It must have been so much fun being a C17th wit hanging around your favourite tavern or coffee-house thinking up tall stories, scribbling them down and waiting to see how your readers reacted. Would they really believe that shepherds had found the remains of Moses his Tombe (1657) on Mount Nebo, or that Dutch sailors… Continue reading The fun of deceiving your readers – and being found out
Month: January 2010
‘The Paradox of Prosperity’ – Selling books in early modern Leiden
The booksellers of early modern Leiden prospered despite being regulated by a guild. In fact, they petitioned for and received permission to set up a guild as late as 1652 when other trades tried to get rid of the tight constraints such an institution imposed (p. 14). For, contrary to a widespread belief among economic… Continue reading ‘The Paradox of Prosperity’ – Selling books in early modern Leiden
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