To these one might add : the chance of making a handsome profit by dismembering them (does not almost every sale of firms in this class contain miniatures taken out of volumes that passed through the same rooms, complete, some years earlier ?), and the agony (for some of us, at least) of knowing that an interesting manuscript was somewhere once, but not knowing where it is now, and when it will surface again, only to be immediately re-submerged.
This about incunables presumably, after the death of the owner (long may he live and collect !), the same will be said about the manuscripts and a no doubt memorable series of auctions will give future generations (or at least some members of them) the thrill of chasing, the excitement of capturing, and the privilege of owning manuscript volumes. mythological adventure packed with astonishing beasts and battles bound to thrill. Earn Points on this Purchase Chasing the Thrill by Daniel Barbarisi. A greater gift to future generations would be to give them the thrill of the chase, the excitement at the moment of capture, the privilege of owning such great books (.)". Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer (Book 1). The note continues : "Donating the incunables to a public institution, or forming a private foundation for them (.) was never considered.
The book contains clues to the treasure's location as Forrest Fenn invites readers to join in 'The Thrill of the Chase'. The prefatory note of the auction catalogue tells us that the collection started in 1955, but only got into its stride in 1976 -and now owns, among many other materials, "1,140 manuscript volumes", manuscripts being acquired "for the past three years, at a rate comparable to that of Sir Thomas Phillipps" but now it was decided to concentrate on manuscripts and to sell off the incunables. This book is the remarkable true story of Forrest Fenn's life and of a hidden treasure, secreted somewhere in the mountains north of Santa Fe. In December 1991, Sotheby's auctioned a few dozen incunables, which came from a most remarkable private collection.