PRIMARY SOURCES

ON COPYRIGHT

(1450-1900)


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.


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Back | 87 results(* indicates core document)

1554Selected Extracts from the Stationers' Company's Registers (United Kingdom)
1558Phayer's privilege for Virgil's Aeneid (United Kingdom)
1559Day's The Cosmographical Glass (United Kingdom)
1559Seres' patent for Primers and Psalters (United Kingdom)
1559Totell's patent for Common Law Books (United Kingdom)
1658* Schupp: The Book Thief (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1706Reasons Humbly Offer'd for the Bill for the Encouragement of Learning (United Kingdom)
1709Reasons Humbly Offer'd for the Bill for the Encouragement of Learning (United Kingdom)
1725-1726* Louis d'Héricourt's memorandum (France) Commentary: [1]
1737An Act for the Encouragement of Learning (Draft) (United Kingdom)
1738* Thurneysen: On the Illicit Reprinting of Books (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1738* Thurneysen: On the Illicit Reprinting of Books (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1740* Encyclopaedia Article on 'The Reprinting of Books' (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1751Tonson v. Walker (United Kingdom)
1759* Sieur d'Anville's contract (France) Commentary: [1]
1762* Royal declaration on privileges granted to inventors (France) Commentary: [1]
1762A Vindication of the Rights of Authors (United Kingdom)
1765Reich v. Pauli (Germany)
1766Engravers' Copyright Act (United Kingdom)
1769* Millar v. Taylor (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1]
1773Information for Messrs John Hinton et al (United Kingdom)
1774The Cases of the Appellants and Respondents (United Kingdom)
1777* Linguet's memorandum (France) Commentary: [1]
1778* Pluquet's letters (France) Commentary: [1]
1781Andrew Law's Privilege (United States)
1783Massachusetts Copyright Statute (United States)
1783Maryland Copyright Statute (United States)
1783New Jersey Copyright Statute (United States)
1784Pennsylvania Copyright Statute (United States)
1785* Kant: On the Unlawfulness of Reprinting (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1785Virginia Copyright Statute (United States)
1786Georgia Copyright Statute (United States)
1786New York Copyright Statute (United States)
1790* Sieyès' report (France) Commentary: [1]
1791* Le Chapelier's report (France) Commentary: [1]
1791* Report of François Hell to the National Assembly (France) Commentary: [1]
1792Purcell's Printing Privilege (United States)
1793* Fichte: Proof of the Unlawfulness of Reprinting (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1793* French Literary and Artistic Property Act (France) Commentary: [1]
1794* Prussian Statute Book (ALR) (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1809* Baden Civil Code (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1814* Court of Cassation on sculptures (France) Commentary: [1]
1815* Annotated Publishers' Petition to the Congress of Vienna (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1821* Hegel: Remarks on Intellectual Property (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1826* Minutes of the 1825-1826 Commission (France)
1830Letter from John McLean to Richard Peters Jr. (United States)
1835* Copyright statement of Johann Strauss for Austria and Prussia (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1837* Directive for reciprocal copyright protection within the German Confederation (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1838Copyright Bill (27 Feb.) (United Kingdom)
1838Copyright Bill (6 June) (United Kingdom)
1838Memorial of a Number of Citizens of Boston (United States)
1839Copyright Bill (United Kingdom)
1840* Bilateral Treaty between Austria and Sardinia (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1840Copyright Bill (United Kingdom)
1841* Report of Lamartine and parliamentary debates on literary property (France)
1841Court of Cassation on artistic property (France)
1841Copyright Bill (United Kingdom)
1842* Court of Cassation on artistic property (France) Commentary: [1]
1842* Copyright Act (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1]
1842Bill to Amend the Law of Copyright (4 March) (United Kingdom)
1842Bill to Amend the Law of Copyright (23 March) (United Kingdom)
1842Bill to Amend the Law of Copyright (21 April) (United Kingdom)
1844* Saxon Copyright Act (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1845* Court of Appeal on translations (France) Commentary: [1]
1846* Austrian Copyright Act (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1852Copyright and Natural Right (United States)
1853* Bluntschli: On Authors' Rights (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1853Blaine's Laws of Artistic Copyright (United Kingdom)
1853British-American Copyright Convention Draft (United States)
1853Stowe v. Thomas, Complainant's Bill (United States)
1853Stowe v. Thomas, Defendant's Answer (United States)
1853Affidavit of Harriet Beecher Stowe (United States)
1857* Wächter: 'Publishing Right' (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1862Bretón de los Herreros' Copyright Contract (Spain)
1862* Fine Art Copyright Act (United Kingdom) Commentary: [1]
1866* Literary and artistic property act (France)
1870* Copyright Act for the German Empire (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1876* Copyright Acts for the German Empire regarding works of art, photography, and designs (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1877* Gareis: Juridical Nature of Author's Rights (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1880* Kohler: Author's Right (Germany) Commentary: [1]
1884Bilateral treaty between Switzerland and France (Germany)
1886Correspondence respecting the Copyright Union (United Kingdom)
189150 Prussian Expert Opinions from 1870-1876 (Germany)
1899Bleistein v. Donaldson Lithographing Co., District Court Decision (United States)
1900Bleistein v. Donaldson Lithographing Co., Circuit Court Decision (United States)
1902* Court of Cassation on moral rights (France) Commentary: [1]
1902Bleistein: Donaldson Lithographing Co. Brief (United States)