Why books are so expensive

If you like to read books, you must have noticed that some books are more expensive than others. Most of the time, you would wonder why.

You might feel that words shouldn't cost much, but you'd be wrong. Sometimes it just costs so much.

Books, already in use hundreds of years ago, are probably the most important step in human evolution.

From papyrus scrolls used in ancient and manuscripts in medieval monasteries, books evolved into what we know today and even increasingly appeared in digital form.

The most expensive books in the world at this time may be hundreds of years old, but the value placed on them seems to increase over time. Like fine wine, they improve with age.

You might not think that you can pay a high amount of money for a book these days, but you would be surprised.

There are several books, mostly old ones, that are valued at super high prices.

This article compiles the 10 most expensive books in the world.

Why are the books on this list so expensive?

At this, you should be wondering why books are so expensive. Of course, there are reasons for this. When these most expensive books in the world were written, there were no computers or printers.

Writers, scribes, journalists and even monks would only have one chance to make one. If they messed up, they'd have to start over. They usually only made a few copies because time and patience only required one. When you buy books, you would also pay for the effort that went into writing them.

At the time these books were written, there were standards that were expected of the books, which made the job even more stressful. They had to be written in a certain hand, they had to be illuminated, so there had to be two specialists working on the book, a copyist and an illuminator.

Then there was the binder. In addition, the material of the pages was also expensive, parchment was a valuable material, and a single book could consume the hides of a herd of animals. Then the materials for lighting, which had to be obtained from great distances and sometimes included silver and gold. A book can take a year to create.

Most of these books were also reserved for the upper class, such as nobles and clergy. You can imagine what this would mean for the overall literacy rate, as the question correctly states that the average person was unable to read them. These and many other reasons are why the books on this list are the most expensive books in the world.

Features of the most expensive books in the world

The books on this list have some things in common. They are-

Priority: As in life, it pays to be first. Books containing the earliest known mention of an important figure, idea or theory in print are of great value to collectors. Most of these books are so expensive because they are the first of their kind printed in a place, in a language that has a different subject.

A book that is the first of its kind is rare and in constant demand: Demand is rising, and as such is one of the main reasons why books are so expensive. By the time a popular writer publishes their second, third or fourth novel, they are in higher demand and a correspondingly larger publication size.

A book's condition, compared to how many years ago it was written, has a way of increasing its price: However, since bindings did not become uniform until the late 19th century, distinctive condition is much more relevant in recent editions. 

Collectors usually look for books in the original binding rather than editions that have been rebound: Books with the original binding are more valuable than books that have been rebound. In this property, the originality speaks for itself.

The most expensive books in the world have color plates, maps or illustrations 100% complete to achieve their full value.

Provenance is another feature that seriously drives up the prices of the most expensive books in the world. Signatures and labels also add value as they provide proof of ownership.

Finally, rarity is another feature that increases the price of the most expensive books in the world. What matters most is whether the book has a demand that is driven by all the above features.