A Checklist of Libraries and Collections of
Books
Catalogued and Sold by Samuel Paterson, 1747-1802
This checklist was compiled using the 17th and 18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers, the English Short Title Catalogue (abbreviated to ESTC), Eighteenth Century Collections Online (abbreviated to ECCO), COPAC, and WorldCat. If extant copies of items have been found, their locations are listed with the location sigla used by the second edition of the Pollard and Redgrave STC. Items available in facsimile are noted, as are, whenever possible, annotated copies. If an item is listed in ESTC, its catalogue number is listed in parentheses after the title. I will update the checklist as I uncover new Paterson catalogues and information about them.
1. fixed price catalogues
1747
A Catalogue of the Entire Library of an Officer of Distinction, Lately Deceased, With the Addition of Several Parcels Lately Purchased.
Date: Advertised in the 27 November issue of the General Advertiser; a later advertisement in the same newspaper listed nineteen of the works for sale.
1748
A Catalogue of a Choice Collection of Books.
Date: Advertised in the 8 April issue of the General Advertiser.
A Catalogue of a Small Library of Books, Neatly Bound.
Date: Advertised in the 13 June issue of the General Advertiser.
A Catalogue of a Well-chosen Library of Books, Containing Near Five Thousand Volumes in Most Languages, Arts and Sciences.
Date: Advertised in the 13–15 December issue of the London Evening Post.
Note: This advertisement listed twelve folio works in the sale, including the enigmatically titled “Shakespear works, 1st Edit.”
1749
A Catalogue of Several Libraries Lately Purchased; Containing a Curious Miscellany of Ancient and Modern Books in Most Languages and Upon all Branches of Polite Literature.
Date: Advertised in the 19 April issue of the London Gazetteer.
A Catalogue of a Large and Valuable Library of Books in Divinity, Antient and Modern History, Geography, Voyages and Travels, Mathematics, Physick, Surgery, Husbandry and Gardening, Poetry, Painting and Sculpture.
Date: Advertised in the 30 December issue of the London Evening Post.
1750
A Catalogue of Above Six Thousand Volumes in Most Languages and Faculties.
Date: Advertised in the 24 April issue of the Whitehall Evening Post.
A Catalogue of Several Libraries and Studies of Books Lately Purchased; Containing a Collection of Works of the Most Approved Authors in Most Languages, Arts and Sciences.
Date: Advertised in the 6 November issue of the Whitehall Evening Post.
1751
A Catalogue of Several Libraries and Parcels Lately Purchased; Containing Several Thousand Volumes of the Works of the Best Approved Authors in Most Parts of Useful and Polite Literature in Latin, Greek, Hebrew, French, Italian, Spanish and English.
Date: Advertised in the April 22 issue of the General Advertiser.
A Catalogue of the Genuine and Entire Library of Mr John Machin, Late Professor of Astronomy in Gresham College, and Many Years Secretary of the Royal Society, Lately Deceased.
Date: Advertised in the 3 September issue of the Whitehall Evening Post; a later advertisement in the London Daily Advertiser listed thirty-four of the works in this sale.
1752
A Catalogue of Several Libraries and Parcels, Lately Purchased, in Which are Included Those of Mr De La Noe, Teacher of Mathematics, Deceased, and of a Fellow of the Royal Society. The Whole Consisting of Several Thousand Volumes in Most Languages, Arts and Sciences, and Almost Every Branch of Mathematical Learning.
Date: Advertised in the 10 February issue of the General Advertiser; a later advertisement in the Covent Garden Journal listed forty titles in this sale.
A Catalogue of Useful and Entertaining Books in English, French, Italian, Spanish, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, &c.
Date: Advertised in the 30 May issue of the Covent Garden Journal.
Note: The advertisement listed eighteen of the folios and three of the quarto titles on sale.
1758
A Catalogue of a Small Library of Books and Manuscripts in Several Languages and in Most Branches of Polite Literature, Many of Which are Singular and Scarce.
Date: Advertised in the 6 November issue of the Public Advertiser. No mention of Paterson is made in the advertisement and no copies survive to confirm that he was the seller. I would suggest that he held the sale for the same two reasons given in the note for the 16–23 March 1758 auction entry below.
2. auction catalogues
1755
A Select Library of Books in Several Languages, Arts and Sciences.
Auction Date: 10–13 December. Advertised in the 10 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: Paterson’s first known auction of books.
1757
A Catalogue of the Manuscripts of . . . Sir Julius Caesar, Knight, Judge of the Admiralty . . . Consisting of a Great Variety of Authentic Records, Original Letters and Papers of State. (ESTC T71510)
Auction Date: 23–24 November. This sale was postponed to December and an expanded and new catalogue drawn up by Paterson.
Known Copies: l(2), l2, o; hd, cal, v; digital facsimile of one l copy available on ECCO.
A Catalogue of Several Thousand of the Most Singular and Interesting Heads in the Collection of the Manuscripts of . . . Sir Julius Caesar. (ESTC T3221)
Auction Date: 14–16 December. Advertised in the 10 December issue of the London Chronicle.
Known Copies: birm, l(3), o(4); cal, f, Grolier Club, u; facsimile of one l copy on ECCO.
Note: This is a revised reissue of the previous sale catalogue and was much expanded by Paterson.
1758
A Genuine Collection of Law and Other Printed Books and Manuscripts, in Which Are Many Perfect and Fair Copies of the Early Printers, Scarcely to be Met with, and Several Manuscripts of Great Antiquity and Curiosity, Many of Which are on Vellum. (ESTC T97203)
Auction Date: 13–22 February. Advertised in the 6 February issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l(2).
Note: Advertised with no mention of Paterson; however the two copies in the British Library report that Paterson signed the sale conditions. One of these copies also reports that the bankrupt was Edward Umfreville of the Inner Temple, who is not mentioned in this catalogue. This attribution is confirmed by the British Library catalogue description of Add. Ms. 5923, “Placita abbreviata: a collection from the years books of 1–20 Edward III,” sold in this sale. The sale was held in order to pay off Umfreville’s creditors. Umfreville eventually collected another library that was sold by Leigh and Sotheby in March 1792, almost six years after his death on 17 June 1786.
The Entire Collection of Books of Mr Thomas Hewson, Bookseller, Lately Deceased.
Auction Date: 16–23 March. Advertised in the 15 March issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: No mention is made of Paterson in the advertisement and there is no copy to confirm that Paterson was the vendor. However, I would suggest that Paterson was the auctioneer for two reasons: the sale was held at the Feathers Inn, as with the preceding and following sales (13–22 February and 12–14 April 1758), and the list of the agents is identical in all three advertisements.
A Catalogue of the Singular Collection of Scarce and Uncommon Printed Books and Tracts, Together With the Manuscripts and Choice Cabinet of British, Saxon and English . . . Coins and Medals of the Ingenious Mr Edward Steele, Painter. (ESTC T28798)
Auction Date: 12–14 April. Advertised in the 11 April issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, British Museum Department of Coins and Medals, c; digital facsimile of l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The advertisement makes no mention Paterson. The l copy confirms that Paterson was the auctioneer.
1759
A Collection of Law and Other Books, the Property of a Gentleman Deceased.
Auction Date: 12–13 January. Advertised in the 8 February issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Entire Library of Dr Clarke, Late of Bailey Hall, Hertford, Deceased; in Which are Many Scarce and Valuable Books in Several Languages and Sciences.
Auction Date: 26 February–3 March. Advertised in the 8 February issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: The sale was originally advertised to start on 19 February, but for some reason it was delayed and re-advertised in the 26 February issue of the same newspaper as being held on “this and the five following evenings.”
The Library of the Hon. Nathaniel Gundry, Esq., Late one of His Majesty’s Justices of the Court of Common Pleas, Deceased. Including Also the Law Library of a Late Eminent Lawyer of the Kingdom of Ireland, Deceased.
Auction Date: 8–11 May. Advertised in the 3 May issue of the Gazetteer & London Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of French, Italian, Latin and English Books of the Late Mr John Skunk, Teacher of Modern Languages, Deceased.
Auction Date: 22 May. Advertised in the 19 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of English Books of Mr Eusebius Wither, of North End, Lately Deceased. Also a Large Mahogany Book Case.
Auction Date: 23–25 May. Advertised in the 19 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Genuine Collection of Cabinet and Flower Shells, Corals, Fossils, Ores, Minerals, Cabinets and Other Curiosities Belonging to a Physician. And in the Evening of the Same Days, to Begin Precisely at Six o’clock, the Said Gentleman’s Library of Books in Natural History, Medicine, Surgery and Other Arts and Sciences, in Various Languages.
Auction Date: 6–7 June. Advertised in the 29 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Catalogue of the Original Manuscripts and Manuscript Collections of the Late Rev. Mr John Henley, Deceased. (ESTC T150857)
Auction Date: 12–13 June. Advertised in the 3 May issue of the Gazetteer and London Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, o(2), m; Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Grolier Club, lc.
Note: The auction was originally advertised to begin on 15 May but for some reason it was postponed and re-advertised in the Public Advertiser on May 29. The copy in the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin is reported to be annotated.
A Small Library of Law and Other (Chiefly Miscellaneous English) Books.
Auction Date: 16–17 November. Advertised in the 15 November issue of the Public Advertiser.
Bibliotheca Warburtoniana; a Catalogue of the Entire Library of Printed Books and Manuscripts of the Late John Warburton, Esq., Somerset Herald and Fellow of the Royal and Antiquary Societies, Deceased. (ESTC T21628)
Auction Date: 19–24 November. Advertised in the 15 November issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, British Museum Department of Coins and Medals; Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Grolier Club; digital facsimile of l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The l copy contains a very small number of annotations.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Collection of Prints, Books of Prints and Drawings; Library of Books and Manuscripts of Mr Josiah Jones Painter; Including the Valuable Collection of Heraldical Manuscripts of the Late Sylvanus Morgan, Author of the Sphere of Gentry, the Language of Arms &c. (ESTC T171748)
Auction Date: 3–8 December.
Known Copy: British Museum Department of Prints and Drawings.
Note: Paterson sold another collection of Jones’s prints, books, and manuscripts in December 1764.
The Genuine Library of Peter Bardon, M.D., Deceased: Consisting of a Variety of Books, as Well in Natural History, Physic, Surgery and Anatomy, as in Other Arts and Sciences in the English, French, Italian, Spanish, Latin and Greek Languages.
Auction Date: 19–22 December. Advertised in the 17 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Appendix to Dr Peter Bardon’s Library, Consisting of the Doctor’s Manuscripts, the Remaining Part of his Books and Several Lots of Prints.
Auction Date: Advertised in the 24 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
1760
Bibliotheca Mathematica; a Catalogue of the Curious Mathematical Library of Mr Richard Jack, Teacher of Mathematicks and Assistant Engineer in the Late Expeditions Against Guadeloupe; Consisting of the Works of the Most Celebrated Authors, Antient and Modern, in the Several Branches of Mathematics, in the Greek, Latin, Italian, French and English Languages. (ESTC T491672)
Auction Date: 13–16 February. Advertised in the 30 January issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copy: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.
A Valuable Collection of Books Including the Libraries of Mr Daniel Taylor of Norwich, Apothecary; and of a Late Eminent Practitioner of the Law, Both Deceased. Consisting of a Great Variety of the Most Approved Authors in Several Languages and Sciences.
Auction Date: 4–11 March. Advertised in the 1 March issue of the Public Ledger.
The Large and Valuable Library of Sir Berkeley Lucy, Bart., F.R.S., Deceased; in Which is Included the Entire Collection of his Father-in-Law the Late Pious and Learned Robert Nelson, Esq., Author of The Festivals and Fasts of the Church of England &c., Containing Several Thousand Volumes in the English, French, Italian. Latin, Greek and Oriental Languages, in Most Branches of Profound as Well as Polite Literature; Together With a Great Number of Scarce Tracts Upon the Most Interesting, Curious and Uncommon Subjects.
Auction Date: 31 March–14 April. Advertised in the 30 January issue of the Whitehall Evening Post.
Note: This auction was only the first part of the sale of Sir Berkeley’s library.
The Second Part of the Valuable Library of Sir Berkeley Lucy, Deceased.
Auction Date: 28 April and the following evenings. Advertised in the 21 April issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: Another advertisement appears at the back of another Paterson catalogue, A Catalogue of a Curious Collection of Roman Medals in Gold . . . Which Will be Sold by Auction . . . on Friday the 25th April 1760. The catalogue in which the advertisement appears is in the holdings of the British Museum Department of Coins and Medals, o34, and d, and a digital facsimile of d is available on ECCO.
The Entire Library of the Rev. John Bridgen, A.M., Professor of Divinity at Gresham College, Lately Deceased. Also a Curious Collection of Philosophical and Mathematical Instruments.
Auction Date: Advertised in the 26 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Collection of Books in Several Languages and Sciences, Including the Library of Charles Melvil, Esq., Deceased. Also the Entire Collection of a Late Eminent Barrister Comprehending Almost a Complete Law Library.
Auction Date: 6 November and the following evenings. Advertised in the 31 October issue of the Public Ledger.
A Library of Books in Several Languages and in Most Branches of Polite Literature. Also Sundry Maps, Prints and Books of Prints, Together With a Valuable Collection of Philosophical and Mathematical Instruments.
Auction Date: 19–24 December. Advertised in the 19 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
1761
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library of the Late Mr Joseph Mollierini, Deceased; Consisting of a Choice Collection of the Best Authors (Chiefly Upon the Belles Lettres) in the English, French, Italian, Latin and Greek Languages; Many of Which are Exceeding Scarce; Also his Manuscripts, and Some Books of Prints (Among Others) a Fine Copy of Tenier’s Gallery; the Whole in Fine Condition. Several of the Books are Illustrated With the Manuscript Notes and Corrections of the Late Proprietor. (ESTC T491686)
Auction Date: 14–16 February.
Known Copy: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.
A Catalogue of the Genuine and Entire Library of Thomas Clerke, Esq; Barrister at Law, Late of Chancery Lane, Deceased. (ESTC N14881)
Auction Date: 6–13 April.
Known Copies: c(2); hd; digital facsimile of hd copy on ECCO.
Note: One c copy is annotated with prices (almost complete) and purchasers (very sketchy).
A Catalogue of the Large and Valuable Library of Robert Nesbitt, M.D., Fellow of the College of Physicians and of the Royal and Antiquary Societies, Deceased. (ESTC N14882)
Auction Date: 29 July–7 August.
Known Copy: hd; digital facsimile of hd copy on ECCO.
Note: The copy on ECCO is partially annotated with some prices and a few purchasers. The last day of this sale also saw the sale of the “entire copyright, with the plates and original drawings” of Nesbitt’s Human Osteogeny in Two Lectures. A month after this sale, Paterson also sold Nesbitt’s collection of prints, etchings, drawings and books of prints (ESTC T171908).
The Genuine Library of Robert Bedingfield, M.A., Late Fellow of Hertford College, Deceased; Consisting of a Well-chosen Collection of Books in Various Languages, and in Most Branches of Polite Literature.
Auction Date: 6–7 October. Advertised in the 30 September issue of the Public Advertiser.
1762
Sundry Genuine Effects of an Officer Deceased, Consisting of a Marquee and Camp Furniture, Regimental and Other Wearing Apparel, Fire Arms, Mathematical Instruments and Several Curiosities. And in the Evening of the Same Day, to Begin Exactly at Six o’clock, the Neat and Well Chosen Library Consisting Chiefly of the Best Military and Mathematical Books.
Auction Date: Advertised in the 14 April issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of John Locker, Esq., Barrister, Clerk of the Worshipful Company of Leathersellers and Member of the Society of Antiquaries, Deceased; Including a Variety of Scarce and Uncommon Books (Many of Which are by the Early Printers) in Various Languages and Faculties. Also his Collections in Print and Manuscript Towards a Complete Edition of the Complete Works of Lord Bacon than any Other Hitherto Extant.
Auction Date: “Latter end of April.” Advertised in the 14 April issue of the Public Advertiser.
To be Sold by Auction . . . the Entire Stock in Trade of Mr C. G. Seyffert, Bookseller at Homer’s Head near St Alban’s Street.
Auction Date: “From Monday 24 May.” Advertised in the 15 May issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Note: The issue of the newspaper quoted is not in the Burney Collection; information comes from Graham Jefcoate, “German Printing and Bookselling in Eighteenth Century London: Evidence and Interpretation,” Archiv für Geschichte des Buchwesens 57 (2003): 162.
The Remaining Part of the Stock in Trade of Mr C. G. Seyyfert, Bookseller, at Homer’s Head, near St Alban’s Street, Pall Mall, Consisting of a Variety of the Best Modern French, Italian, German, Latin and English Books in Most Branches of Polite Literature.
Auction Date: 16–18 June. Advertised in the 15 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: The lease on Seyffert’s shop, plus his household furniture and other effects, were sold at midday on the Thursday of this sale, the books being auctioned at 6 p.m.
1763
The Genuine Library of Books in Several Languages and Sciences, and Collection of Prints and Drawings of a Gentleman Deceased.
Auction Date: 11–15 February. Advertised in the 11 February issue of the Gazetteer.
The Genuine Library of the Late Right Honourable, Francis, Earl of Bradford, Deceased.
Auction Date: 16 February. Advertised in the 14 February issue of the Gazetteer.
1764
A Catalogue of the Large and Curious English library of Mr John Hutton, Late of St Paul’s Church-Yard. London. (ESTC T3212)
Auction Date: 15 October–22 November. Advertised in the 2 October issue of the St. James’s Chronicle.
Known Copies: l(3), c(2), c5, dur5, l2, o(2), o3; Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Grolier Club, hd, hn; digital facsimile of one l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The copy on ECCO is partially marked up with prices and some purchasers. One of the c copies formerly belonged to William Herbert, who corrected a few Paterson mistakes, added prices, and marked his own purchases with the initials “WH.” John Hutton is something of a mystery. The British Book Trade Index claims that he was a paper stainer, but the death notice in the St. James’s Chronicle for 16 February 1764 states that he was a leather gilder. Either of these could suggest that he had something to do with the book trade, for leather gilder might refer to bookbinding. His address in St. Paul’s Churchyard and the fact that the catalogue listed sixty sets (fifty-seven in sheets and three bound) of Denis de Coetlogon’s Universal History of Arts and Sciences (1745) would support this view. It is unlikely that Paterson would have added the multiple sets of Coetlogon, as he states on the title page that there is “not a single article in this collection but was the property of the deceased Mr Hutton.” Dibdin is silent on the man but said of the catalogue that “the rarest books . . . are printed in italic type,” and that the prices made at the sale were “woeful” (Dibdin, Bibliomania, 2:374).
The Library of a Gentleman Who is Gone Abroad: Comprehending a Variety of Books in Several Languages and in Most Branches of Polite Literature. Also a Small Collection of Music, the Property of a Gentleman Deceased.
Auction Date: 10–13 December. Advertised in the 7 December issue of the Gazetteer.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Collection of Prints and Drawings, Books and Heraldic Manuscripts of Mr Josiah Jones, Late of Vaux-Hall, Painter, Deceased. Also of a Small Library of Books (Chiefly English) Late the Property of a Gentleman Deceased. (ESTC T150842)
Auction Date: 21–24 December. Advertised in the 20 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copy: l; digital facsimile of the l copy available on ECCO.
Note: In December 1759 Paterson had sold another collection of Jones’s books, prints, and manuscripts.
1765
The Genuine Library, Prints, Books of Prints and Drawings of Edward Clark, Esq., Late Commander of His Majesty’s Ship the Liverpool, Deceased: Comprehending a Variety of Well Chosen Books in Several Languages and in Most Branches of Polite Literature; Together With a Very Extensive Collection of Geography, Chorography and Topography, Ancient and Modern, for the Most Part in Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 18–23 February. Advertised in the 13 February issue of the Gazetteer.
The Genuine Library of a Clergyman Deceased Comprehending a Good Collection of Books in Most Languages and Faculties.
Auction Date: 1–4 May. Advertised in the 26 April issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Library of the Late Rev. Mr Mayo, Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, Deceased.
Auction Date: 10–11 May. Advertised in the 9 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of the Rev. Joseph Newton, A.M., Late Rector of Cheverell Wilts; and Vicar of Coleshill, Berks, Deceased.
Auction Date: 10–12 June. Advertised in the 10 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Genuine Library (Chiefly English) of a Gentleman Deceased; Also a Six Foot Telescope, a Pair of Twelve Inch Globes by Cushee.
Auction Date: 14 June. Advertised in the 13 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of the Late Rev. William Wheeler A.M., Rector of Kirk Ireton and Vicar of Chesterfield. Comprehending a Voluminous Body of Theological, Oriental and Classical Learning.
Auction Date: 15–19 October. Advertised in the 14 October issue of the Gazetteer.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including the Libraries of a Physician who is Retired into the Country; and of a Law Student, Deceased. Among Which are Several Scarce and Valuable Articles, and Many of the Entertaining Kind.
Auction Date: 4–7 December. Advertised in the 4 December issue of the Gazetteer.
A Small Library of Books, Chiefly English, Some Music, a Collection of Prints and Drawings by Various Masters and Some Copper-plates, Among Which is Anatomy Improved and Illustrated for the Use of Painters and Sculptors, With a Set of Statues After the Antique, Finely engraved by Sturt, Vander, Gucht and Others.
Auction Date: 30–31 December. Advertised in 28 December issue of the Gazetteer.
Note: The work mentioned in the advertisement was by Charles Errand and was republished by the globemaker and bookseller John Senex between 1719 and 1740.
1766
Part of the Genuine Household Furniture and Other Effects of a Person of Distinction, Lately Deceased; Consisting of a Variety of Four Post and Other Bedsteads and Furniture; Featherbeds, Sconce and Chimney Glasses, Genoa Damask Curtains, Mahogany Chairs and Japan Cabinets and China, Table Linen, Kitchen Utensils, and a Small Library of Books, Among Which is a Complete Set of the Journals of the House of Commons.
Auction Date: 13–14 January. Advertised in the 8 January issue of the Gazetteer.
A Collection of Books, Chiefly Modern English; Being the Remaining Part of the Stock in Trade of a Country Bookseller Who Has Left Off Business.
Auction Date: 6–8 February. Advertised in the 4 February issue of the Gazetteer.
The Genuine Library of Nathaniel Neal Esq., Solicitor in Chantry and Secretary to the Million Bank, Lately Deceased. Including Many Valuable Books, Chiefly English, Together with a Complete Collection of the Chancery-practice, Common-law Abridgements &c. Also a Neat Mahogany Book Case and a Mahogany Library Table.
Auction Date: 13–14 February. Advertised in the 5 February issue of the Gazetteer.
The Genuine Library of the Rev. Mr Du Boulay, Late One of the Ministers of the French Church of London, Deceased. Comprehending a Fine Collection of the Best French Writers, Together with a Complete System of Protestant Divinity. The Whole in an Elegant Condition. Also a Large Book Case and a Neat Mahogany Library Table.
Auction Date: 17–18 February. Advertised in the 5 February issue of the Gazetteer.
By Order of the Assignees Under a Commission of Bankruptcy a Neat Library of Books, Comprehending a Good Collection of Medical and Chemical Authors, Many of Which are Very Scarce; Also a Great Number of the Most Approved Italian and French Writers.
Auction Date: 26–27 February. Advertised in the 5 February issue of the Gazetteer.
Note: This auction was originally advertised to take place on 10–12 February. For some reason the sale was postponed and re-advertised in the Gazetteer on 8 February. The sale of the bankrupt’s other “sundry valuable effects” did take place as originally advertised on 12 February.
A Valuable Collection of Hebraical and Oher Manuscripts, Many of Which Were Purchased Several Years Since, at the Sale of the Library of the Late John Warburton, Esq., Somerset Herald Deceased; Among Which are Visitations of the Counties of Middlesex, Essex, Hertfordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Durham &c. . . . Together With a Small Library of Printed Books, Chiefly English.
Auction Date: 7–8 March. Advertised in the 1 March issue of the Gazetteer.
Note: Paterson had auctioned Warburton’s library in November 1759.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library of Books in Print and Manuscript, and Collection of Prints and Drawings of the Late Revd. and Learned William Stukeley, M.D. (ESTC T150848)
Auction Date: 28 April–3 May. Advertised in the 22 April issue of the Gazetteer.
Known Copies: l, o; Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin. A facsimile is available in Stuart Piggott, ed., Sales Catalogues of Libraries of Eminent Persons, Vol. 10, Antiquaries (London: Mansell, 1974).
Note: The catalogue contains a very large number of impressions of Stukeley’s own works, including copies annotated with his own additions and corrections. The copper plates to these works were auctioned by Paterson in the sale of Stukeley’s coins, medals, and antiquities 15–16 May.
The Genuine Library of a Barrister, Deceased, Including a Variety of Historical, Juridical and Miscellaneous Books, Parliamentary History, Journals, Debates, &c.
Auction Date: 12–13 May. Advertised in the 10 May issue of the Gazetteer.
The Genuine Library of Mr Daniel Scott, Late of Walbrook, Apothecary, Deceased; Including Part of the Library of the Late Learned Dan Scott, J.U.D., Editor of the Appendix to Stephen’s Greek Thesaurus.
Auction Date: 23–28 June. Advertised in the 21 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
Note: The sale was originally advertised in the 10 May issue of the Gazetteer for a sale commencing 19 May. It was postponed and re-advertised in the Public Advertiser.
A Small Library of Books in Various Languages Many of Which Relate to Arts and Manufactories; a Collection of Prints and Drawings, Some Pictures, Figures in Plaister, Minerals and Fossils, Coins and Medals, Mahogany Book Cases and Cabinets and Other Curiosities, the Genuine Collection of Mr Nichols Crisp who is Retiring into the Country.
Auction Date: 7–8 August. Advertised in the 4 August issue of the Public Advertiser.
1767
A Catalogue of a Fine Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Lately Made in the Provinces o Utrecht and Holland, Chiefly From the Libraries of the Late Rt. Hon. Ferdinando Cary, Lord Hunsdon of Alphen; the Reverend and Learned Dr Conrad Bremer of Utrecht, and Henry Justice, Esq., of Rotterdam, Deceased. (ESTC N482999)
Auction Date: 7–9 January.
Known Copy: Getty Center.
A Catalogue of the Large and Curious Library, in Print and Manuscript, of a Clergyman who is Retiring into the Country. (ESTC T150849)
Auction Date: 8 April.
Known Copies: l; hd.
Note: The copy held in the Department of Manuscripts of the British Library has some annotations.
A Catalogue of a Genuine Cabinet of Roman, British, Saxon and a Series of English Coins, and Some Medals; a Collection of Prints and Drawings, and Some Choice Books of Mr George Fleming. (ESTC T30345)
Auction Date: 2–3 June.
Known Copies: British Museum Department of Coins and Medals, o34.
Note: The copy in the Department of Coins and Medals of the British Museum is partly annotated. The “choice books” are small in number, a mere forty-two lots.
1768
A Catalogue of Sundry Effects of the Late John Jam. Rouby, M.D., Deceased, Consisting of his Entire Library of Books, Collection of English and Foreign Minerals . . . and Several Other Articles.
Auction Date: 5–7 March.
Known Copy: l19. Not in ESTC.
A Catalogue of the Entire Cabinet of . . . Coins and Medals; Together With the Library of Mr Edward Roberts (Surgeon) Late of Croydon in Surrey, Deceased. (ESTC T30345)
Auction Date: 8–9 March.
Known Copies: British Museum Department of Coins and Medals, o34, d; digital facsimile of the d copy available on ECCO.
Note: The coins and medals section of the catalogue on ECCO is partially marked up with prices (complete) and purchasers (incomplete); the library catalogue is not marked up.
A Catalogue of an Elegant Library of Rare and Valuable Books, Chiefly English, Most of Which Relate to Natural History, Antiquities, and the Polite Arts. The Major Part in Morocco, Russia and Other Bindings. (ESTC N14658)
Auction Date: 15–18 June.
Known Copies: o34(2); f, Getty Center, hd; digital facsimile of the hd copy available on ECCO.
Note: Some prices and purchasers are marked in the copy on ECCO.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library of the Reverend Mr Richard Baron, Late of Blackheath, Deceased. Comprehending a Large Collection of Books and Tracts, Chiefly English, Upon Curious and Important Subjects, Many of Which are Very Rare, Including a Great Variety of Tracts in the Puritanical and Republican Controversies. Several of the Books are Illustrated With the Manuscript Notes of the Late Proprietor and the Names of a Great Number of Anonymous Writers are Restored. (ESTC T491680)
Auction Date: 4–8 July.
Known Copy: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.
Note: George Kearsley, bookseller of Ludgate Street, sold Baron’s manuscripts and other papers later the same year.
A Catalogue of a Select Study of Books, in Several Languages and Sciences, Including a Valuable Collection of Natural History and Medicine. (ESTC N27000)
Auction Date: 3 December.
Known Copy: hd; digital facsimile of the hd copy available on ECCO.
Note: The prices in the ECCO copy are almost complete; named purchasers are very patchy.
A Catalogue of the Large and Valuable Library of the Late Reverend and Learned Nathl. Lardner, D.D., Deceased; Comprehending a Voluminous Body of Divinity.
Auction Date: 5–14 December.
Known Copies: dur5; y. Not in ESTC
1769
Elegant Library of a Person of Distinction Including a Choice Collection of the Most Approved English and French Writers (Chiefly Modern).
Auction Date: 22 January.
Known Copy: Getty Center. Not in ESTC.
A Catalogue of the Entire Cabinet of Coins and Medals, Collections of Old China, Books and Other Effects of Mr Richard Sherman, Late of Holborn, Deceased. (ESTC T30255)
Auction Date: 15–16 March.
Known Copies: British Museum Department of Coins and Medals, o34, d; digital facsimile of the d copy available on ECCO.
Note: The books amounted to seventy-one lots in total. The copy on ECCO is marked up with prices, and a few purchasers, for the coins and medals.
[The Library of James Parsons F.R.S.]
Auction Date: 7 June and the following days.
Note: According to Nichols Illustrations, Paterson sold this library under the designator “an eminent physician . . . retiring into the country.” The Entire Cabinet of Fossils, Minerals, Petrefactions [etc.] of “an eminent physician . . . retiring into the country” was also sold by Paterson on Thursday June 22, having been advertised in the Gazetteer on 20 June (Nichols, Literary Anecdotes, 5:489).
A Large and Valuable Collection of Books, Chiefly English, Being the Library of a Gentleman Deceased.
Auction Date: 13–14 December. Advertised in the 13 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
1770
The Elegant Library of a Person of Distinction, Comprehending a Choice Collection of the Most Approved English and French Writers, Chiefly Modern, in Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 24–25 January. Advertised in the 24 January issue of the Public Advertiser.
The Library of Will. Stark, M.D., Deceased, in Which are Several Curious Books in Medicine and Natural History, and the Polite Arts.
Auction Date: 13–14 June. Advertised in the 8 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including the Law Study of a Barrister, Deceased, in Which are Several Scarce Law Books and a Complete Set of the Journals of the House of Commons, With the Reports, 35 volumes folio.
Auction Date: 15 June. Advertised in the 8 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including the Library of Will Guthrie, Esq., Author of the Histories of England and Scotland, &c. Deceased.
Auction Date: 19 June and the following evenings. Advertised in the 8 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Catalogue of the Entire and Inestimable Apparatus for Lectures in Midwifery, Contrived with Consummate Judgement and Executed With Infinite Labour, by the Late Ingenious Dr William Smellie, Deceased . . . Together With a Small Study of Medical Books and Some Anatomical Prints.
Auction Date: 29 June. Advertised in the 8 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copy: l19. Not in ESTC.
Note: The small study of books contained 56 titles sold in twenty-five lots. In addition fourteen sets of Smellie’s Anatomical Tables (1754) were also on offer.
A Select Study of German, French, Latin and Some English Books in Various Branches of Literature, but Chiefly in Physic, Chemistry, Natural History and Philosophy; Being the Genuine Library of a Foreign Gentleman who is Going Abroad.
Auction Date: 5 July. Advertised in the 5 July issue of the Gazetteer.
The Elegant Library of English Books with the Mahogany and Other Book Cases, and Prints and Drawings of Joseph Barbaroux, Late of Hackney, Deceased.
Auction Date: 20–22 December. Advertised in the 20 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
1771
The Elegant English Library and Mahogany Book Case, With Glass Doors, of John Knapton, Esq., Late of Richmond.
Auction Date: 1–2 February. Advertised in the 30 January issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Note: John Knapton had been a bookseller of Ludgate Street who had died the previous September.
The Genuine Library of the Late Rev. Dignitary, Deceased, Comprehending a Great Variety of Books, Ancient and Modern, in Various Languages and Sciences.
Auction Date: 14–15 February. Advertised in the 14 February issue of the Gazetteer.
A Catalogue of the Entire Library in Print and Manuscript, Chiefly Heraldic and Genealogical, of the Late Mr Robert Morris, Herald Painter to His Majesty, Deceased. Including a Great Number of Manuscript Visitations, Pedigrees, Ordinaries, Grants and Alphabets of Arms and Other Heraldic Collections. (ESTC T98423)
Auction Date: 19 February and the following evenings. Advertised in the 20 February issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copy: l.
Note: The l copy has some annotations.
Bibliotheca Anglica Curiosa. A Catalogue of Several Thousand Printed Books and Tracts (Chiefly English) in Every Branch of Knowledge. Part I. (ESTC T72217)
Auction Date: 25 March–4 April. Advertised in the 25 March issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, c, o; cal; digital facsimile of l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The c copy is marked up with prices.
Bibliotheca Anglica Curiosa. A Catalogue of Several Thousand Printed Books and Tracts (Chiefly English) in Every Branch of Knowledge. Part II. (ESTC T72218)
Auction Date: 29 April–17 May. Advertised in the 2 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, o, cal; digital facsimile of l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The cal copy is marked up with prices.
Bibliotheca Anglica Curiosa. A Catalogue of Several Thousand Printed Books and Tracts (Chiefly English) in Every Branch of Knowledge. Part III. (ESTC T72219)
Auction Date: 22 May–5 June. Advertised in the 18 May issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, o; cal; digital facsimile of l copy available on ECCO.
A Curious Library of Uncommon Books in Various Languages Collected With a View to Compile a History of Printing: Consisting of Primitive Editions of the Classics; Those Printed by Aldus, Elzevir, Colineus, &c. English Black Letter by Caxton, Wynkin de Worde, &c. Missales, Exposed to Sale in Fine Condition, Several in Morocco and Almost All Gilt and Lettered. To Which is Added the Library of a Country Clergyman, Lately Deceased; Including a Good Collection of Divinity, History and Antiquities. (ESTC T162101)
Auction Date: 21–23 December. Advertised in the 21 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
Known Copy: birm2.
1772
The Genuine Library of the Rev. Mr Samuel Savage. Late of Edmonton, Deceased; To Which is Added the Neat Study of a Gentleman Gone Abroad, Comprehending a Choice Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences.
Auction Date: 20–22 February. Advertised in the 15 February issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences Including the Study of a Person of Distinction Gone Abroad.
Auction Date: 27–29 February. Advertised in the 25 February issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Stock in Trade of Messrs Toft and Lobb, Late of Chelmsford, Booksellers; Consisting of a Large Assortment of Old and New Books, Patent Medicines, &c.
Auction Date: 20–21 March. Advertised in the 20 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Catalogue of the Library of the Late Reverend and Learned John Gill D.D. Comprehending a Fine Collection of Biblical and Oriental Literature. (ESTC T163933)
Auction Date: 30–31 March. Advertised in the 26 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copy: c; digital facsimile of the c copy available on ECCO.
Note: The c copy is marked up with prices but no purchasers.
The Genuine Library of the Rev Mr Barnouin, Deceased, Including Several Valuable Articles in Theological and Classical Learning. Also a Neat Collection of Prints (Chiefly Modern) of the First Impressions.
Auction Date: 9–11 April. Advertised in the 6 April issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Collection of Books, Chiefly English, Including Part of the Library of a Person of Distinction, Deceased; Among Which are Some Scarce and Valuable Articles Relating to English History and Antiquities.
Auction Date: 17–18 April. Advertised in the 16 April issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Catalogue of a Choice Collection of Books Antient and Modern, in Various Languages and Sciences, and in Neat Condition, Lately Made in the Netherlands. (ESTC T72216)
Auction Date: 6–20 May. Advertised in the 10 April issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l; cal, y; digital facsimile of the l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The l copy is priced throughout.
A Catalogue of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including the Library of the Rev. Mr Burroughs, Rector of Shinfield, Hants, Deceased.
Auction Date: Advertised in the 8 June issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of John Hannam Esq., Barrister, Late of New Inn, Deceased; Comprehending a Good Collection of English Miscellanies and Many of the Best Modern Law Books.
Auction Date: Advertised in the 9 December issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Valuable Library of Foreign Books, Antient and Modern, Including a Fine Collection of the Best Editions of the Classics, Many Valuable Books of Natural History and the Most Esteemed French Writers.
Auction Date: 28 December–2 January (1773). Advertised in the 21 December issue of the Daily Advertiser.
1773
Bibliotheca Westiana; a Catalogue of the Curious and Truly Valuable Library of the Late James West. (ESTC T3188)
Auction Date: 29 March–24 April. Advertised in the 4 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l(4), birm, Brighton Central Library, c(2), c5, l16, o(3), o9, m; aas, cal2, Carnegie-Mellon University, chi, f, Getty Center, Grolier Club, hn, ill, jh, lc, mh(2), McMaster University, Missouri Botanical Garden, min, n, Rutgers, tex, y; digital facsimile of one l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The library was auctioned by Messrs. Langford, but the catalogue was compiled by Paterson, or as the title page put it, “digested by Samuel Paterson.” Several extant copies are interleaved and marked up with prices and purchasers.
An Elegant Study, Consisting Chiefly of the Best Modern English Books, the Property of a Gentleman Going Abroad.
Auction Date: 10 August. Advertised in the 9 August issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Collection of Books, Antient and Modern, in Various Languages and Sciences; Including the Library of a Physician Deceased.
Auction Date: 18–22 October. Advertised in the 16 October issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Library of a Late Eminent Divine, Deceased, Comprehending a Large Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, to Which is Added the Study of a Gentleman, in Which are Several New Books Relating to English Antiquities.
Auction Date: 21–24 December. Advertised in the 21 December issue of the Daily Advertiser.
1774
A Neat Study of Books, Chiefly English and Sundry Mahogany Book Cases and Cabinets, Late the Property of a Gentleman Deceased.
Auction Date: 3 March. Advertised in the 1 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Bibliotheca Snellingiana; the Curious Library of the Late Ingenious Thomas Snelling, Bookseller and Medallist, Deceased, Comprehending an Uncommon Collection of Books, Tracts and Manuscripts Upon Coins and Medals; Commerce and Finance; Tactics and the Art Military; Besides Which are Several Relating to British Topography and the History and Antiquities of Various Nations. (ESTC T21624)
Auction Date: 14–22 March. Advertised in the 1 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l, o; hn.
Note: The copies at hn and o are marked up with prices and purchasers.
The Library of the Rev. Mr Osgood, Late Master of the Free Grammar School at Horsham in Sussex, Deceased.
Auction Date: 4–5 April. Advertised in the 31 March issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of the Reverend John Scott, M.A., Late of Hertford.
Auction Date: 30 May. Advertised in the 20 May issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Note: Unusually for Paterson’s book auctions, this sale was held outside London at St. Andrew’s Parsonage House, Hertford.
Bibliotheca Monastica-Fletewodiana. A Catalogue of Rare Books and Tracts in Various Languages and Faculties; Including the Antient Conventual Library of Missenden Abbey in Buckinghamshire; Together with Some Choice Remains of the Late Eminent William Fletewode, Esq., Recorder of London in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth. (ESTC T77175)
Auction Date: 5–24 December. Advertised in the 30 November issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l(2), o(2), m(2); Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; cal(2), f, Grolier Club, hd; digital facsimile of one l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The copy at hd and one of the copies from l are marked up with prices and purchasers. The l copy on ECCO is not the one with the annotations.
1775
The Genuine Library of George Wingfield, Esq., Late of Lincoln’s Inn, Deceased.
Auction Date: “Beginning of Hilary Term.” Advertised in the 31 December 1774 issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of the Rev. Thomas Amory, D.D., Deceased.
Auction Date: 25–27 January. Advertised in the 18 January issue of the Daily Advertiser.
1776
A Large Collection of Books, Consisting of Upwards of 2000 Volumes, Many of Which are Very Rare. Including Part of the Library of an Eminent Collector; the Libraries of Two Clergymen and Some Books Lately Imported From Abroad, Among Which are a Large Collection of English History, Some of the Old English Plays and Early Printed Works, a Choice Collection of English Sermons, Some Classics and Many of the Best Modern Books, Both French and English.
Auction Date: 22 February–2 March. Advertised in the 15 February issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Choice Collection of Books Lately Imported; Consisting Chiefly of the Best Editions of the Greek and Roman Classics, Bound in Vellum, and in Very Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 29 March. Advertised in the 27 March issue of the Public Advertiser.
1778
A Choice Collection of Greek, Latin, Oriental, Italian, Spanish, French and English Books, in Various Sciences, and Upon Most Subjects of Critical and Polite Literature, Many of Which are Very Scarce; Including a Great Number of the Best and Rarest Editions of the Greek and Roman Classics, for the Most Part in Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 19–25 June. Advertised in the 17 June issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of Books in Various Languages, Chiefly in Natural History, Philosophy, Agriculture and the Polite Arts, Mahogany Bookcases, Philosophical and Optical Instruments, a Choice Collection of Prints and Drawings, Many of Which are Very Fine; Together With Part of the Elegant Household Furniture of a Distinguished Collector and F.R.S.
Auction Date: 8–11 July. Advertised in the 6 July issue of the Daily Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of James Walker M.D., Consisting of a Numerous Collection of Books in Various Branches of Literature, Chiefly in the Latin, French, Italian and Spanish Languages, Many of Which are Very Rare and For the Most Part Collected by Daniel Mackencher Esq., Deceased.
Auction Date: 28 August–1 September. Advertised in the 25 August issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Select Cabinet of Foreign Ores, Minerals and Petrefactions, a Material Medica, Sundry Choice Anatomical Preparations, and Other Subjects of Natural History, Together With a Small Study in Various Languages and Sciences, Including Many Chemical and Hermetical Books, the Property of a Physician and F.R.S.
Auction Date: 4 September and the following days. Advertised in the 27 August issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copy: l19. Not in ESTC.
Note: The copy in l19 is imperfect and partially marked up with prices for the anatomical preparations.
The Genuine Study of the Late Mr John Sketchley, Surgeon of Gosport, Deceased; Including Many of the Best Modern English, French, Medical and Chirurgical Books.
Auction Date: 23 October. Advertised in the 20 October issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Neat Collection of Modern English Books, a Choice Assortment of the Best Modern Musick, Sundry Blank Musick Books and Musick Paper, a Fine Toned Double Keyed Harpsichord by Rhublrg, Some Bookcases with Glass Doors, a Large Parcel of Bookbinders Tools, a Rolling Press and Other Presses, the Property of a Bookseller Retiring From Business.
Auction Date: 12–13 November. Advertised in the 10 November issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Choice Collection of Books in Various Languages and Upon Most Branches of Polite Literature, Including Several Editions of the Classicks, and Many of the Most Approved English, French, Italian and Spanish Writers; the Whole in Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 16–18 November. Advertised in the 10 November issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Large Collection of Books, Chiefly English, Including the Entire Libraries of a Late Eminent Divine and of a Schoolmaster and Teacher of Modern Languages, Both Deceased; Comprehending a Great Variety of Books in Most Branches of Knowledge, More Especially in Theology, History, Antiquities, Philosophy, Mathematics and Belles Lettres, Together With a Great Number of Modern Novels, Miscellaneous and School Books.
Auction Date: 19–24 December. Advertised in the 9 December issue of the Public Advertiser.
1779
A Catalogue of the Valuable Library of William Fraigneau, Formerly Greek Professor at Cambridge. (ESTC N36234)
Auction Date: 3 March and the following evenings.
Known Copy: California State Library-Sutro.
Bibliotheca Moresiana; a Catalogue of the Large and Valuable Library of Printed Books, Rare Old Tracts, Manuscripts, Prints and Drawings, Copper Plates, Sundry Antiquities, Philosophical Instruments and Oher Curiosities, of That Eminent British Antiquary the Late Rev. and Learned Edward Rowe Mores, F.A.S., Deceased. (ESTC T21599)
Auction Date: 2–20 August.
Known Copies: l, c, l41; Providence Public Library; digital facsimile of the l copy available on ECCO.
Note: The copy from l is marked up with prices. In June 1781 Paterson also sold Mores’s “sundry printing materials,” and in June 1783 he sold John James’s letter foundry that had, according to the advertisement, been “improved” by Mores.
The Genuine Library of a Gentleman: Comprehending a Miscellaneous Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences; Also an Elegant Study of Best Modern English Books; a Neat Mahogany Bookcase With Glass Doors; a Compleat Portable Printing Press and Types, a Microscope and Other Philosophical Instruments.
Auction Date: 15–18 December. Advertised in the 11 December issue of the Morning Post.
1780
A Select Library, Including the Entire Study of a Gentleman Lately Deceased. Consisting Chiefly of the Best Modern English Books, in Fine Condition, a Collection of Music, an Elegant Mahogany Book Case, With Venetian Glass Doors, and a Neat Mahogany Reading Table.
Auction Date: 11–17 February. Advertised in the 4 February issue of the Morning Post.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including a Neat Study of Modern English Books, Fine Music and a Variety of Musical Instruments, Among Which are Five Fine Toned Violins, a Violoncello, a Guitar, a Bassoon, a German Flute, a Pair of Octave Ditto, &c.
Auction Date: 7–8 March. Advertised in the 6 March issue of the Morning Post.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Collection of Pictures and Drawings; Prints and Books of Prints, and Library of Printed Books and Manuscripts of William Justice. (ESTC T97204)
Auction Date: 25–29 March.
Known Copy: l.
Note: The l copy is partially annotated with prices and purchasers.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library of Sir Charles Whitworth. (ESTC T491690)
Auction Date: 30 March.
Known Copies: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, paris.
Note: The paris copy not listed in ESTC.
The Library of the Late Worshipful John Bettesworth, L.L.D., Chancellor of the Diocese of London, Deceased.
Auction Date: 4–6 May. Advertised in the 29 April issue of the Morning Post.
The Library of the Late Reverend and Learned James King, D.D., Rector of Cheam in Surrey, Deceas’d; Comprehending a Good Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, in Neat Condition.
Auction Date: 13–17 June. Advertised in the 10 June issue of the Public Advertiser.
A Select Study of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including Several Esteemed Editions of Greek and Roman Classics; an Exceeding Fine Copy of Field’s Bible, Large Paper Embellished with Hollar’s and Visscher’s Cuts, 2 vols Folio in Morocco: the Paris Encyclopedie 28 vols Folio, and Other Valuable Articles; Sundry Mahogany Book Cases and Cabinets, a Mahogany Library Table and Other Effects of a Gentleman, Gone Abroad.
Auction Date: 21–22 August. Advertised in the 18 August issue of the Morning Post.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including a Considerable Part of the Library of A Right Rev Prelate, Deceased. Among Other Curious Books are Several Italian Plays.
Auction Date: 18–23 December. Advertised in the 18 December issue of the Morning Herald.
A Neat Study of Modern English Books in Elegant Condition, Sundry Philosophical and Optical Instruments; Among Others a Large and Fine Concave Mirror 26 Inches Diameter, a Curious Cannon, a Fine Tuned Harpsichord by Hitchcock, and Some Mahogany Book Cases.
Auction Date: 21 December. Advertised in the 19 December issue of the Morning Herald.
1781
The Law Library of an Eminent Practitioner, Deceased; Comprehending a Good Collection of the Common and Statute Law Books of the Realm.
Auction Date: 23–24 March. First advertised in the 26 January issue of the Morning Herald. For some reason the sale was delayed and the auction was re-advertised in the 22 March issue of the Morning Chronicle.
The Library of a Late Eminent Divine of the County of Stafford, Deceased.
Auction Date: 6–7 April. Originally advertised in the 26 January issue of the Morning Herald, the sale was delayed and re-advertised in the 22 March issue of the Morning Chronicle.
The Neat Study of Books of a Gentleman Deceased, Including Sundry English and French Miscellanies, Several Good Medical Writers, &c.
Auction Date: 7 April. Advertised in the 6 April issue of the Morning Chronicle.
Bibliotheca Beauclerkiana. A Catalogue of the Large and Valuable Library of the Late Honourable Topham Beauclerk F.R.S. Deceased; Comprehending an Excellent Choice of Books, to the Number of Upwards of Thirty Thousand Volumes in Most Languages, and Upon Almost Every Branch of Science and Polite Literature. (ESTC T21572)
Auction Date: 9 April–6 June.
Known Copies: l(5), c, c5, birm2, d, d5, d6, l16, leeds, m, National Trust (2), nlw, o9(2), o(2), o24, o16, Royal Geographical Society; aas, bo, bo2, chi, cor, cu, Grolier Club, hn(2), ill, lc, Library of Virginia, McMaster University, min, n, ncu, ny, ny8, Ohio State Library, pn, tex(2), y; nla(2); Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Private Collection; digital facsimile of one l copy available on ECCO.
Note: This auction was first advertised, well in advance of the actual sale, in the 30 November 1780 issue of the Morning Chronicle. Here it was stated that “catalogues . . . ready soon after Christmas and may be had at P. Elmsley’s opposite Southampton Street in the Strand.” Later advertisements said the sale would start “the latter end of March or the beginning of April” and revealed that Paterson would be the auctioneer and catalogues were available from him and Elmsley. Several extant copies are marked up with prices; the c copy also contains the names of a very few purchasers.
The Library of Printed Books, Tracts and Valuable Manuscripts, Philosophical Instruments, Material Medica, Minerals, Chemical Processes, Chemical Apparatus, Implements in Various Arts and Mechanics (Watchmaking, Engraving, Carpentry, Turnery &c) and Other Effects of the Learned and Ingenious William Lewis, M.D., F.R.S.
Auction Date: 23 May and the following days. Advertised in the 18 May issue of the Morning Herald.
Note: In order to avoid the Beauclerk sale which started at 12 noon, this sale started at 5:30 in the evening.
A Neat Study of Foreign and English Books, in Various Branches of Polite Literature. Also a Collection of Prints and Some Neat Drawings, Several of Which are Perspective Views Taken on the Spot, Chiefly in the Counties of Kent and Surrey.
Auction Date: 27 June. Advertised in the 27 June issue of the Morning Chronicle.
The Genuine Library of the Late Dr Gilbert Kennedy, F.R.S., Many Years Physician to the British Factory at Lisbon, Deceased. Comprehending a Good Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Particularly in Philosophy and Medicine, Classical and Philological Literature. Among Other Valuable Articles Auctores Classici ad Usum Delph. 62 To. 4to. Uniformly Bound. Caesaris Comment. Sam. Clarke; fig., fol. Bluteau’s Portugese and Latin Dictionary With the Supp. 10 To. fol.
Auction Date: 29 October–3 November. Advertised in the 29 October issue of the Morning Chronicle.
A Catalogue and Specimen of Sundry Printing Materials Together With a Printing Press and a Rolling Press. (ESTC T127814)
Auction Date: 20 November. Advertised in the 17 November issue of the Morning Chronicle.
Known Copy: l; digital facsimile of l copy on ECCO.
Note: A manuscript note on the title page tells us that these printing materials had belonged to Edward Rowe Mores. Paterson had sold Mores’s library in August 1779, and in June 1783 he sold John James’s letter foundry that according to the advertisement had been “improved” by Mores.
A Catalogue of the Library, Philosophical and Mathematical Instruments, Fire-arms, and Other Effects of the Late Mr Archibald Chalmers, A.M. Formerly of the Mareschal College of Aberdeen, and Master of an Academy at Little Chelsea, Deceased. (ESTC T491683)
Auction Date: Advertised in the 17 November issue of the Morning Chronicle.
Known Copy: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin.
A Catalogue of Part of the Library of a Barrister, Deceased; Comprehending a Variety of Historical, Juridical and Miscellaneous Books, in Several Languages. (ESTC T31448)
Auction Date: 5 December.
Known Copy: l.
Note: The entry in ESTC says “the library was Isaac Reed’s” and records that this copy is annotated with “MS prices and auctioneer’s account to Reed” tipped in. Paterson’s account to Reed makes it quite clear that it was not Reed’s library. This view is supported by a note on the title page which reads: “those books wch have no prices to them were put in by the Auctioneer. Those with a mark against them were put in by I. Reed.” This evidence suggests that Reed was acting as executor of an unknown barrister. The tipped-in account is the only evidence that I have seen which gives an indication of what Paterson charged for preparing an auction. His printed conditions of sale (which are widely available in newspaper advertisements and his catalogues) make it clear that he took ten percent on all sales, and this account reveals that he charged fifteen shillings for removing the books from “Staple Inn” and three guineas for “making a digested catalogue.” The sale lasted three days, so we might conclude Paterson charged one guinea for cataloguing each day of a sale.
1782
Bibliotheca Eruditissima Classica et Philologica. The Genuine Large and Valuable Library of a Gentleman Comprehending a Fine Collection of Books in Various Languages, but More Particularly in Classical, Philological, Biblical and Oriental Literature. (ESTC T30384)
Auction Date: 1–10 January. Advertised in the 28 December 1781 issue of the Morning Chronicle.
Known Copy: l.
Note: The l copy is annotated with prices.
The Library of a Gentleman of the Law Deceased. Among Which are the Following: Cases in the House of Lords – Ruffhead’s Statutes, 12 vols. – Rymer’s Foedera, 20 vols. – Acts as Originally Published, 55 vols. – State Trials by Hargrave – Year Books, 7 vols. – Burrows – Bulstrode – P.Williams – Stranges – Raymonds – Ventris’s &c., &c.
Auction Date: 8 January. Advertised in the 8 December 1781 issue of the Morning Herald.
A Catalogue of the Large and Valuable Library, Prints, Manuscripts, Missals, a Complete Portable Printing Press, &c. of the Late J. Stuart Esq., Deceased. Comprehending a Good Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences (Chiefly English) Many of Which Relate to the History, Antiquities and Laws of Great Britain and Ireland. (ESTC T150850)
Auction Date: 11–21 February. Advertised in the 15 February issue of the Morning Herald.
Known Copy: l.
Note: The l copy is annotated with prices and purchasers.
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library of an Eminent Physician and Fellow of the Royal Society, Including a Great Number of Excellent Books in Various Languages and Sciences. (ESTC T227253)
Auction Date: 4–8 March. Advertised in the 2 March issue of the Morning Chronicle.
Known Copy: l; digital facsimile of the l copy on ECCO.
A Catalogue of the Library and Philosophical Instruments of the Late Rev. and Learned George Costard, A.M., Vicar of Twickenham and Formerly of Wadham College, Oxford, Deceased . . . to Which is Added the Small Study of Books, Chiefly English, and Collection of Prints and Books of Prints of a Gentleman. (ESTC T78003)
Auction Date: 19–22 March.
Known Copy: l; digital facsimile of the l copy available on ECCO.
Note: A further copy, which is annotated, is in the Townley Archive in the British Museum.
The Library of Thomas Francis, Esq., Late of the Treasury, Deceased, Including Many Valuable Articles in Various Branches of Literature; English History and Antiquities; Common and Statute Law Books, &c.
Auction Date: [May–June]. Advertised in the 16 May issue of Parker’s General Advertiser as being on sale “within a few days.”
A Catalogue and Specimen of the Large and Extensive Printing-type-foundery of the Late Ingenious Mr John James, Letter-founder, Formerly of Bartholomew Close, London, Deceased; Including Several other Founderies, English and Foreign. Improved by the Late Reverend and Learned Edward Rowe Mores, Deceased. (ESTC N15419)
Auction Date: 5–8 June. Advertised in the 16 May issue of Parker’s General Advertiser.
Known Copies: Grolier Club; Providence Public Library; a facsimile copy is available in Oxford Bibliographical Society Publications, new series, vol. 9.
Note: Paterson had sold Mores’s library in August 1779 and his “sundry printing materials” in June 1781. c has a photocopy obtained by D. B. Updike for the use of Stanley Morison.
Sundry Modern English Books and a Large Collection of Prints and Books of Prints, Including Many Excellent Mezzotintos, Various Portraits, English and Foreign, and Other Engravings, Chiefly by Modern Masters.
Auction Date: 19–24 December. Advertised in the 19 December issue of Parker’s General Advertiser.
1783
A Genuine Library of Foreign and English Books.
Auction Date: 2 January and the following evenings. Advertised in the 24 December 1782 issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Catalogue of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, Including Several in Medicine and Natural History; Some Scarce Editions of the Classicks and Modern Latin Poets, and a Great Variety of French and Italian History, Poetry and Miscellanies. (ESTC N493339)
Auction Date: 10–14 January. Advertised in the 11 January issue of the Daily Advertiser.
Known Copies: l16(2).
Note: One of the l16 copies is partially marked up with prices.
A Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences Amongst Which are Several Very Rare; Also a Fine Collection of Musick by Several of the Best Modern Composers.
Auction Date: 17–21 January. Advertised in the 14 January issue of the Daily Advertiser.
A Select Part of the Library of the Late Learned Professor Charles Benjamin Longnich, Deceased, Consigned from Dantzic. Including Several Scarce Books, and the Whole in Fine Condition.
Auction Date: 28 February and the following evening. Advertised in the 11 February issue of Parker’s General Advertiser.
The Genuine Library of the Late Learned Colin Hossack, M.D., Physician to his Late Royal Highness Frederic Prince of Wales; Translator and Abridger of Van Swieten’s Commentaries, &c., Lately Deceased. (ESTC N493338)
Auction Date: 17–20 March. Advertised in the 11 February issue of Parker’s General Advertiser, the sale to commence 24 February. The sale was obviously delayed and held a month later.
Known Copies: l16(2).
Note: One of the l16 copies is annotated with prices.
Bibliotheca Croftsiana; a Catalogue of the Curious and Distinguished Library of the Late Reverend and Learned Thomas Crofts, A.M., Chancellor of the Diocese of Peterborough and Fellow of the Royal and Antiquary Societies, Deceased. (ESTC T21578)
Auction Date: 7 April–27 May. First advertised, well in advance of the sale, in the 23 December 1782 issue of Parker’s General Advertiser.
Known Copies: l(6), c(2), c9, d5, g2, d6, e, nor, o(5), o4, o9, o24, o30, Sheffield Central Library, Southwark Libraries, m(2), leeds, l16; aas, bo, Buffalo and Erie County Public, California State Library-Sutro, cor, Duke University, Getty Center, Grolier Club, hd(2), hn, ill, ind, kan, lc, McMaster University, ny, n, ph, pml, Trinity College, tex(2), toronto, y; Amsterdam Universiteitsbibliothek, Niedersachsische Staats und Universiatsbibliothek, Statsbibliothek zu Berlin
Note: After the auction Paterson issued a printed booklet, Tabula pretoirum bibliothecae Croftsianae, secundum ordinem venditionis (ESTC N30353), which listed the prices made. It was dated 1 July 1783, signed Sam. Paterson, and described as “A true copy extracted from the sale-book.” Prior to the sale Paterson had issued an unprecedented addition to the auction’s advertisement which appeared in Parker’s General Advertiser on 26 March: “N.B. On account of arranging the above library, Mr Paterson’s Great Room is absolutely shut up till Monday next.”
1785
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library and Philosophical Instruments of the Late Ingenious James Horsfall, Esq., Sub-Treasurer of the Middle Temple, and Fellow of the Royal Society, Deceased, Including the Library, Manuscripts and Instruments of the Late Learned John Bevis, M.D., F.R.S., Deceased. Among the Instruments is Sir Isaac Newton’s Reflector Which He Used in Many of his Astronomical Observations. (ESTC T163931)
Auction Date: 17–21 December. Advertised in the 20 December issue of the Morning Herald.
Known Copies: King’s College, London; Whipple Library, University of Cambridge.
Note: The copy at King’s, which is the one recorded in ESTC, is just a fragment. The copy at the Whipple, which is annotated with prices, is not in ESTC.
1786
A Catalogue of Books in Several Languages and Sciences, Antient and Modern: Also Various Prints and Books of Prints, Among Which are Several Highly Finished in Colours in Imitation of Drawings.
Auction Date: 17–19 January.
Known Copy: Whipple Library, University of Cambridge. Not in ESTC.
Bibliotheca universalis selecta; a Catalogue of Books, Ancient and Modern, in Various Languages and Faculties, and Upon Almost Every Branch of Science and Polite Literature. (ESTC T72215)
Auction Date: 8 May–17 June. Advertised in the 3 May issue of the Morning Herald.
Known Copies: a, l, c(4), c5, d5, o, o3, o9, m; cal, Grolier Club, hn, ill, lc, min, roch; digital facsimile of the l copy available on ECCO.
Note: A copy in c is priced. The books themselves were largely collected by Paterson during a trip to Germany and the Netherlands.
A Neat Collection of Greek, Latin, Italian, French, German and English Books Upon Almost Every Branch of Science and Polite Literature, Including the Library of a Physician Deceased.
Auction Date: 18–28 October. Advertised in the 18 October issue of the Morning Post.
1787
A Catalogue of the Genuine Library, Manuscripts, and Prints of the Rev. Edward Thomas, A.M., Fellow of the Royal and Antiquary Societies, Late of Faversham, Deceased; Comprehending a Good Collection of Books in Various Languages and Sciences, but More Especially in Classical, Critical and Numismatical Literature; and in English History, Topography and Antiquities. (ESTC T187668)
Auction Date: 1–3 July. Advertised in the 29 June issue of the Morning Herald.
Known Copy: o; digital facsimile of the o copy available on ECCO.
Note: The title page and the advertisements both state that the auction was to be conducted at “Mr Lane’s Great Room (late Paterson’s).”
1801
Bibliotheca Strangeiana. A Catalogue of the General, Curious and Extensive Library of that Distinguished Naturalist and Lover of the Fine Arts, the Late John Strange, Esq., LL.D . . . Comprehending an Extraordinary Fine Collection of Books and Tracts in Most Languages and Sciences to the Number of Upwards of Fourscore Thousand . . . Digested by Samuel Paterson. And Will be Sold by Auction by Leigh, Sotheby and Son. [2 parts.]
Auction Date: 16 March–23 April, 28 May–29 June.
Known Copies: WorldCat and COPAC both list a number of copies that have not been verified. Not in ESTC.
Note: The catalogues of both parts of the sale were published as one volume and both the pagination and the numbering of lots are continuous. The title page states “The sale of Part II consisting entirely of history, topography, antiquities, geography, voyages and travels will commence a few days after the first is ended.”
1802
Bibliotheca Fageliana; a Catalogue of the Valuable and Extensive Library of Greffier Fagel of the Hague: Comprehending a Choice Collection of Books in Various Languages . . . Digested by Sam. Paterson. Part I Which Will be Sold by Auction by Mr Christie.
Auction Date: The sale never took place.
Known Copies: There are several copies listed in both WorldCat and COPAC that have not been verified. Not in ESTC.
Note: Part II of the catalogue appeared separately although it is not clear when it was published and when the sale was planned. The copy in the New York Public Library—which is available in the Hathi Trust Digital Library—has the two parts bound together and the pagination and the numbering of lots are continuous.