In Memoriam: Rick Watson

Rick was working at Kew Books around 1975 where we both independently met him. The bookshop was established by John Chancellor in 1973 and specialized in gardening books. He was sharing a f lat with Mick Jagger’s brother and loved the music scene in London at that time.

In a published interview for the ‘Bookdealer’ in September 1994 John describes Rick as follows:

“While all t his was going on, I found an assistant to help at Kew. He was a tall, lugubrious American – a kind of intellectual hippy – who lived in Kew and spent hours every day looking at my books. As he never bought anything, I suggested it might be better if he came to work for me. His name was Rick Watson – a first-class person – and he stayed a few years and wrote some catalogues for me. He had always wanted to work at Quaritch so I contacted them and said ‘Rick’s a wonderful person – I just don’t want him chainsmoking in my house. He would be much better in your office’. Quaritch took him and he made millions of pounds for them”.

We became independently friends with Rick when he was working at Quaritch, where we were frequent visitors. Occasionally we both would buy books together with Rick. One of his most stunning achievements at that time was his cataloguing of the Robert de Belder collection of Botanical Books, 917 items with elaborate and e xtensive descriptions. The finest items of the de Belder collection - ‘A Magnificent Collection of Botanical Books’ - were sold at auction by Sotheby’s in 1987, a huge success. Shortly after that Rick became an independent bookseller specializing in science and natural history. Between 1990 and 2018 he issued 22 beautifully illustrated catalogues, as well as a number of lists. His descriptions of the books are detailed and imaginative, very often shedding unexpected light on an item.

Rick was an excellent organizer. In time he moved from London to California to be near his children and his love Sandra, buying and refurbishing a beautiful property near San Francisco. He recently sold his books at auction and could enjoy the fact that some items did very well.

Rick will always be remembered by those who knew him as a very gifted bookseller in his fields of interest, having acquired and sold numerous outstanding copies of rare works, including a presentation copy of a first edition Darwin Origin; a fine first edition of Vesalius, and Pacioli’s rare work in original boards, to name a few.

During all these years, until recently, we three would buy many unusually rare and precious items. Apart from the fact that this combination was highly successful, it very much enriched our lives as we had all become close friends. We will miss him a lot and w e are sure that his family, friends and collectors will remember his enthusiasm for art, opera, wine, and of course a beautiful book.