Christie's London Books and Manuscripts Sale Hits Record £12.7m

Christie's Valuable Books and Manuscripts Including Cartography sale at King Street on 8 July 2026 achieved £12,707,879, the highest total for a various-owner Books and Manuscripts sale in London. The auction closed Christie's London Classic Week, which began 30 June. Of 172 lots, the top lot was The Clermont-Tonnerre Grail, a late 13th-century illuminated manuscript of the Holy Grail quest, Merlin's birth, and King Arthur tales, selling for £2,246,000 after competitive bidding. Eugenio Donadoni, International Specialist in Medieval & Renaissance Manuscripts at Christie's, praised the result.