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The Music Room of the British Museum 1753–1953: Its History and Organization

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 January 1952

A. Hyatt King
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Extract

Let me begin by confessing that the first date in the title of this paper is unintentionally but unavoidably misleading. For when, on June 7, 1753, the British Museum was incorporated by an Act authorizing the purchase of Sir Hans Sloane's collections of books, manuscripts, prints, medals and other curiosities, the library material contained little or no music. The latter part of the 18th century did indeed see the uncertain beginnings of the copyright deposit of music, and several purchases for the general library included a small quantity of antiquarian works, but the Music Room did not coalesce into something like its present shape until well into the reign of Victoria.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Royal Musical Association , Volume 79 , 1952 , pp. 65 - 79
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Musical Association, 1944

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References

Footnotes

1 Cowtan. Memories of the British Museum, 1872, p. 27; Hawkins made another similar presentation in 1788.Google Scholar

2 Dr. Scholes has pointed out in The Great Dr. Burney, Vol. 2, p. 274, that his library was not bequeathed to the Museum, as stated in Grove, 4th ed.Google Scholar

3 I am indebted to Messrs. Sotheby & Co. for their kind permission to inspect and transcribe this and related letters, before their sale by auction on July 15, 1952. Novello's correspondence with Canning seems to have been known to the Musical World: cf. its issue for Nov. 8, 1838, pp. 147–149.Google Scholar

4 Probably the Rev. Joseph Bean, who served from 1810 to 1826 or 1827. Practically nothing is known of his work.Google Scholar

5 I have to thank the Trustees for kind permission to consult minutes bearing on the Collections of Music.Google Scholar

6 Cowtan. Op. cit. p. 422.Google Scholar

7 It remained substantially in its original form until 1936 when it was rebuilt as an adjunct to the main Catalogue Room.Google Scholar

8 The names known from this period are Eugene Roy, Johann F. von Bach, — Kemp,-Mr. (later Sir) Campbell Clarke, P.C. Cambrai. Their exact dates of employment are uncertain.Google Scholar

9 ‘Musical Libraries and Catalogues,’ in Proceedings, 1919, vol. 45.Google Scholar