Sotheby’s Valuable Printed Books and Manuscripts 13 December 2001

Sotheby's Valuable Printed Books and Manuscripts 13 December 2001 is an auction catalogue from Sotheby's (London). This catalogue includes several Tolkien-related lots, the most notable being:

• Lot 546 (p. 256) - Tolkien's annotated personal copy of the two volume Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Two notes are reproduced in photographs - one is associated with the entry for 'Fairy', while the other is a definition for 'Bag-end'.

• Lot 549 (p. 259) - A specially bound first edition set of The Lord of the Rings. The lot description quotes from a letter and note by Tolkien to Peter Alford regarding titles for each of the six books.

• Lot 550 (pp. 260–1) - A group of four letters to Peter Alford (14 January 1956, ?Mid-February 1956, 1956-58, 2 April 1958). The lot description includes quotes discussing The Lord of the Rings and a visit to Holland for a 'Hobbit Dinner'. Six pages from the letters are reproduced in a photograph.

• Lot 552 (pp. 262–3) - A letter to Pauline Baynes dated 4 June 1949 - The lot description includes extracts mentioning Farmer Giles of Ham and The Lord of the Rings. The first page of the letter is reproduced in a photograph.

• Lot 554 (pp. 264–5) - Four letters to Pauline Baynes dating from 23 November 1961 to 3 August 1962 - the lot description includes quotes discussing The Adventures of Tom Bombadil. Five pages from the letters are reproduced in a photograph. (This lot was offered again in a later Sotheby's catalogue, see Lot 789, Sotheby's Literature and Illustration 11-12 July 2002)

• Lot 557 (p. 266) - A letter to Anthony D. Howlett dated 28 May 1969 - The lot description includes extracts discussing the name 'Rivendell'. The first page of the letter is reproduced in a photograph.