Looking Ahead: An Exciting Year for the International Antiquarian Book Trade

The first major fair of the year takes place from 23 - 25 January in Stuttgart. For more than 60 years, the Stuttgart Antiquarian Book Fair has been the most important sales event in the German-speaking world. This year marks an exciting change of venue: the fair will move to the Stuttgart Liederhalle, a location that the Verband Deutscher Antiquare believes will secure the fair’s long-term future.
www.antiquariatsmesse-stuttgart.de

Shortly afterward, booksellers will pack their crates and travel to California. The California International Antiquarian Book Fair returns to San Francisco at Pier 27, The Embarcadero, from 27 February to 1 March 2026. One of the world’s premier antiquarian book fairs, it brings together an extraordinary range of materials: books, maps, ephemera, drawings, manuscripts, autographs, and more, displayed across two floors. Visitors can expect fine and rare items from around the globe, from first editions and illustrated books to historical documents and specialist collections.
https://www.abaa.org/cabookfair

From 13 to 15 March 2026, the antiquarian book world will once again turn to Tokyo. The Tokyo International Antiquarian Book Fair is held only every two years and remains a highlight in the Asian book calendar. It offers collectors and booksellers a unique opportunity to experience the rich and diverse world of Japanese and international rare books in one of the most vibrant cultural capitals.
https://ilab.org/event/tokyo-international-antiquarian-book-fair-1-1-1

In September, and following the 46th ILAB Congress in Berlin, a completely new event will make its debut: the Rare Books Berlin International Fair. Situated in the heart of Berlin on the historic boulevard Unter den Linden, this fair will be the culmination of a full Rare Book Week Berlin, celebrating the written and printed heritage in one of Europe’s most dynamic cities. The German association’s initiative promises an exciting new showcase for the trade, one that will bring together booksellers, collectors, scholars, and cultural institutions.
rarebookweek.berlin

The full ILAB fair calendar, with events hosted throughout our member countries, can be found here:
https://ilab.org/page/events

Now, blowing our very own trumpet for a moment, we are incredibly excited that 2026 will see the 46th ILAB Congress, the unique international gathering of the antiquarian book world. Since the first Congress was held in Copenhagen in 1948, ILAB Congresses have become landmark events where ILAB booksellers come together to exchange knowledge, network, explore the cultural heritage of the host city and often make lifelong friendships with professionals in our trade across the world.

This year’s Congress will take place in Berlin from 14 to 17 September 2026, marking the first ILAB Congress in Germany since 1992. After more than three decades, the Verband Deutscher Antiquare (VDA) is delighted to welcome ILAB’s international community once again and to present one of Europe’s most dynamic cultural capitals to colleagues from around the world.

For the first time in ILAB’s nearly 80-year history, the Congress will be held in Berlin: a city whose history, architecture, archives, and museums offer an exceptional backdrop for exploring the world of books. Few cities have reinvented themselves as many times as Berlin: from Prussian grandeur to Weimar creativity, through division and the Cold War, to today’s vibrant hub of art, culture, and innovation. These many layers remain visible across the city and will be opened to Congress participants through a rich programme of visits, talks, and behind-the-scenes experiences.

Congress registrations are now open, and the VDA warmly invites all ILAB-affiliated booksellers and their partners to join this memorable event.
Explore the programme and register here: https://rarebookweek.berlin/en/ilab-congress/

The Congress will also include the 5th ILAB Symposium, open not only to Congress participants but to collectors, librarians, and all those engaged with the rare book world. As part of Rare Book Week Berlin, the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, one of the world’s great libraries, will host this global forum. Knowledge Connects: The 5th ILAB Symposium will bring together leading experts from the trade, special collections, and academia to discuss the most pressing issues shaping our field today.
Register for the Congress and the Symposium here: https://rarebookweek.berlin/en/home/

Image above: Lectures at the Rare Book School Virginia

For those looking to deepen their knowledge or strengthen their professional skills in 2026, this year offers an exceptional range of training opportunities. Why not plan to attend one of the Rare Book School courses or bookselling seminars that have shaped generations of specialists in our field?

Rare Book School Virginia opens its registrations on 7 January and has just released its summer 2026 schedule, featuring nearly 50 in-person and online courses. Nine new courses will join a programme that includes offerings in Charlottesville as well as at partner institutions in York, the North Bennet Street School in Boston, and the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin. Courses in Charlottesville will once again be held at the University of Virginia’s Edgar Shannon Library. Applications open on Wednesday, 7 January, with a first-round deadline of 17 February.
rarebookschool.org/schedule

The London Rare Books School recently announced its Summer School and Satellite Programme, with courses covering a wide range of bibliographical and historical subjects, including Anatomy of the Book, Early English Typography, European Bookbinding, Medieval Women and the Book, Fakes and Forgeries, Provenance in Books, and many more. Bookings close on 31 May 2026, and full information can be found on their website.
https://ies.sas.ac.uk/study-training/summer-schools/london-rare-books-school

Alongside these academic, university-run programmes, many ILAB booksellers are volunteering and are preparing seminars aimed at young or recently established booksellers seeking serious, practical training in running a rare book business. Scholarships are available for many of these courses and are usually listed directly on the organisers’ websites.
These courses include initial professional training for those entering the trade, continuing education for established booksellers and their teams, as well as workshops, lectures, internships, and private visits to public and private heritage collections.

The long-established CABS–Minnesota seminar, which has trained nearly 3,000 students since its inception, many now leading figures in the trade, will hold its 2026 session from 26 to 31 July, with registration opening in early 2026. This intensive week of hands-on instruction remains one of the most respected professional courses for booksellers, collectors, and librarians.
https://www.bookseminars.com/

In the United Kingdom, the York Antiquarian Bookselling Seminar (YABS) will return from 8 to 12 September 2026. Founded in 2014 by Anthony Smithson, Alice Laverty, and Jonathan Kearns, and developed with support from the Colorado faculty, YABS was created to offer a European equivalent to CABS. Now in its 11th year, YABS continues to provide a dynamic and supportive environment for emerging booksellers. The programme is organised by the Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association and the YABS Committee.
https://www.yabseminar.com/

The French antiquarian booksellers’ association will also hold its bookselling seminar for the third year in 2026. L’Institut de formation du SLAM, founded in 2024, offers a growing programme of training and awareness-raising activities dedicated to the written and graphic heritage. Its courses are designed for booksellers and their staff, future booksellers, students, librarians, and anyone wishing to deepen their knowledge of rare books and related disciplines. All courses are taught by respected specialists with long-standing experience in the market.
https://slamlivrerare.org/inst...

Image above: Exhibition "Dancing with Jane Austen", Image reproduced courtesy of Jane Austen’s House, Chawton

2026 will also be a year of literary celebrations, marking anniversaries that will draw readers, collectors, and libraries together around beloved authors and stories. One of the highlights is the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth, commemorated by the Bodleian Libraries with Dancing with Jane Austen, an exhibition running from 6 December 2025 to 12 April 2026 in Blackwell Hall at the Weston Library. The display explores the vital role of dance in Austen’s world and writing, showing how scenes on the dance floor propel the plots of her novels and reveal the customs of her society. Items from the Bodleian’s collections and from Jane Austen’s House in Chawton come together in an atmospheric narrative that includes a reconstruction of Austen’s writing space and glimpses of a Regency ball imagined through music, dress, and text.

Another beloved classic will also be celebrating a milestone: 2026 marks the 100th anniversary of Winnie-the-Pooh. A. A. Milne’s first collection of stories about Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, and Christopher Robin was published in 1926, and its centenary year promises a host of commemorations. Museums, libraries, publishers, and literary organisations around the world are preparing exhibitions, special editions, and programmes dedicated to the Hundred Acre Wood. Institutions with major children’s literature collections, such as the V&A Museum of Childhood in London and the New York Public Library, are expected to play a central role in the celebrations.

Watch our blog for more throughout the year, here’s wishing all booksellers and bibliophiles a happy, book-filled 2026!