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Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance, Frankfurt (1660)
Source: Universitätsbibliothek Frankfurt Ffm W 554
Citation:
Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance, Frankfurt (1660), Primary Sources on Copyright (1450-1900), eds L. Bently & M. Kretschmer, www.copyrighthistory.org
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New Printing Regulation
he may print in future. / The different ways in which
a reprint might be attempted are as follows: / a reprinter might
use a different page size or title, indicate as the author the name of
someone else, arrange for new or different summaries, remove or
add scholia [marginal notes], and any other way in which he might seek to
deceive [as to the true nature of what he is doing]. / Therefore, none of these resorts is to be / tolerated or permitted.
Now, if someone has so far been printing, / or might happen
to do so in future, / a particular book without having a privilege for it, /
and another printer, / being unaware of this / (for he would not have the right to
do so deliberately), were subsequently to obtain a privilege for it, / he would
not have to invoke that privilege, being henceforth entitled (regardless of
such a privilege) / to republish / and reprint here / those books /
which the first printer had until then been the only one to print, or might have
happened to do so in future.
In the case of books that have been printed here by a local printer, /
no one is to be allowed / to secretly publish them / in a different place,
to the detriment of this city, / and then to bring here the copies published by
such means, / so as to sell them here / under someone else’s name / but
to his own profit. Rather, if someone is convicted of this, /
he is to be punished severely for this offence. /
Or if there are strong reasons to suspect someone of acting in this way, /
that person is obliged to take an oath of innocence, / should the
other party request this.
Furthermore, in the case / that the author himself, or someone else, /
should decide to modify, / expand, etc. / a book which had been printed here /
and would like to have the modified or expanded version of the book printed
here too, no printer other than the one who carried out the first impression of
the book / is to have the right to accept for printing this new version. /
It may, of course, happen / that the printer / who had brought out the first
version of the book / does not want to print the new version that is offered to
him (that is why this offer must take place in the presence of credible
witnesses: / namely, so that there can be no subsequent disagreement as to
whether the offer was made or not).
No Transcription available.
Source: Universitätsbibliothek Frankfurt Ffm W 554
Citation:
Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance, Frankfurt (1660), Primary Sources on Copyright (1450-1900), eds L. Bently & M. Kretschmer, www.copyrighthistory.org
Back | Record | Images | Commentaries: [1]
Translation only | Transcription only | Show all | Bundled images as pdf
he may print in future. / The different ways in which
a reprint might be attempted are as follows: / a reprinter might
use a different page size or title, indicate as the author the name of
someone else, arrange for new or different summaries, remove or
add scholia [marginal notes], and any other way in which he might seek to
deceive [as to the true nature of what he is doing]. / Therefore, none of these resorts is to be / tolerated or permitted.
Now, if someone has so far been printing, / or might happen
to do so in future, / a particular book without having a privilege for it, /
and another printer, / being unaware of this / (for he would not have the right to
do so deliberately), were subsequently to obtain a privilege for it, / he would
not have to invoke that privilege, being henceforth entitled (regardless of
such a privilege) / to republish / and reprint here / those books /
which the first printer had until then been the only one to print, or might have
happened to do so in future.
In the case of books that have been printed here by a local printer, /
no one is to be allowed / to secretly publish them / in a different place,
to the detriment of this city, / and then to bring here the copies published by
such means, / so as to sell them here / under someone else’s name / but
to his own profit. Rather, if someone is convicted of this, /
he is to be punished severely for this offence. /
Or if there are strong reasons to suspect someone of acting in this way, /
that person is obliged to take an oath of innocence, / should the
other party request this.
Furthermore, in the case / that the author himself, or someone else, /
should decide to modify, / expand, etc. / a book which had been printed here /
and would like to have the modified or expanded version of the book printed
here too, no printer other than the one who carried out the first impression of
the book / is to have the right to accept for printing this new version. /
It may, of course, happen / that the printer / who had brought out the first
version of the book / does not want to print the new version that is offered to
him (that is why this offer must take place in the presence of credible
witnesses: / namely, so that there can be no subsequent disagreement as to
whether the offer was made or not).
No Transcription available.