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.
1553 | John Day's Privilege for the Catechism (United Kingdom) |
1554 | Selected Extracts from the Stationers' Company's Registers (United Kingdom) |
1557 | The Privy Seal warrant concerning the Stationers' Charter (United Kingdom) |
1558 | Calve's privilege for the 'Holsome and Catholick Doctrine' (United Kingdom) |
1558 | Phayer's privilege for Virgil's Aeneid (United Kingdom) |
1559* | Day's privilege for The Cosmographical Glass (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1559 | Jugge and Cawood's printing patent for statute books (United Kingdom) |
1559 | Seres' patent for Primers and Psalters (United Kingdom) |
1559 | Totell's patent for Common Law Books (United Kingdom) |
1566* | Star Chamber Decree (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1624* | Statute of Monopolies (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1662 | Licensing Act (parchment copy) (United Kingdom) |
1667 | Recital of the Stationers' Charter (United Kingdom) |
1684 | Stationers' Charter (United Kingdom) |
1735 | Engravers' Copyright Act (parchment copy) (United Kingdom) |
1751 | Tonson v. Walker (United Kingdom) |
1787 | Calico Printers' Act (parchment copy) (United Kingdom) |
1798 | Models and Busts Act (parchment copy) (United Kingdom) |
1801 | Copyright Act (parchment copy) (United Kingdom) |
1828* | Maugham's Treatise (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1] |
1837 | Copyright Bill (6 June) (United Kingdom) |
1886 | Berne Convention (United Kingdom) |