The Sale Catalogue of Mrs. Piozzi's Library: A Biographical Tool

Abstract

DONALD D. EDDY, editor of the sale catalogue of the library of Mrs Piozzi, along with those of Samuel Johnson and of James Boswell, the younger, writes that ‘It seems impossible, in fact, to read these catalogues without one's mind being filled with a rich variety of literary and bibliophilic associations’ (11)1. I would add, and hope to demonstrate, that such a statement should include biographical associations. Eddy has done that to a limited extent himself (10), but much more remains to be done. As Professor Clifford observes, Mrs Piozzi ‘filled hundreds of volumes which passed through her hands with notes, comments, and stories, and often these original anecdotes are nowhere else available.’2 Initially, and perhaps most importantly, there is the matter of presentation copies. A number of books were sold, along with the contents of Mrs Piozzi's Streatham home, in a sale which took five days. In the 481 lots sold, exclusive of the furniture, only three had manuscript notes, both in the second day's sale, 9 May 1816: no. 13, ‘Liturgia Ynglesia, Lond.—1715 and Vie Privee des Romains’, and ‘Moll's Atlas, with MS. Index’,3 no. 203 (n. d.). She may be referring to Herman Moll's Atlas Manuale (1709).4 There were no presentation copies. Evidently the choicer items were kept for the sale which began on 17 May 1816, for no. 41, ‘Choice of the best poetical pieces of the most eminent English Poets, published by Joseph Ritzer, 4 vol printed at Vienna’ (1783), is described as ‘A very curious and rare collection, presented to Hester Lynch Piozzi, at Vienna, by Madame de Hesse’. She and her husband were in Vienna in 1787. While there she wrote of a collection of rarities ‘now in the possession of Madam de Hesse, [which] became daily more my study, as I received more and more civilities from the charming family at whose house it resides.’5 One would like to know more about this ‘charming family’.