Tweet
June 9, 2013
The standard book in English with “all” of Bobby Fischer’s games was The Complete Games of Robert J. Fischer by Wade and O’Connell (1972). That was in English descriptive notation and the standard now is Karsten Müller – Bobby Fischer - The Career and Complete Games (2009).
Actually, the distinction is blurred because you can just download all his games into a database/engine and play them over. There is no need for a big thick book on your shelves, unless you believe that one day a magnetic storm will wipe out all recorded electronic media. (I suppose too you could just love books without believing the magnetic storm thing)
Anyway, five days ago, on June 4, a three-volume collection of Bobby’s games went up for auction on eBay. I had not seen them before.
Bobby Fischer Vol. 1 1955-1960
Bobby Fischer Vol. 2 1961-1967
Bobby Fischer Vol. 3 1968-1992
Games annotated by Vassili Smyslov,
Mijail Tahl, Leonid Yudasin, Vladimir Tukmakov
EDICIONES ESEUVE
Item number: 350808965675
The photos of the covers are alluring.
My first thought was that I’d missed this collection somehow. Then, imagining a New In Chess-type layout, I saw in my mind one of the great annotated compilation of games ever.
+++++++++++
However, I had to do my homework before bidding on this rarity.
Ediciones Eseuve are published in Madrid. The volumes came out in 1992-3 and cost $22.60 each then.
The whole of the third volume, 324 pages, can be read on-line at:
http://www.yumpu.com/la/document/vie...-92-ediciones-
As you will see there, the NIC layout of my imagination does not exist. The games are given in languageless algebraic figurine notation.
To me, each volume would be worth about $35 and so the starting bid/price of $110 was quite reasonable. I decided not to bid.
The problem is that an auction brings out our sporting blood and the value of the prize is often secondary – winning the prize is primary.
++++++++
eBay auctions now give an anonymous designation to each bidder. This is so a loser will not write the winner and threaten him, I suppose.
A chap called 1***a started the bidding on June 4. He evidently wanted the Fischer books very much and put in a maximum bid of $235.64. Now that is disguised from other bidders. They only see that he is bidding the $110. I don’t think it is good to put all your cards on the table at first but 1***a has won 368 auctions, so I guess he knows what he is doing.
A second bidder, h***h, could take it no more and for four days upped his bid by $5 or $10 in a number of steps but was always low. eBay’s program automatically raises the Amount Bid. Finally, yesterday, on June 8, he bid $300 and was high bidder with the board showing $250. But the auction would take place on June 9 at 8:47 p.m. (Toronto time).
1***a has given up, but a third bidder, 9***2 enters the field. He bids $300 and so ties Mr. h***h.
As I said, these books are probably not worth this much but the guys are in a bidding war. It goes back and forth. With five minutes to go today, 9***2 bids $500. h***h has already put in a higher bid and so the final price is $510 when the auction is over and h***h wins the books.
I hoped that a sniper would come with less than a minute to go and outbid them all. Who doesn’t like a dramatic conclusion?
There were a total of 39 bids from the three protagonists. Shipping and insurance still have to be paid.
I have no idea what conclusions to draw from all this. It was interesting to watch, sort of a blood-letting, and evidently, money is plentiful these days.
If you are in a used bookstore and see the three Ediciones Eseuve volumes for, say, $20 – they may be worth picking up as an investment – you could resell them for the cost of a new wide-screen TV.
The standard book in English with “all” of Bobby Fischer’s games was The Complete Games of Robert J. Fischer by Wade and O’Connell (1972). That was in English descriptive notation and the standard now is Karsten Müller – Bobby Fischer - The Career and Complete Games (2009).
Actually, the distinction is blurred because you can just download all his games into a database/engine and play them over. There is no need for a big thick book on your shelves, unless you believe that one day a magnetic storm will wipe out all recorded electronic media. (I suppose too you could just love books without believing the magnetic storm thing)
Anyway, five days ago, on June 4, a three-volume collection of Bobby’s games went up for auction on eBay. I had not seen them before.
Bobby Fischer Vol. 1 1955-1960
Bobby Fischer Vol. 2 1961-1967
Bobby Fischer Vol. 3 1968-1992
Games annotated by Vassili Smyslov,
Mijail Tahl, Leonid Yudasin, Vladimir Tukmakov
EDICIONES ESEUVE
Item number: 350808965675
The photos of the covers are alluring.
My first thought was that I’d missed this collection somehow. Then, imagining a New In Chess-type layout, I saw in my mind one of the great annotated compilation of games ever.
+++++++++++
However, I had to do my homework before bidding on this rarity.
Ediciones Eseuve are published in Madrid. The volumes came out in 1992-3 and cost $22.60 each then.
The whole of the third volume, 324 pages, can be read on-line at:
http://www.yumpu.com/la/document/vie...-92-ediciones-
As you will see there, the NIC layout of my imagination does not exist. The games are given in languageless algebraic figurine notation.
To me, each volume would be worth about $35 and so the starting bid/price of $110 was quite reasonable. I decided not to bid.
The problem is that an auction brings out our sporting blood and the value of the prize is often secondary – winning the prize is primary.
++++++++
eBay auctions now give an anonymous designation to each bidder. This is so a loser will not write the winner and threaten him, I suppose.
A chap called 1***a started the bidding on June 4. He evidently wanted the Fischer books very much and put in a maximum bid of $235.64. Now that is disguised from other bidders. They only see that he is bidding the $110. I don’t think it is good to put all your cards on the table at first but 1***a has won 368 auctions, so I guess he knows what he is doing.
A second bidder, h***h, could take it no more and for four days upped his bid by $5 or $10 in a number of steps but was always low. eBay’s program automatically raises the Amount Bid. Finally, yesterday, on June 8, he bid $300 and was high bidder with the board showing $250. But the auction would take place on June 9 at 8:47 p.m. (Toronto time).
1***a has given up, but a third bidder, 9***2 enters the field. He bids $300 and so ties Mr. h***h.
As I said, these books are probably not worth this much but the guys are in a bidding war. It goes back and forth. With five minutes to go today, 9***2 bids $500. h***h has already put in a higher bid and so the final price is $510 when the auction is over and h***h wins the books.
I hoped that a sniper would come with less than a minute to go and outbid them all. Who doesn’t like a dramatic conclusion?
There were a total of 39 bids from the three protagonists. Shipping and insurance still have to be paid.
I have no idea what conclusions to draw from all this. It was interesting to watch, sort of a blood-letting, and evidently, money is plentiful these days.
If you are in a used bookstore and see the three Ediciones Eseuve volumes for, say, $20 – they may be worth picking up as an investment – you could resell them for the cost of a new wide-screen TV.