Autograph Reference Books

Updated December 7, 1999

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In association with Amazon.com I am providing a listing of books related to autograph collecting for sale. These books may be purchased from Amazon Books through their internet server. If interested in a particular book, click on the title for a description and ordering information. These titles are discounted from their publisher's price. Hint: you can add a book to your shopping cart and then return to my page--your computer will remember what's in the cart!

The money made from the sale of these books goes toward maintaining this web page.

 


TIP: see also Apollospace's bookstore to buy current books and videos of interest to the space enthusiast.


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Recommended books:

 

The Sanders Price Guide to Autographs, Fifth Edition by George and Helen Sanders (Paperback) (1999)
Price: $19.96

(illustration is of fourth edition)


This is the most important book available to autograph collectors and one that should be in every library. It is the only good price guide available, and is also an excellent general reference on all aspects of collecting. I do not think that the prices in it accurately reflect the actual market values, as they are often over-inflated, yet despite its limitations the book can be invaluable if interpreted cautiously. Ordering from Amazon Books provides a discount over ordering from Sanders' own web site. The book does not include sports autographs, which are included in the volume below.

 

The Sanders Price Guide to Sports Autographs, Third Edition by George and Helen Sanders (December 1998)
Price: $24.95
The sports signatures, in a separate volume.

 

From the President's Pen : An Illustrated Guide to Presidential Autographs
Hardcover / 1991 / 176 pages
The best reference on the subject. Out of print, but you can perform a search through Amazon.


Recommended Books by Charles Hamilton:

Charles Hamilton was the undisputed master of autograph authentication.

Great Forgers and Famous Fakes : The Manuscript Forgers of America and How They Duped the Experts
Hardcover / 1996 / 294 pages

The Hitler Diaries : Fakes That Fooled the World
Hardcover / Published 1991 / 211 pages

The Robot That Helped to Make a President
Hardcover / 1995 / Special Order
This is a reprint of the classic work that proved that John Kennedy used autopens. In the update, the patterns are listed and a study of secretarial signatures is included.


Other books:

Collector's Guide to Celebrity Autographs
by Mark Allen Baker
Paperback / 1997


1999 Official Autograph Collector Price Guide
by Kevin Martin

I can't recommend this book because I think Autograph Collector has always had a conflict of interest--they sell autographs and publish a price list at the same time. But a complete library will have this book.

 

Cosmonaut autographs : identification guide

by Stephen Datz

Provides examples of cosmonaut signatures, information on missions, and other important facts about the Russian space program