Multiple auction records were broken in The Glynn and Suzanne Crain Science Fiction Collection Auction at Heritage Auctions on August 13-14, 2019 in Dallas, Texas. The White Glove auction totaled $2,407,620, exceeding the preauction estimate by more than $1 million, and boasted a 100% sell-through rate by value and by lots sold.
“We knew beforehand that some of the lots were very rare, or even unique items that were traded privately before making their auction debut in this sale,” Heritage Auctions Vice President Todd Hignite said. “To post a sell-through rate of 100% is spectacular, and only reinforces what we already knew: that the Crain collection is one of the finest ever brought to auction. We saw scores of new bidders, confirming our belief that this great material has huge appeal outside of the traditional collecting circles.”
More than 30 collectors made bids for James Allen St. John At the Earth’s Core book dust jacket to drive its final price to $112,500, breaking the record for St. John and claiming top lot honors in the sale. The image once was published on the hard cover dust jacket of the first edition of At The Earth’s Core by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Frank R. Paul The Moon Conquerors, Science Wonder Quarterly cover, Winter 1930 nearly tripled its preauction estimate when it sold for $87,500; the water and gouache on board painting is signed by Paul and broke set the record for works by the artist. Michael Whelan Foundation’s Edge paperback cover more than quadrupled its high preauction estimate when it closed at $68,750, also setting a new auction record for the artist. The painting was published as the paperback cover of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation's Edge, which is considered a central building block for science fiction in general.
Other results included Lawrence Sterne Stevens Hand from the Void, Super Science Stories cover for $65,625; Paul Lehr Infinite Worlds: the Fantastic Visions of Science Fiction Art book cover for $38,750; and Edmund Emshwiller Starship Soldier, The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction cover for $37,500.
