Illustrated books -- Bibliography; Illustration of books; Printing -- History
Thomas Bassandyne, who had previously published books at Edinburgh,
began printing there in 1572. He produced but ten (extant) books and
documents in all, but his name is famous from its connection with the
first Scottish Bible, of which he produced the New Testament in 1576,
the Old Testament being added, and the whole issued by his successor,
Alexander Arbuthnot, in 1579. Besides the Bible, only five books were
printed by Arbuthnot. Between 1574 and 1580 twenty-six were produced by
John Ross, and on his death Henry Charteris, a bookseller, took over his
material, and by the time of his death in 1599 had printed forty more.
But the best Edinburgh work towards the end of the century was produced
by two craftsmen from England, Thomas Vautrollier, who produced ten
books in 1584-6, and Robert Waldegrave (1590-1603), who had to flee from
England for his share in the Marprelate tracts, and during his thirteen
years in Edinburgh issued 119 books.
When Joseph Ames was desirous of obtaining information about early
printing in Ireland he applied to a Dr. Rutty, of Dublin (apparently a
Quaker), who could only furnish the name of a single book printed there
before 1600, this being an edition of the Book of Common Prayer, which
states that it is "Imprinted by Humphrey Powell, printer to the Kynges
Maiesti, in his Highnesse realme of Ireland dwellyng in the citie of
Dublin in the greate toure by the Crane. Cum Privilegio ad imprimendum
solum. Anno Domini MDLI." We know from the records of the English Privy
Council that Humphrey Powell, an inconspicuous English printer, was
granted L20 in July, 1550, "towards his setting up in Ireland," and this
Prayer Book was doubtless the first fruits of his press. Powell remained
in Dublin for fifteen years, but the only other products of his press
still in existence are two proclamations, one issued in 1561 against
Shane O'Neill, the other in 1564 against the O'Connors, and _A Brefe
Declaration of certein Principall Articles of Religion_, a quarto of
eight leaves set out by order of Sir Henry Sidney in 1566.
In 1571 John O'Kearney, Treasurer of St. Patrick's, was presented with a
fount of Irish type by Queen Elizabeth, and a Catechism by him and a
broadside poem on the Last Judgment, by Philip, son of Conn Crosach,
both in Irish type, are still extant. But there seems to be no
trustworthy information as to where they were printed, though it was
probably at Dublin.
An Almanac, giving the longitude and latitude for Dublin, for the year
1587, appears to have been printed at London. But in 1595 William
Kearney printed a Proclamation against the Earl of Tyrone and his
adherents in Ireland "in the Cathedrall Church of the Blessed Trinitie,
Dublin."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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