This is a freely-accessible, publicly-funded digital archive that collects together significant documents relating to the history of copyright law and practice. The documents have been selected by national editors, with the input of an editorial advisory board. Key documents are, where appropriate, transcribed and translated. The editors have written commentaries, explaining the reasons for selecting documents and their significance. The project was launched in 2008, initially funded by the AHRC in relation to 5 countries. Since 2024 it is supported by the AHRC as UK research infrastructure. The archive now extends to more than 20 (including historical and religious) jurisdictions and over 700 primary source documents. They can be browsed by date/language/jurisdiction, or searched.
1469* | Johannes of Speyer's Printing Monopoly (Italy) Commentary: [1] |
1477* | Tax Exemption for Books (Spain) Commentary: [1] |
1479* | Privilege of the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1485 | Censorship Edict of the Archbishop of Mainz (Germany) |
1487* | Printing Privileges to Monasteries (Spain) Commentary: [1] |
1498* | Ottaviano Petrucci's Music Patent (Italy) Commentary: [1] |
1501 | Vergilius (Italy) |
1501* | Imperial Senate privilege to the Sodalitas Celtica (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1511* | Imperial Privilege for Albrecht Dürer (Germany) |
1513* | Imperial privilege for Eucharius Rösslin (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1518* | The Articles of the Pope's Bulle (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1531* | Basel Printers' Statute (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1545* | Luther's 'Warning to the Printers' (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1546* | Privilege Granted to Enea Vico (Parmigiano) (Italy) |
1549* | Statutes of the Venetian Guild of Printers and Booksellers (Italy) |
1553* | Totell's Printing Patent (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1554* | Royal Charter for Licensing (Spain) Commentary: [1] |
1556 (1555 m.v.)* | Privilege Granted to Antonio Floriano (Italy) |
1556* | Privilege Granted to Giovanni Ostaus (Italy) |
1557* | Stationers' Charter (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1558* | Censorship Rules (Spain) |
1559* | Day's privilege for The Cosmographical Glass (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1586* | Star Chamber Decree (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1598 | Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance (Germany) |
1618* | Book trade regulations and incorporation of the Parisian book trade (France) Commentary: [1] |
1643* | The Humble Remonstrance of the Stationers' Company (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1650s* | Vitré's memorandum on the prolongation of privileges (France) |
1660* | Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1672* | Usher's Printing Privilege (United States) Commentary: [1] |
1690s* | Memorandum on the dispute between the Parisian and the provincial booksellers (France) Commentary: [1] |
1690 | Amendment to the Frankfurt Printers' Ordinance (Germany) |
1690 | Beier: On the Book Trade and its Privileges (Germany) |
1713 | Augsburg Printers' Ordinance (Germany) |
1724* | Electoral Saxon Printing and Censorship Acts from 1549 to 1717 (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1725-1726* | Pierre-Jacques Blondel's memorandum (France) Commentary: [1] |
1725-1726* | Louis d'Héricourt's memorandum (France) Commentary: [1] |
1738* | Thurneysen: On the Illicit Reprinting of Books (Germany) Commentary: [1] |
1761 | Tonson v. Collins (United Kingdom) |
1762* | Free Trade Regulations (Spain) |
1763* | Diderot's Letter on the book trade (France) Commentary: [1] |
1763* | Rules for Printers and Book Merchants' Guild in Madrid (Spain) |
1769* | Millar v. Taylor (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1773 | Information for Alexander Donaldson (United Kingdom) |
1778* | Pluquet's letters (France) Commentary: [1] |
1826* | Minutes of the 1825-1826 Commission (France) |
1842* | Lowndes' Historical Sketch of the Law of Copyright (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1868* | Proudhon: 'Les Majorats littéraires' (France) |