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The Collation

Women marking the text

“I beegan, to ourloke this Booke . . . .”  These words are written by Lady Anne Clifford on the title page of her copy of John Selden’s Titles of Honor (1631), which is featured in the first case of our new exhibition Shakespeare’s Sisters: Voices of English and European Women Writers, 1500-1700 , opening on February 3rd.

Clifford’s inscription on Selden’s Titles of honor

Not only did she “read” and “overlook” her book, she also made sure that her secretaries marked the passages of particular interest to her, and sometimes she went back herself and made a note.  Lady Anne was a great reader, but she is only one of a number of women who marked up their books in different ways, and it was fun to see them come together while I was preparing the exhibition.

Comments

I cannot wait to see this exhibition! What an interesting set of women.

Thanks again for getting together the collection of Oxfordiana for the visiting Oxfordians last fall.

Sarah Smith — February 15, 2012