increasingly collected by those who missed out on them at first.

7 by Astraea
Therese Hamilton wrote:I do have a question about the paperback edition. I find the typeface in the hardback just a little light for my aging eyes. All the paperback editions of Dykes' books have a darker typeface. Does anyone have a paperback edition? How is the typeface in that book?
Hi Therese. I have the same issue with the typeface in the hardback version, but the typeface in the paperback version is darker. The paperback is my working copy, as I wanted one I could highlight and mark - very satisfactory in that regard.
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