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Memorandum on the dispute between the Parisian and the provincial booksellers, Paris (1690s)
Source: Bibliothèque nationale de France : Mss. Fr. 22071 n° 177
Citation:
Memorandum on the dispute between the Parisian and the provincial booksellers, Paris (1690s), 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
it is quite helpful to know about in this respect.
During the first century of printing, which
began around the year 1450, printers were occupied in
making public the works of the Church Fathers and of
lay authors, the manuscripts of which were to be found
in the libraries of princes and some private individuals.
But since a shortage of copies of these editions started to
make itself felt towards the middle of the last century,
the printers have been compelled to republish those which
the public has need of.
This is what we learn from Rebuffé’s book about
privileges and the universities, in which he says that
printers were forced to do these [republications], because,
as the jurists of his time argued, given that printers
were the successors of the medieval copyists, they could
be compelled to print just as the latter were compelled
to write on the grounds of the public good, ratione
utilitatis publicae, to which he adds that this was determined
so by the King in his Council, on pain of corporal punishment,
because, so he says, the injury which the public would
otherwise suffer, not being reparable by monetary fines,
demanded an exemplary punishment, and he cites in this
respect a Court ruling of 15 April, 1590, concerning the
printers of Lyon.
The printers, having thus committed themselves to
considerable advances for the printing of books, ventured,
in order to somehow cover themselves against the risks
which they had to run due to the long time it took for their
books to be sold, to request letters [patent] by which every
other printer was prohibited from printing the same book
until the new edition [of the first printer] had been sold out,
and this was granted to them for a fixed term.
The success of this expedient gave some booksellers
the idea of obtaining similar letters [patent] for books
which they foresaw would sell better than others, and of
thereby claiming the exclusive right to print and sell them
for a certain time; But the same thing that was the origin
of privileges in the book trade also became the cause of
several law-suits between booksellers. The first such one
which we encounter is that between Giunti and Tinghi,
two Florentine booksellers who were based in Lyon,
which is cited in the margin of p.1089 of the Conference
des ordonnances, where one can see that in a ruling of
7 December, 1579, the Court ordered that existing
privileges were not to be recognized at all except where
they were for books that hadn’t yet
sont pas inutiles a scavoir en cette matiere.
Durant le premier siècle de l'imprimerie, qui a
commencé vers l'an 1450, les imprimeurs furent occupez a
rendre public les ouvrages des Peres de l'Eglise et des
auteurs profanes qui se trouvoient manuscrits dans les
bibliotheques de les princes et de quelques particuliers.
Mais les exemplaires des premieres editions commençant a
manquer vers le milieu du siecle passé, on oblige a les imprimeurs
a reimprimer ceux dont le public avoit besoin.
C'est ce qu'on apprend de Rebuffé dans son livre des
privileges, et des universités, ou il dit qu'on les y forçoit, parce que
selon les jurisconsultes de son temps, les imprimeurs ayant
succedé aux copistes, on pouvoit les contraindre a imprimer
comme on obligeoit ceux a d'ecrire par la raison du bien public,
ratione utilitatis publicae, a quoi il ajoute que cela fut ainsi
reglé par le Roy en son Con[seil] a peine de punition corporelle, parce, dit il,
que le tort que souffriroit le public en cela, ne pouvant etre
reparé par des peines pecuniaires, exige une punition exemplaire,
et il raporte là-dessus un arrest de la cour pour les imprimeurs de Lyon,
du 15e avril de l'année 1590.
Les imprimeurs se soyant ainsi engagé a des grosses avances pour
la impression des livres, s'aviserent pour se mettre en quelque
facon a couvert des risques qu'ils avoient a courir par la
longueur du debit, de demander des lettres par lesquelles il fut
defendu a tout autre imprimeur d'imprimer le mesme livre
jusqu'à ce que la nouvelle edition en fut debitée, ce qui leur fut
accordé pour un temps préfixe.
Cet expedient ayant reussi donna la pensée a quelques
libraires d'obtenir de semblables lettres pour les livres
qu'ils prevoyoient devoit etre d'un plus grand debit que les
autres, et s'attribuerent ainsi le droit de les imprimer et
vendre seuls pendant un temps ; Mais ce qui fut l'origine des
privileges dans la librairie devint la cause de plusiers proces
entre les libraires. Le premier qui nous paroit a ce sujet est
entre Giunti et Tinghi, deux libraires florentins etablis a
Lyon, qui est raporté en la page 1089 de la Conference des
ordonnances en marge, où l'on voit que la cour par arret
du 7e decembre 1579 ordonne qu'on n'auroit aucun egard
aux privileges obtenus, sinon en livres qui n'ont encore
Source: Bibliothèque nationale de France : Mss. Fr. 22071 n° 177
Citation:
Memorandum on the dispute between the Parisian and the provincial booksellers, Paris (1690s), 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
it is quite helpful to know about in this respect.
During the first century of printing, which
began around the year 1450, printers were occupied in
making public the works of the Church Fathers and of
lay authors, the manuscripts of which were to be found
in the libraries of princes and some private individuals.
But since a shortage of copies of these editions started to
make itself felt towards the middle of the last century,
the printers have been compelled to republish those which
the public has need of.
This is what we learn from Rebuffé’s book about
privileges and the universities, in which he says that
printers were forced to do these [republications], because,
as the jurists of his time argued, given that printers
were the successors of the medieval copyists, they could
be compelled to print just as the latter were compelled
to write on the grounds of the public good, ratione
utilitatis publicae, to which he adds that this was determined
so by the King in his Council, on pain of corporal punishment,
because, so he says, the injury which the public would
otherwise suffer, not being reparable by monetary fines,
demanded an exemplary punishment, and he cites in this
respect a Court ruling of 15 April, 1590, concerning the
printers of Lyon.
The printers, having thus committed themselves to
considerable advances for the printing of books, ventured,
in order to somehow cover themselves against the risks
which they had to run due to the long time it took for their
books to be sold, to request letters [patent] by which every
other printer was prohibited from printing the same book
until the new edition [of the first printer] had been sold out,
and this was granted to them for a fixed term.
The success of this expedient gave some booksellers
the idea of obtaining similar letters [patent] for books
which they foresaw would sell better than others, and of
thereby claiming the exclusive right to print and sell them
for a certain time; But the same thing that was the origin
of privileges in the book trade also became the cause of
several law-suits between booksellers. The first such one
which we encounter is that between Giunti and Tinghi,
two Florentine booksellers who were based in Lyon,
which is cited in the margin of p.1089 of the Conference
des ordonnances, where one can see that in a ruling of
7 December, 1579, the Court ordered that existing
privileges were not to be recognized at all except where
they were for books that hadn’t yet
sont pas inutiles a scavoir en cette matiere.
Durant le premier siècle de l'imprimerie, qui a
commencé vers l'an 1450, les imprimeurs furent occupez a
rendre public les ouvrages des Peres de l'Eglise et des
auteurs profanes qui se trouvoient manuscrits dans les
bibliotheques de les princes et de quelques particuliers.
Mais les exemplaires des premieres editions commençant a
manquer vers le milieu du siecle passé, on oblige a les imprimeurs
a reimprimer ceux dont le public avoit besoin.
C'est ce qu'on apprend de Rebuffé dans son livre des
privileges, et des universités, ou il dit qu'on les y forçoit, parce que
selon les jurisconsultes de son temps, les imprimeurs ayant
succedé aux copistes, on pouvoit les contraindre a imprimer
comme on obligeoit ceux a d'ecrire par la raison du bien public,
ratione utilitatis publicae, a quoi il ajoute que cela fut ainsi
reglé par le Roy en son Con[seil] a peine de punition corporelle, parce, dit il,
que le tort que souffriroit le public en cela, ne pouvant etre
reparé par des peines pecuniaires, exige une punition exemplaire,
et il raporte là-dessus un arrest de la cour pour les imprimeurs de Lyon,
du 15e avril de l'année 1590.
Les imprimeurs se soyant ainsi engagé a des grosses avances pour
la impression des livres, s'aviserent pour se mettre en quelque
facon a couvert des risques qu'ils avoient a courir par la
longueur du debit, de demander des lettres par lesquelles il fut
defendu a tout autre imprimeur d'imprimer le mesme livre
jusqu'à ce que la nouvelle edition en fut debitée, ce qui leur fut
accordé pour un temps préfixe.
Cet expedient ayant reussi donna la pensée a quelques
libraires d'obtenir de semblables lettres pour les livres
qu'ils prevoyoient devoit etre d'un plus grand debit que les
autres, et s'attribuerent ainsi le droit de les imprimer et
vendre seuls pendant un temps ; Mais ce qui fut l'origine des
privileges dans la librairie devint la cause de plusiers proces
entre les libraires. Le premier qui nous paroit a ce sujet est
entre Giunti et Tinghi, deux libraires florentins etablis a
Lyon, qui est raporté en la page 1089 de la Conference des
ordonnances en marge, où l'on voit que la cour par arret
du 7e decembre 1579 ordonne qu'on n'auroit aucun egard
aux privileges obtenus, sinon en livres qui n'ont encore