A handwritten manuscript of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes story The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter is up for auction at Bonhams.
It's valued at $260,000-290,000 ahead of the April 11 sale in New York.
 The Adventure of the Greek Interpreter is the first story to feature Mycroft Holmes |
The story is most notable for the first appearance of Holmes' brother Mycroft, described as Sherlock's intellectual superior and one of the most intriguing characters in the entire franchise.
It dates to 1893 and was written while Conan Doyle was living in South Norwood in South East London. The pages are marked with scribblings and drawings by his children, offering an intriguing glimpse into his home life.
The lot last sold at Christie's in 1982, where it achieved £15,660 ($22,179).
The well-received recent TV adaptation of the books starring Martin Freeman and Benedict Cumberbatch has raised public interest in the stories - particularly in the US.
This has led to growth in the value of his memorabilia. A signed manuscript copy of the story Black Peter sold for $317,000 at Sotheby's last year.
We have this superb signed list by Conan-Doyle for sale.
Chapters 12-25 of HG Wells' When the Sleeper Wakes (1898-1899) is expected to make $120,000-180,000 in the same auction.
The lot is the earliest draft copy of the work and displays numerous handwritten corrections.
Bonhams comments: "Manuscripts by H.G. Wells rarely come to the market…
"In the last 40 years just 3 substantial (over 50 leaves) typed or manuscript stories by Wells have appeared at auction. This [the present lot] was the last to be offered, 22 years ago."
Please sign up to our free newsletter to receive exciting news about book and manuscript auctions.
