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Thursday, Nov. 16, 2006 | I want to offer a couple of small corrections to Cathy Robbins’ otherwise informative essay on Edward Curtis’ “The North American Indian.” Recent sales of the set (which consists of 40 volumes, not 20, as stated in the article) have pushed well beyond Ms. Robbins’ estimated value given. In recent years, interest in Curtis’ work as a photographer, rather than as an anthropologist has grown dramatically. His portraits may be posed, but then so are the pictures of modern masters like Diane Arbus and Richard Avedon.
Curtis’ “North American Indian” has appeared twice on Fine Books & Collections magazine’s annual report on top auction sales. In 2004, a complete set sold for $679,500. Last year, a similar one reached a record $1.4 million.
Scott Brown is the editor of Fine Books and Collections Magazine.