Book Auctions in England in the Seventeenth Century; (1676-1700) with a Chronological List of the Book Auctions of the Period (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1898 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER II. Edward M1ll1ngton's Book-auct1ons, 1680-1698. ILLINGTON, the contemporary and sometimes the coadjutor of William Cooper, began to sell books by auction in 1680. Originally a bookseller with a shop in Little Britain, near Cooper's, at the Sign of the Bible, he left that line of the business and devoted himself entirely to book-auctioneering, for which pursuit he had, as John Dunton says, exceptional abilities. His first sale consisted of the stocks of two London booksellers, viz. Jonathan Edwyns and D. Dan. These names do not occur on the title, but are recorded by Cooper in his list of sales given above. Millington, in his preface to this catalogue, plunges at once in medias res, and shows that the method of selling books by auction had in 1680 established a sure position, which time has shown to be a lasting one. "The way and method of Selling Books by Auction," he says, " being now so generally known, and so well approved of, that had not Custom made it necessary, it might seem needless to Preface such an undertaking. However, if any expect a reason, we answer, it's for the general benefit and gratification ot the learned, not excluding the honest Profit of the Undertakers; and as we shall not use the names, so neither abuse the World by pretending them to be the Libraries of some fam'd Antiquaries, or learned men deceased, but such as they are we refer you to Judge of by the ensuing Catalogue, which we may modestly say is not the most contemptible for Quantity or Quality that hath been exposed to sale this way. The Catalogue was taken in great hast, and by several hands, which hath occasioned many, and some very material mistakes which the ingenious will (we hope) excuse, and the intelligent at their leisure correct...".