Rare Machiavelli book may sell for £30,000

Published on 23/07/2012 01:14

A RARE first edition of a seminal Renaissance work is expected to fetch up to £30,000 at auction after being discovered hidden in a pile of books.

The copy of The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli is going under the hammer after being unearthed by Keys Fine Art Auctioneers in East Anglia.

Dating to 1640, the 300-page book measures 14.5cm by 9cm and is in good condition. It was found among prayer books at a residential home in Norfolk.

Andrew Bullock, head of books at Keys, said: “This is an extremely exciting find. It is very rare for an English first edition of such an important work to come to auction.”

The Prince was so influential it saw the term Machiavellian introduced into the English dictionary.