Research has failed.. time to turn to the experts...

I have researched the below question and have come up with nothing, so I figured I would see if the experts had any information for me....

In 1976 the Pierpont Morgan Library of NY teamed up with Scolar Press of England to create a facsimile of the Pierpont Morgan 1485 Caxton Le Morte D'Arthur manuscript. My question is a simple one but no one seems to have the answer. I am simply trying to find out how much the two different editions cost in 1976.

One edition was cloth bound (limited to 500 copies)

The second was bound in leather and was in a slipcase (50 roman numeral copies)

If anyone has any information it would be greatly appreciated.

Have you queried the Pierpont Morgan Library staff? If they can't help you, then find someone who has the 1976 editions of Books in Print. I think the listings contained the prices of the books listed.

They were actually the first people I called. Sadly they were not able to provide much information.

Any nearby libraries with copies? About that time it was pretty common practice to write the cost of a book purchased by the library in the gutter often on a dedication page, or what ever was after the full title page. I've tracked the cost of a publisher's particular binding variant that way that was marketed to libraries especially. Publisher's archives didn't have the recorded price, trade documents had little to nothing, but the books themselves bore witness.

Have you checked Publisher's Weekly?

Google Books is your friend and fetches the following snippet from Barry Gaines: Sir Thomas Malory an anecdotal bibliography of editions, 1485-1985, AMS Press, 1990, ISBN 040461440X, p.43:

"Printed by William Caxton, 1485. Reproduced in facsimile from the copy in the Pierpont Morgan Library, New York, with an introduction by Paul Needham. London: Scolar Press, 1976. Pp. (895). 500 copies, £75.00; 50 copies "printed on paper specially made by hand by Barcham Green of Hayle Mill", £150.00."

Google Books is your fiend: Its limited snippets do not let you check the context of whether this fully answers your question.

Thank you for all of the help everyone.