Antique Shelves & Bookcases

Early clay and stone tablets, along with later scrolls and papyrus rolls, were kept in some kind of order by the ancients. Once the bound manuscript was invented, volumes decorated with jewels, thick covers, and metal mountings resembling shackles were stored in trunks or chained to the desks of the monks who watched over them. These inconvenient methods for storing books, along with the invention of the printing press in the 15th century, gave rise to the development of bookshelves.

With developing technology for affordable book manufacturing came access to affordable bookshelves. Antique bookcases developed in several styles. The low bookcase created by French designer Charles Andre Boule was popular after 1700. Within the next century, hundreds of models of both low horizontal and tall enclosed bookcases were available. By the 18th century, the secretary combined a desk with shelving for books.

Antique bookshelves are now prized both for their form and function. They can sell for thousands at auction, particularly those from the 19th and 20th century Arts and Crafts movement.

Quick Facts

• A triple-door miter mullion antique bookcase by Arts and Crafts designer Gustav Stickley recently sold for $35,000 at a Craftsman auction
• A George II mahogany desk and bookcase sold for $13,750 at a Sotheby’s New York auction in 2015
• A George III mahogany breakfront bookcase sold for $16,250 at Sotheby’s in 2015