Manuscripts, engravings, first editions … the great literary jewels return to the Madrid Book Fair after a year of hiatus due to the pandemic

One may think that old is synonymous with old, rare or expensive. However, none of these terms are fully applicable to literary jewels that can be found from 80 euros at the Madrid Old Book Fair, where booksellers put out all the artillery for sale after a year of hiatus due to the pandemic.

“There are books from the Renaissance, books of our Golden Age, of our great authors, illustrated books, Geography … “, points out Gonzalo Fernández Pontes, president of AILA (Iberian Association of Antiquarian Libraries).

Alicia and Belén, booksellers, show in this video a chronicle of the world of the 15th century with a lot of history. “Hitler gave the copy to Léon Degrelle, who came to Spain welcomed by Franco and brought him “, they explain. This copy costs 75,000 euros, although, as the vendors say, not all of them have so many zeros at the fair.

“Not all books cost thousands of euros. I know that people are very interested in high figures, but do not stay with that. You have to keep in mind that there are magnificent books at reasonable prices, “says Manuel Sánchez, president of the Madrid association of Libreros de Viejo.

Bibliophile, an endangered species

Beyond the figures, they say, there is business and public, although it is true that the figure of the bibliophile is less and less common. In this sense, Alicia Bardón, from the Bardón bookstore. indicates that “he is usually a cultured man, usually of a mature age; there are no young people.”

It is true that there are not usually young people, although sometimes they arrive at the fair by other means out of the conventional: “It was thanks to Instagram. I didn’t really know what it was about, and I’ve come across wonderful things, “says a boy.

Among the literary jewels there are also some more modern ones, such as a Gypsy Ballads of Lorca, from 1933, which costs 8,000 euros, or an edition of ‘El Rayo que no cesa’, by Miguel Hernández, for 20,000 euros. However, booksellers do not sell only copies, as one of them claims, but also “passion” printed, and handwritten on the precious pages of the best literature.