• <b><center>Finarte<br>Books, Autographs & Prints<br>June 24 & 25, 2025</center></b> <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> ALIGHIERI, DANTE / LANDINO, CRISTOFORO. <i>Comento di Christophoro Landino Fiorentino sopra la Comedia di Danthe Alighieri poeta fiorentino,</i> 1481. €40,000 to €50,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> ALIGHIERI, DANTE. <i>La Commedia [Commento di Christophorus Landinus]. Aggiunta: Marsilius Ficinus, Ad Dantem gratulatio [in latino e Italiano],</i> 1487. €40,000 to €60,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> ALIGHIERI, DANTE. <i>Il Convivio,</i> 1490. €20,000 to €25,000. <b><center>Finarte<br>Books, Autographs & Prints<br>June 24 & 25, 2025</center></b> <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> BANDELLO, MATTEO. <i>La prima [-quarta] parte de le nouelle del Bandello,</i> 1554. €7,000 to €9,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> LEGATURA – PLUTARCO. <i>Le vies des hommes illustres, grecs et romaines translates,</i> 1567. €10,000 to €12,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> TOLOMEO, CLAUDIO. <i>Ptolemeo La Geografia di Claudio Ptolemeo Alessandrino, Con alcuni comenti…,</i> 1548. €4,000 to €6,000. <b><center>Finarte<br>Books, Autographs & Prints<br>June 24 & 25, 2025</center></b> <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> FESTE - COPPOLA, GIOVANNI CARLO. <i>Le nozze degli Dei, favola [...] rappresentata in musica in Firenze…,</i> 1637. €6,000 to €8,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> SPINOZA, BARUCH. <i>Opera posthuma,</i> 1677. €8,000 to €12,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> PUSHKIN, ALEXANDER. <i>Borus Godunov,</i> 1831. €30,000 to €50,000. <b><center>Finarte<br>Books, Autographs & Prints<br>June 24 & 25, 2025</center></b> <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> LIBRO D'ARTISTA - LECUIRE, PIERRE. <i>Ballets-minute,</i> 1954. €35,000 to €40,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MAJAKOVSKIJ, VLADIMIR / LISSITZKY, LAZAR MARKOVICH. <i>Dlia Golosa,</i> 1923. €7,000 to €10,000. <b>Finarte, June 24-25:</b> LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MATISSE, HENRI / MONTHERLANT, HENRY DE. <i>Pasiphaé. Chant de Minos.,</i> 1944. €22,000 to €24,000.
    Finarte
    Books, Autographs & Prints
    June 24 & 25, 2025
    Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE / LANDINO, CRISTOFORO. Comento di Christophoro Landino Fiorentino sopra la Comedia di Danthe Alighieri poeta fiorentino, 1481. €40,000 to €50,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE. La Commedia [Commento di Christophorus Landinus]. Aggiunta: Marsilius Ficinus, Ad Dantem gratulatio [in latino e Italiano], 1487. €40,000 to €60,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: ALIGHIERI, DANTE. Il Convivio, 1490. €20,000 to €25,000.
    Finarte
    Books, Autographs & Prints
    June 24 & 25, 2025
    Finarte, June 24-25: BANDELLO, MATTEO. La prima [-quarta] parte de le nouelle del Bandello, 1554. €7,000 to €9,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: LEGATURA – PLUTARCO. Le vies des hommes illustres, grecs et romaines translates, 1567. €10,000 to €12,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: TOLOMEO, CLAUDIO. Ptolemeo La Geografia di Claudio Ptolemeo Alessandrino, Con alcuni comenti…, 1548. €4,000 to €6,000.
    Finarte
    Books, Autographs & Prints
    June 24 & 25, 2025
    Finarte, June 24-25: FESTE - COPPOLA, GIOVANNI CARLO. Le nozze degli Dei, favola [...] rappresentata in musica in Firenze…, 1637. €6,000 to €8,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: SPINOZA, BARUCH. Opera posthuma, 1677. €8,000 to €12,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: PUSHKIN, ALEXANDER. Borus Godunov, 1831. €30,000 to €50,000.
    Finarte
    Books, Autographs & Prints
    June 24 & 25, 2025
    Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - LECUIRE, PIERRE. Ballets-minute, 1954. €35,000 to €40,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MAJAKOVSKIJ, VLADIMIR / LISSITZKY, LAZAR MARKOVICH. Dlia Golosa, 1923. €7,000 to €10,000.
    Finarte, June 24-25: LIBRO D'ARTISTA - MATISSE, HENRI / MONTHERLANT, HENRY DE. Pasiphaé. Chant de Minos., 1944. €22,000 to €24,000.
  • <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 13: Arthur Rackham, <i>Candlelight,</i> pen and ink, circa 1900. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 28: Harold Von Schmidt, <i>"I Asked Jim If He Wanted To Accompany Us To Teach The Hanneseys A Lesson."</i>, oil on canvas, 1957. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 96: Arthur Szyk, <i>Thumbelina,</i> gouache and pencil, 1945. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 101: D.R. Sexton, <i>The White Rabbit And Bill The Lizard,</i> watercolor and gouache, 1932. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 127: Miguel Covarrubias, <i>Bradypus Tridactilus. Three-Toed Sloth,</i> gouache, circa 1953. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 132: William Pène Du Bois, <i>2 Illustrations: Balloon Merry Go Round On The Ground And In The Air,</i> pen and ink and wash, 1947. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 137: Lee Lorenz, <i>Confetti Hourglass,</i> mixed media, 1973. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 181: Norman Rockwell, <i>Portrait Of Floyd Jerome Patten (Editor At Boy's Life Magazine),</i> charcoal, circa 1915. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 188: Ludwig Bemelmans, <i>Rue De Buci, Paris,</i> casein, watercolor, ink and gouache, 1955. <b>Swann, June 17:</b> Lot 263: Maurice Sendak, <i>Sundance Childrens Theater Poster Preliminary Sketch,</i> pencil, 1988.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 13: Arthur Rackham, Candlelight, pen and ink, circa 1900.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 28: Harold Von Schmidt, "I Asked Jim If He Wanted To Accompany Us To Teach The Hanneseys A Lesson.", oil on canvas, 1957.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 96: Arthur Szyk, Thumbelina, gouache and pencil, 1945.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 101: D.R. Sexton, The White Rabbit And Bill The Lizard, watercolor and gouache, 1932.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 127: Miguel Covarrubias, Bradypus Tridactilus. Three-Toed Sloth, gouache, circa 1953.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 132: William Pène Du Bois, 2 Illustrations: Balloon Merry Go Round On The Ground And In The Air, pen and ink and wash, 1947.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 137: Lee Lorenz, Confetti Hourglass, mixed media, 1973.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 181: Norman Rockwell, Portrait Of Floyd Jerome Patten (Editor At Boy's Life Magazine), charcoal, circa 1915.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 188: Ludwig Bemelmans, Rue De Buci, Paris, casein, watercolor, ink and gouache, 1955.
    Swann, June 17: Lot 263: Maurice Sendak, Sundance Childrens Theater Poster Preliminary Sketch, pencil, 1988.
  • <b><center>Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!</center></b>
    Rare Book Hub is now mobile-friendly!
  • <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 567. One of the Earliest & Most Desirable Printed Maps of Arabia - by Holle/Germanus (1482) Est. $55,000 - $65,000 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 681. Zatta's Complete Atlas with 218 Maps in Full Contemporary Color (1779) Est. $27,500 - $35,000 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 347. MacDonald Gill's Landmark "Wonderground Map" of London (1914) Est. $1,800 - $2,100 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 1. Fries' "Modern" World Map with Portraits of Five Kings (1525) Est. $4,000 - $4,750 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 539. Ortelius' Superb, Decorative Map of Cyprus in Full Contemporary Color (1573) Est. $1,100 - $1,400 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 51. Mercator's Foundation Map for the Americas in Full Contemporary Color (1630) Est. $3,250 - $4,000 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 667. Manuscript Bible Leaf with Image of Mary and Baby Jesus (1450) Est. $1,900 - $2,200 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 226. "A Powerful Example of Color Used to Make a Point" (1895) Est. $400 - $600 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 290. One of the Most Decorative Early Maps of South America - from Linschoten's "Itinerario" (1596) Est. $7,000 - $8,500 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 62. Coronelli's Influential Map of North America with the Island of California (1688) Est. $10,000 - $12,000 <b>Old World Auctions (June 18):</b> Lot 589. The First European-Printed Map of China - by Ortelius (1584) Est. $4,000 - $5,000
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 567. One of the Earliest & Most Desirable Printed Maps of Arabia - by Holle/Germanus (1482) Est. $55,000 - $65,000
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 681. Zatta's Complete Atlas with 218 Maps in Full Contemporary Color (1779) Est. $27,500 - $35,000
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 347. MacDonald Gill's Landmark "Wonderground Map" of London (1914) Est. $1,800 - $2,100
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 1. Fries' "Modern" World Map with Portraits of Five Kings (1525) Est. $4,000 - $4,750
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 539. Ortelius' Superb, Decorative Map of Cyprus in Full Contemporary Color (1573) Est. $1,100 - $1,400
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 51. Mercator's Foundation Map for the Americas in Full Contemporary Color (1630) Est. $3,250 - $4,000
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 667. Manuscript Bible Leaf with Image of Mary and Baby Jesus (1450) Est. $1,900 - $2,200
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 226. "A Powerful Example of Color Used to Make a Point" (1895) Est. $400 - $600
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 290. One of the Most Decorative Early Maps of South America - from Linschoten's "Itinerario" (1596) Est. $7,000 - $8,500
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 62. Coronelli's Influential Map of North America with the Island of California (1688) Est. $10,000 - $12,000
    Old World Auctions (June 18): Lot 589. The First European-Printed Map of China - by Ortelius (1584) Est. $4,000 - $5,000

Rare Book Monthly

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Articles - December - 2004 Issue

Burning Desires

- by Bruce E. McKinney

Is it more important to repair damaged copies or elaborate the library's role as teacher?

Is it more important to repair damaged copies or elaborate the library's role as teacher?


The extraordinary collection at the Amalia Library was inevitably acquired using some or even many collecting techniques and strategies. The motivation was personal, the acquisitions personal and the total accumulation a matter of timing, luck and perseverance. Book collecting, at the highest level, is an obsession and the ex-post-facto imposition of an exoskeleton of collecting logic and justification does not change this fundamental fact.

So, how should a library, that reflects the fullness of collector obsession and has experienced an extraordinary loss, react? The Amalia Library is now a repository of great books rather than simply the manifestation of a collecting obsession born to epic levels. So it seems less important to repair or replace the lost material. If the library today finds its primary daily purpose for being in providing information for research then it's reasonable to acknowledge that many of the lost and damaged books are accessible elsewhere. Spending treasure to reconstruct damaged books may be a theme that inspires contributions and government support but the far greater good will be to spend this money to digitize as much of the collection as is practical and useful. In this way the material is no longer confined to the library's structure and will in time find its way into educational projects all the way from second grade Mozart reports in Tanzania to complex language analysis at the highest university levels in London, Cambridge, Chicago and Berkeley.

The Amalia Library long ago stopped being a collection. Today it is a resource and the money it receives because of the fire should be spent to further what it is today rather than to honor what it was in the beginning. Let us honor the past by embracing the future.

Rare Book Monthly

  • <b><center>Sotheby's<br>Bibliothèque Jacques Dauchez - Autour de Dubuffet<br> 5-19 June</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Bissière, Roger. Cantique à notre frère soleil de saint François. 1954. 1,000 - 1,500 EUR <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Céline, Louis-Ferdinand. La vie & l’œuvre de Philippe Ignace Semmelweis. 1924. Rare édition originale, avec envoi. Joint : La Quinine en thérapeutique, 1925. 4,000 - 6,000 EUR <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Céline, Louis-Ferdinand. Mort à crédit. 1936. Édition originale. Bel exemplaire sur Hollande. 2,500 - 3,500 EUR <b><center>Sotheby's<br>Bibliothèque Jacques Dauchez - Autour de Dubuffet<br> 5-19 June</center></b> <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Chillida, Eduardo ─ Emil Cioran. Face aux instants. 1985. Un des 100 exemplaires sur Arches. Eau-forte signée. 600 - 800 EUR <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Dubuffet, Jean. Ler dla canpane. L’Art Brut, 1948. Édition originale. 3,000 - 5,000 EUR <b>Sotheby’s, June 5-19:</b> Dubuffet, Jean. L'Herne Jean Dubuffet. 1973. Un des 100 exemplaires du tirage de luxe avec une sérigraphie originale en couleurs. 1,000 - 1,500 EUR
    Sotheby's
    Bibliothèque Jacques Dauchez - Autour de Dubuffet
    5-19 June
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Bissière, Roger. Cantique à notre frère soleil de saint François. 1954. 1,000 - 1,500 EUR
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Céline, Louis-Ferdinand. La vie & l’œuvre de Philippe Ignace Semmelweis. 1924. Rare édition originale, avec envoi. Joint : La Quinine en thérapeutique, 1925. 4,000 - 6,000 EUR
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Céline, Louis-Ferdinand. Mort à crédit. 1936. Édition originale. Bel exemplaire sur Hollande. 2,500 - 3,500 EUR
    Sotheby's
    Bibliothèque Jacques Dauchez - Autour de Dubuffet
    5-19 June
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Chillida, Eduardo ─ Emil Cioran. Face aux instants. 1985. Un des 100 exemplaires sur Arches. Eau-forte signée. 600 - 800 EUR
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Dubuffet, Jean. Ler dla canpane. L’Art Brut, 1948. Édition originale. 3,000 - 5,000 EUR
    Sotheby’s, June 5-19: Dubuffet, Jean. L'Herne Jean Dubuffet. 1973. Un des 100 exemplaires du tirage de luxe avec une sérigraphie originale en couleurs. 1,000 - 1,500 EUR
  • <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library<br>19th June 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Euclid. <i>The Elements of Geometrie,</i> first edition in English of the first complete translation, [1570]. £20,000 to £30,000. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Nicolay (Nicolas de). <i>The Navigations, peregrinations and voyages, made into Turkie,</i> first edition in English, 1585. £10,000 to £15,000. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Shakespeare source book.- Montemayor (Jorge de). <i>Diana of George of Montemayor,</i> first edition in English, 1598. £6,000 to £8,000. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Livius (Titus). <i>The Romane Historie,</i> first edition in English, translated by Philemon Holland, Adam Islip, 1600. £6,000 to £8,000. <b><center>Forum Auctions<br>A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library<br>19th June 2025</center></b> <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Robert Molesworth's copy.- Montaigne (Michel de). <i>The Essayes Or Morall, Politike and Millitarie Discourses,</i> first edition in English, 1603. £10,000 to £15,000. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Shakespeare (William). <i>The Tempest</i> [&] <i>The Two Gentlemen of Verona,</i> from the <i>Second Folio,</i> [Printed by Thomas Cotes], 1632. £4,000 to £6,000. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Boyle (Robert). <i>Medicina Hydrostatica: or, Hydrostaticks Applyed to the Materia Medica,</i> first edition, for Samuel Smith, 1690. £2,500 to £3,500. <b>Forum, June 19:</b> Locke (John). <i>An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding in Four Books,</i> first edition, second issue, 1690. £8,00 to £12,000.
    Forum Auctions
    A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library
    19th June 2025
    Forum, June 19: Euclid. The Elements of Geometrie, first edition in English of the first complete translation, [1570]. £20,000 to £30,000.
    Forum, June 19: Nicolay (Nicolas de). The Navigations, peregrinations and voyages, made into Turkie, first edition in English, 1585. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, June 19: Shakespeare source book.- Montemayor (Jorge de). Diana of George of Montemayor, first edition in English, 1598. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum, June 19: Livius (Titus). The Romane Historie, first edition in English, translated by Philemon Holland, Adam Islip, 1600. £6,000 to £8,000.
    Forum Auctions
    A Sixth Selection of 16th and 17th Century English Books from the Fox Pointe Manor Library
    19th June 2025
    Forum, June 19: Robert Molesworth's copy.- Montaigne (Michel de). The Essayes Or Morall, Politike and Millitarie Discourses, first edition in English, 1603. £10,000 to £15,000.
    Forum, June 19: Shakespeare (William). The Tempest [&] The Two Gentlemen of Verona, from the Second Folio, [Printed by Thomas Cotes], 1632. £4,000 to £6,000.
    Forum, June 19: Boyle (Robert). Medicina Hydrostatica: or, Hydrostaticks Applyed to the Materia Medica, first edition, for Samuel Smith, 1690. £2,500 to £3,500.
    Forum, June 19: Locke (John). An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding in Four Books, first edition, second issue, 1690. £8,00 to £12,000.
  • <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> CHAPPE D'AUTEROCHE (JEAN). <i>Voyage en Sibérie fait par ordre du Roi en 1761 contenant les mœurs…,</i> Paris, 1768. €4,000 to €5,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> HENNEPIN (LOUIS). <i>Description de la Louisiane nouvellement découverte au Sud-Ouest de la Nouvelle France…,</i> Paris, 1688. €3,000 to €4,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> LA BOULLAYE-LE GOUZ (FRANÇOIS DE). <i>Les Voyages et Observations,</i> Paris, 1653. €1,500 to €2,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> LE BRUN (CORNELIS DE BRUYN DIT CORNEILLE). <i>Voyage au Levant, c'est à dire dans les principaux endroits de l'Asie mineure...,</i> Delft, 1700. €6,000 to €8,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> SAINT-NON (J.-CL. RICHARD, ABBÉ DE). <i>Voyage pittoresque ou description du royaume de Naples et de Sicile,</i> Paris, 1781-1786. €3,500 to €5,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> (CALVIN JEAN). SÉNÈQUE. <i>Annei Senecae...,</i> Paris, 1532. €2,000 to €3,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> ADRIEN LE CHARTREUX. <i>De remediis utriusque fortunæ,</i> [Cologne, vers 1470]. €5,000 to €6,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> GAZA (THÉODORE). <i>[...] Introductivæ grammatices libri quatuor. Ejusdem de mensibus opusculum sanequampulchrum,</i> Venise, 1495. €8,000 to €10,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> LACTANCE. <i>De divinis institutionibus. De ira Dei. De opificio Dei. De phoenice carmen,</i> Rome, 1468. €30,000 to €40,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> LUTHER (MARTIN). <i>Der Erste [– Achte und letze] Teil aller Bücher und Schrifften des thewren, seligen Mans Doct. Mart. Lutheri,</i> Iéna, 1555-1568. €5,000 to €6,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> POLITIEN (ANGE). <i>Omnia opera, et alia quædam lectu Digna,</i> Venise, 1498. €8,000 to €10,000. <b>ALDE, June 18:</b> SIDOINE APOLLINAIRE. <i>Poema aureum ejusdemque Epistole,</i> Milan, 1498. €3,000 to €4,000.
    ALDE, June 18: CHAPPE D'AUTEROCHE (JEAN). Voyage en Sibérie fait par ordre du Roi en 1761 contenant les mœurs…, Paris, 1768. €4,000 to €5,000.
    ALDE, June 18: HENNEPIN (LOUIS). Description de la Louisiane nouvellement découverte au Sud-Ouest de la Nouvelle France…, Paris, 1688. €3,000 to €4,000.
    ALDE, June 18: LA BOULLAYE-LE GOUZ (FRANÇOIS DE). Les Voyages et Observations, Paris, 1653. €1,500 to €2,000.
    ALDE, June 18: LE BRUN (CORNELIS DE BRUYN DIT CORNEILLE). Voyage au Levant, c'est à dire dans les principaux endroits de l'Asie mineure..., Delft, 1700. €6,000 to €8,000.
    ALDE, June 18: SAINT-NON (J.-CL. RICHARD, ABBÉ DE). Voyage pittoresque ou description du royaume de Naples et de Sicile, Paris, 1781-1786. €3,500 to €5,000.
    ALDE, June 18: (CALVIN JEAN). SÉNÈQUE. Annei Senecae..., Paris, 1532. €2,000 to €3,000.
    ALDE, June 18: ADRIEN LE CHARTREUX. De remediis utriusque fortunæ, [Cologne, vers 1470]. €5,000 to €6,000.
    ALDE, June 18: GAZA (THÉODORE). [...] Introductivæ grammatices libri quatuor. Ejusdem de mensibus opusculum sanequampulchrum, Venise, 1495. €8,000 to €10,000.
    ALDE, June 18: LACTANCE. De divinis institutionibus. De ira Dei. De opificio Dei. De phoenice carmen, Rome, 1468. €30,000 to €40,000.
    ALDE, June 18: LUTHER (MARTIN). Der Erste [– Achte und letze] Teil aller Bücher und Schrifften des thewren, seligen Mans Doct. Mart. Lutheri, Iéna, 1555-1568. €5,000 to €6,000.
    ALDE, June 18: POLITIEN (ANGE). Omnia opera, et alia quædam lectu Digna, Venise, 1498. €8,000 to €10,000.
    ALDE, June 18: SIDOINE APOLLINAIRE. Poema aureum ejusdemque Epistole, Milan, 1498. €3,000 to €4,000.

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