RARE ‘PARADISE LOST' BOOK UNEARTHED IN BATH EXPECTED TO FETCH THOUSANDS

A 1688 fourth edition of John Milton's seminal work Paradise Lost has been unearthed and is coming up for sale at auction. The early edition comes heavily annotated by Queen Anne's Master of Revels Charles Killigrew for a performance in 1711, and will appear at auction for the first time in nearly 300 years. Presented in the Books, Maps & Works on Paper sale at Auctioneum in Bath, it is expected to fetch thousands of pounds.

Used by Killigrew as a working document to direct a staged version of Paradise Lost for Queen Anne at the Inner Temple, in London c1711. Records show the book was likely sold at Killigrew's library sale after his death in 1725, before disappearing for nearly 300 years until it was found in a miscellaneous box of assorted antiquarian paperwork by a local gentleman. It wasn’t until the book was examined that its important history came to light.  

‘It’s an exceptional document,’ says book specialist Caitlin Riley. ‘Here we have one of the most famous and heavily printed literary works in the world with an incredible history behind it. This very book was worked on by Queen Anne’s Master Of Revels, and is filled with his own notes on how to stage Paradise Lost. It really is a discovery fit for a Queen!’

With heavy annotations, marginalia and notations throughout, it is an important and early record of such a theatre production in the early 18th century.  As the Queen's Master of Revels, Killigrew would have faced immense pressure to put on spectacular entertainments for the Royal Family, even censoring material to ensure that no offensive or unseemly material was performed in front of Her Majesty. Killigrew was patentee of the Drury Lane Theatre, London, and the son of Thomas Killigrew, who had served as Master of Revels for Charles II; following Thomas Killigrew, only two people held the title before it fell into disuse. The margin annotations even include a recipe for gunpowder, painting a picture of a remarkable no costs spared spectacle put on by Killigrew, although whether it was ever performed or not is unknown.

‘To be able to view Killigrew’s handwritten notes is very special. Here we have someone carefully crafting and editing a well-known work. Each pen stroke representing changes he wanted made, or thoughts, or ideas for certain performance elements. It’s unlike anything else I’ve ever seen,’ adds Riley.

The rare work will be sold on the 13th of November in our Books, Maps and Works on Paper Auction. The catalogue can be viewed on our website www.auctioneum.co.uk.