''The Harleian Miscellany'' is a collection of material from the

library A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vir ...

of the

Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1711 for the statesman Robert Harley, with remainder, failing heirs male of his body, to those of his grandfather, Sir Robert Harley. He was mad ...

collated and edited by

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson (18 September 1709 – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, critic, biographer, editor and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

and

William Oldys William Oldys (14 July 1696 – 15 April 1761) was an English antiquarian and bibliographer. Life He was probably born in London, the illegitimate son of Dr William Oldys (1636–1708), chancellor of Lincoln diocese. His father had held the ...

between 1744 and 1753 on behalf of the publisher Thomas Osborne. Its subtitle was A Collection of Scarce, Curious, And Entertaining Pamphlets And Tracts, as well In Manuscript As In Print, Found In The Late Earl Of Oxford's Library, Interspersed With Historical, Political, And Critical Notes.

Provenance

The "late Earl of Oxford" whose library was the source of the texts could refer either to

Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer Robert Harley, 1st Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer, Order of the Garter, KG Privy Council of Great Britain, PC Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (5 December 1661 – 21 May 1724) was an English statesman and peer of the late Stuart dynasty, Stu ...

(died 1724), or to his son,

Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford and Earl Mortimer (2 June 1689 – 16 June 1741), styled Lord Harley between 1711 and 1724, was a British politician, bibliophile, collector and patron of the arts. Background Harley was the only son of Rober ...

(died 1741). A passage at the beginning of the first volume emphasizes the role of Robert Harley, the first earl, in the creation of the library:

There can be no Objection against the Prefixing the reasons for Creating the Right Honorable Robert Harley, Esq., a Peer of Great-Britain, and Earl of Oxford; especially, as the valuable Collection, intended to be published in this Form, was made by the Greatness of his Knowledge in all Branches of Learning, and at the vast Expence of that noble Family. ...his Library consisted of more than 100000 different Authors: He, I say, cannot be denied the first Place in this Miscellany, which esteems it an Honour to bear his Name.

Edward Harley, the second earl, who had died only a few years before ''The Harleian Miscellany'' was published, was also a

bibliophile Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. A bibliophile or bookworm is an individual who loves and frequently reads and/or collects books. Profile The classic bibliophile is one who loves to read, admire and collect books, often ama ...

who had greatly expanded the library.David Stoker, �
Harley, Edward, second earl of Oxford and Mortimer (1689–1741)
��, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, May 2005.

References

External links

* The original, 1744 edition in the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

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* The 1808–1811 reprint, which rearranged the pieces into chronological order, in the

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1744 books British non-fiction books {{UK-lit-stub