How a Signature Increases a Book’s Value

July 6th, 2011

How much is a baseball worth? Maybe a dollar or two, right? Get that same baseball signed by Alex Rodriguez, and you have a collectible item. If that baseball happened to be a homerun ball, you’ve hit the jackpot!

Signatures and autographs in books work much the same way. The rarity of both the book and the signature help determine the value of a book.

Signatures v Inscriptions et Al

Not all signatures are created equal. In fact, signatures (autographs) and inscriptions fall into a few different categories.

• A book described as “signed” has a signature on a page of the book itself. It has no personalization, such as “To Susan.”
• If a book is “inscribed,” it is personalized, addressed to a specific person. If the person isn’t closely associated with the author, the inscription often isn’t considered to add too much to a book’s value.
• An association copy is usually an inscribed book that is addressed to a specific individual connected to the author.
• An autopen signature is  often seen with presidential materials. An autopen is a machine used for the automatic signing of a signature. Bottom line: it isn’t really a signature and doesn’t do anything to the value of the book.

Signatures naturally tend to be more common than inscriptions and/or association copies. Contemporary authors often do book signings when they go on tour, thereby increasing the number of signed books available and decreasing the value of signed copies.

Authenticating Signatures

Of course, only an authentic signature has value. Experts certify that a signature or inscription is authentic by comparing the handwriting to other known samples of the author’s writing. The authenticity of signed books and signatures in particular is the number one element of the trust a reputable seller of autographed books is hoping to establish and maintain with their customers.

Can you truly “certify” a signature?  Only if you have seen the author sign the book and if you never let the book out of your sight.  If you just see the signature, you can’t; nobody can.  You can rule out fakes but cannot do the opposite.  You can only confirm that it is highly likely for a signature to be authentic by comparing it with existing signatures.

For a number of signatures available for comparison purposes, see our collection of reference autographs and signatures.

Entry Filed under: collecting