World's Most Valuable Books & Manuscripts

 1. The Codex Leicester by Leonardo Da Vinci

Regarded as one of the most expensive illustrated manuscripts, the Codex is a synthesis of Leonardo's views on nature, astronomy, meteorology. He even predicted the invention of the submarine in the manuscript. 

It was sold to Bill Gates in 1994 for a whopping $30,802,500.

2. The Birds of America by John Audubon

Printed between 1827 & 1838, it contains 435 life-size watercolors of North American birds, reproduced from hand-engraved plates, and is considered to be the archetype of wildlife illustration. 

In 2018, a first edition of the book was sold for $9.65 million at an auction in New York.

3.The Theory of Relativity by Albert Einstein

Einstein originally wrote the Theory of Relativity in 1905, but he rewrote it in 1943 in order to raise funds for the American war effort during WWII. 

In 1944, Kansas City Life Insurance Company exchanged a $6.5 million cheque for the manuscript.

4. Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Sir Isaac Newton

Published in 1687, the 3 books dealt with mechanics in which Newton defined concepts such as force, momentum and mass, and stated his laws of motion and universal gravitation. 

In 2016, the first Edition of Principia was sold for $3.7 million.

5. The Portolan Atlas of the World by Battista Agnese

Between 1536 and 1564, Battista Agnese produced a number of remarkably accurate nautical atlases. The maps showed coasts, ports, and rivers and were the navigation aids of the day. 

In 2012, Christie's, an auction company, sold the atlas for $2,770,500.