Publications of Edward Wright

Note: The following printer, bookseller, or publisher lists are works in progress. They are generated from title page imprints and may reproduce false and misleading attributions or contain errors.

What does "printed by" mean? How to read the roles ascribed to people in the imprints.

In terms of the book trades, the lists below are sorted into up to four groups where: the person is designated in the imprint as having a single role:

  1. "printed by x"; or
  2. "sold by x"; or
  3. "printed for x" or "published by x";

or as having multiple roles in combination (which suggests a likelihood that the person is a trade publisher):

  1. "printed and sold by x"; "printed: and sold by x"; "printed for and sold by x"; or "printed by and for x" and so on.

On this last point, trade publishers such as Mary Cooper appeared in imprints as having "printed" or "published" the work, though they did not own the copyright. The lists below reflect only the information on the imprint, except where ESTC provides extra information.

Printers (owners of the type and printing presses, and possibly owners of the copyright) may be identified by the words printed by, but printed by does not universally designate a person who is a printer by trade. Booksellers may be identified by the words sold by, but sold by encompasses a number of roles. Booksellers or individuals who owned the copyright are generally identified by the words printed for, but nothing should be concluded in this regard without further evidence, especially since "printed for" could signify that the named person was a distributor rather than a copyright holder. Trade publishers, who distributed books and pamphlets but did not own the copyright or employ a printer—and were not printers themselves—might be identified by the words printed and sold by. Furthermore, works from this period often display false imprints, whether to evade copyright restrictions, to conceal the name of the copyright holders, or to dupe unwitting customers. Ultimately, one must proceed with caution in using the following lists: designations in the imprints may not reliably reflect the actual trades or roles of the people named, and the formulas used in imprints do not consistently mean the same thing.

David Foxon discussed the "meaning of the imprint" in his Lyell Lecture delivered at Oxford in March 1976, with particular attention to "publishers" in the eighteenth-century context:

The fullest form of an imprint is one which names three people, or groups of people:
     London: printed by X (the printer), for Y (the bookseller who owned the copyright), and sold by Z.
In the eighteenth century the printer's name is rarely given, at least in works printed in London, and the form is more commonly:
     London: printed for Y, and sold by Z.
Very often in this period, and particularly for pamphlets, it is further abbreviated to:
     London: printed and sold by Z.
It is this last form which is my present concern. Z is usually what the eighteenth century called 'a publisher', or one who distributes books and pamphlets without having any other responsibility—he does not own the copyright or employ a printer, or even know the author.

D. F. McKenzie coined the term "trade publisher" for these publishers in his Sandars Lectures, also in 1976, on the grounds that their principal role was to publish on behalf of other members of the book trade (Treadwell 100).

Michael Treadwell cautions that "In this period the imprint 'London: Printed and sold by A.B.' normally means 'Printed at London, and sold by A.B.' and must not be taken to mean that A.B. is a printer in the absence of other evidence." Further, "The imprint 'published by' occurs only rarely in Wing and is almost always associated with the name of a trade publisher" (104). While there are exceptions to the rule, it is "certain," he explains, "that anyone who made a speciality of distributing works for others will show a far higher proportion than normal of imprints in one of the 'sold by' forms" (116), which appear in the imprint as "sold by," "printed and sold by," or "published by" (104). Treadwell gives Walter Kettilby as an example of "a fairly typical copyright-owning bookseller" (106)—his role is almost always designated by the phrase "printed for" on imprints.

A final caution: publisher is a word that should be used with some deliberation. Samuel Johnson defines it simply as "One who puts out a book into the world," but "published by" rarely appears on the imprint until later in the eighteenth century, and then primarily associated with newspapers and pamphlets. Treadwell observes that John Dunton names only five publishers among the 200 binders and booksellers in his autobiographical Life and Errors (1705) wherein he undertakes "to draw the Character of the most Eminent [Stationers] in the Three Kingdoms" (100). Treadwell also remarks, however, that "in law, anyone who offered a work for sale 'published' it. In this sense every work had one or more 'publishers', and every bookseller, mercury, and hawker was a 'publisher'" (114).

See:

  • Terry Belanger, "From Bookseller to Publisher: Changes in the London Book Trade, 1750–1850," in Book Selling and Book Buying. Aspects of the Nineteenth-Century British and North American Book Trade, ed. Richard G. Landon (Chicago: American Library Association, 1978).
  • Bricker, Andrew Benjamin. "Who was 'A. Moore'? The Attribution of Eighteenth-Century Publications with False and Misleading Imprints," in The Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America 110.2 (2016).
  • John Dunton, The Life and Errors of John Dunton (London: Printed for S. Malthus, 1705).
  • John Feather, "The Commerce of Letters: The Study of the Eighteenth-Century Book Trade," Eighteenth-Century Studies 17 (1984).
  • David Foxon, Pope and the Early Eighteenth-Century Book Trade, ed. James McLaverty (Oxford University Press, 1991).
  • Samuel Johnson, Dictionary of the English Language, (printed for J. and P. Knapton; T. and T. Longman; C. Hitch and L. Hawes; A. Millar; and R. and J. Dodsley, 1755).
  • D.F. McKenzie, The London Book Trade in the Later Seventeenth Century (Sandars lectures in bibliography, 1977).
  • Michael Treadwell, "London Trade Publishers 1675–1750," The Library sixth series, vol. 4, no. 2 (1982).

Printed for Edward Wright

  • Deloney, Thomas. The most rare and excellent history of the Dutchesse of Suffolkes calamity. To the tune of Queene Dido. London: printed for Edward Wright dwelling at Christ Church gate, [ca. 1635]. ESTC No. S116386. Grub Street ID 136073.

Author

  • Wright, Edward. Errors in nauigation, 1 Error of two, or three whole points of the compas, and more somtimes, by reason of making the sea-chart after the accustomed maner ... 2 Error of one whole point, and more many times, by neglecting the variation of the compasse. 3 Error of a degree and more sometimes, in the vse of the crosse staffe ... 4 Error of 11. or 12. minures [sic] in the declination of the sunne, as it is set foorth in the regiments most commonly vsed among mariners: and consequently error of halfe a degree in the place of the sunne. 5 Error of halfe a degree, yea an whole degree and more many times in the declinations of the principall fixed starres, set forth to be obserued by mariners at sea. Detected and corrected by often and diligent obseruation. Whereto is adioyned, the right H. the Earle of Cumberland his voyage to the Azores in the yeere 1589. wherin were taken 19. Spanish and Leaguers ships, together with the towne and platforme of Fayal. By Edward Wright. Printed at London: [By Valentine Simmes and W. White] for Ed. Agas, 1599. ESTC No. S111816. Grub Street ID 131590.
  • Wright, Edward. Certaine errors in nauigation, detected and corrected by Edw: Wright with many additions that were not in the former edition as appeareth in the next pages. [London]: Printed by Felix Kingsto[n] at London, 1610. ESTC No. S95920. Grub Street ID 153803.
  • Wright, Edward. The description and vse of the sphære deuided into three principal partes: whereof the first intreateth especially of the circles of the vppermost moueable sphære, and of the manifould vses of euery one of them seuerally: the second sheweth the plentifull vse of the vppermost sphære, and of the circles therof ioyntly: the third conteyneth the description of the orbes whereof the sphæres of the sunne and moone haue beene supposed to be made, with their motions and vses. By Edward Wright. The contents of each part are more particularly set downe in the table. London: Printed [by E. Allde] for Iohn Tap: dwelling at S. Magnus corner, 1613. ESTC No. S120188. Grub Street ID 139825.
  • Wright, Edward. A short treatise of dialling: shewing, the making of all sorts of sun-dials, horizontal, erect, direct, declining, inclining, reclining; vpon any flat or plaine superficies, howsoeuer placed, with ruler and compasse onely, without any arithmeticall calculation. By Edvvar Wright. London: Printed by Iohn Beale for William Welby, 1614. ESTC No. S111551. Grub Street ID 131370.
  • Wright, Edward. The arte of dialing: shewing, hovv to make any kind of diall vpon a plaine superficies howsoeuer placed. By Edvvard Wright. London: printed by Iohn Beale for William Welby, 1614. ESTC No. S95921. Grub Street ID 153804.
  • Wright, Edward. The description and vse of the sphaere. Deuided into three principall parts. Whereof the first intreateth especially of the circles of the vppermost moueable sphære, and of the manifold vses of euery one of them seuerally. The second sheweth the plentifull vse of the vppermost sphære, and of the circles thereof joyntly. The third contayneth the description of the orbes whereof the sphæres of the sunne and moone haue been supposed to bee made, with their motions and vses. By Edvvard Wright. The contents of each part are more particularly set downe in the table. London: Printed by B[ernard] A[lsop] and T. Fawcet, for Iohn Tap, and are to bee sold at his shop at S. Magnus corner, 1627. ESTC No. S120334. Grub Street ID 139970.
  • Wright, Edward. Certain errors in navigation. Detected and corrected by Edw. Wright. With many additions that were not in the former editions. London: printed by joseph [sic] Moxon. and sold at his shop at the Atlas on Cornhill, 1657. ESTC No. R16243. Grub Street ID 64117.
  • Wright, Edward. The sea-mans tutor. Or the marriners art made easie. In two parts. The first teaching the principles of the sphear: wherein is handled the maning of several words used in astonomie and navigation. The second the practical part of navigation: wherein is shewed the making and use of the most principal instruments belonging to the sea-mans art: to wit, The astrolabe, the cross-staff, and the annalemma. And the use of the sea-chart, and nocturnal. Also rules for finding tides in any haven. The regiment of the sun. The finding the latitude either by the sun, or stars. The finding the variation of the compass. The finding the hour of the day, and night, in any latitude. To keep a traverse at sea. With many other rules and instructions, necessary for all sea-men to know. Whereunto is added tables of suns declination for every day in the year. And tables of the latitude, and variation of the compass in most place in the whole world where navigation hath been used. Set forth by the late famous . London: printed by Joseph Moxon: and sold at his shop on Corn-hill, at the signe of Atlas, 1659. ESTC No. R187769. Grub Street ID 75929.