About Shakespeare and the Book

On those occasions when the Shakespeare first folio, the 1623 first printing in folio format of the collected works of William Shakespeare, is placed on display, it is generally shown in splendid isolation as one of the great treasures of the library. Columbia's copy, a part of the 1881 bequest of Stephen Whitney Phoenix, is no exception, although over the decades it has been shown to a large number of classes, including recently many sections of Literature Humanities in the Columbia Core Curriculum. In this exhibition, inspired by the publication of David Scott Kastan's Shakespeare & The Book (Cambridge University Press, September, 2001) the Shakespeare first folio is on display not only with Columbia's copies of the other three 17th century Shakespeare folios. All four are shown within the context of the 17th century English printed play, along with copies of works known to Shakespeare. This exhibition draws heavily on the splendid collection of four centuries of English and American literature collected by Jack Harris Samuels and bequeathed to the University by his mother, Mollie Harris Samuels, in 1970. This collection is distinguished not only for the titles represented but also by their excellent condition and, in many cases, distinguished provenance.

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