Autograph Album Featuring Jane Austen: Rare Book of the Week

An autograph album including a scarce Jane Austen signature with Austen family provenance is on offer in the online Fine Books, Atlases & Manuscripts auction at Bonhams finishing March 26.

It contains two autograph fragments in the novelist's hand, a cut signature ("your affecte Aunt/ J. Austen") and a piece cut from an address panel addressed to her niece Caroline. Other entries in the album which was begun in 1833 were collected from the wider Austen family, including Edward Austen, Denis Le Marchant, James Edward Austen-Leigh, and Emma Austen.

The collection was compiled by Emma Austen-Leigh (1801-1876), wife of Jane Austen's favourite nephew, the Rev. James Edward Austen-Leigh (1798-1874) and neighbours of the Austens in Hampshire. In total, the album contains around 200 autograph letters, cut signatures and autograph free fronts from various royalty, nobility, bishops, politicians, scientists, writers, and artists.

These include George IV (autograph letter signed "...I can not consent to any one of the Performers in my Band being engag'd to any of the Public Theatres..."), William Wordsworth ("...I have owed Sir Walter Scott a visit for four years – and I have just received a message from him..." and issuing an invitation to Rydal), and Charles Babbage ("...I will attend the Chancellor in any time and place..." with partial signature).

The album has an estimate of £30,000-£40,000.