Author: thedeadpoets

Fig. 1 Edwin E. Willoughby, courtesy of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation

Since John Lichfield first printed George Sandys’ Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures in 1632, the copy held within the Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections has travelled across oceans, finding its way to the United States at some unknown time after its publication in Oxford. As a travel writer who spent time in the Virginia colonies in the 1620s, Sandys may have had hopes that his work would make its way to the Americas, but he likely never imagined it would end up at a small liberal arts college in Pennsylvania after being owned by an alumnus who happened to be the Chief Bibliographer of the Folger Shakespeare Library.

Based on the book’s front matter, Sandys envisioned an elite, well-read audience for his work. With both a dedication and panegyric addressed to King Charles I and an address to Queen Henrietta Maria, Sandys positioned his work as worthy of the very top of English society. As a translation of a classic work, with countless other references to different myths peppered throughout, the book also assumes a learned audience with some degree of knowledge of the classics. It is unlikely that anyone without prior knowledge of Ovid and his works would be inclined to pick up Sandys’ translation. Readers would not be familiar with the text itself unless they were familiar with Metamorphosis and its myths, whether that be in Latin or in English. 

Fig. 2 The bookplate bearing Dr. Willoughby’s name.

In regards to education level, Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures reached its intended audience in its last owner, Edwin E. Willoughby, before arriving at Dickinson College. The history of this book’s ownership in England is unknown; the name “Thomas Chadwick” appears on the title page alongside the year 1780, but this inscription does not indicate where Mr. Chadwick lived. He could have been from England, or he could have lived in the American colonies amidst the American Revolutionary War. As there is no information on him, we likely will never know. But we know for certain that this copy must have been in the United States by October of 1959, when Edwin E. Willoughby passed away with Ovid’s Metamorphoses in his possession. Dr. Willoughby was the Chief Bibliographer of the Folger Shakespeare Library from 1935-1958 and focused his scholarship on the print history of Shakespeare’s work and the history of the King James Bible (“Edwin Eliott Willoughby (1899-1959) | Dickinson College”). The bookplate pasted into the cover of Ovid’s Metamorphoses identifies this particular book as part of the gift Dr. Willoughby’s sister, Dr. Frances Willoughby, made to Dickinson in memory of her brother (See Figure 2).

During his career, Dr. Willoughby acquired many rare books for his own personal collection and sent a number to the library at his alma mater, Dickinson College. In their file on Dr. Willoughby, the Archives possesses multiple memos from college librarians thanking Dr. Willoughby for gifting copies of various works. On one occasion, while working as the Chief Bibliographer at the Folger Shakespeare Library, he gifted the college a 1608 “Black letter” edition of the Geneva Bible and c. 1611-1613 copy of the “Great She” Bible (See Figures 3 and 4). The large gift Frances Willoughby made in honor of her brother in 1960 was the last in a long series of philanthropic donations started by Dr. Willoughby himself decades prior. 

Fig. 3 The notecard recording Dr. Willoughby’s gift of a Geneva Bible.

Fig. 4 The notecard recording Dr. Willoughby’s gift of a “Great She” Bible

Notably, there are no records of Frances Willoughby donating this particular edition, the 1632 Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures, in any of Dickinson’s archival records. There are a few documents that mention Ovid’s Metamorphoses by name as part of the Willoughby gift, but they all designate it as the 1626 edition (See Figure 5). The Dickinson College Archives & Special Collections does not own the 1626 edition of Sandys’ translation, which I confirmed by checking the catalog of the archives’ physical holdings. This left me with two possible explanations to this discrepancy; one was that at some point Dickinson did own a 1626 edition, and that acquisition was highlighted in the documentation, but was excised from the archives in the years since. The alternative is that either Dr. Frances Willoughby or the librarians cataloging the gift mistook this 1632 edition of the text for the 1626 edition and recorded it incorrectly. I consulted with our archivists, Jim Gerencser and Malinda Triller-Doran, and the three of us were in agreement that the latter explanation was far more likely. Had a 1626 edition of Sandys’ Ovid’s Metamorphoses been excised, it would have been under Jim’s direction, and he explained that he would have never gotten rid of a rare book that was part of the Willoughby collection. 

Fig. 5 Document mentioning Sandys’ 1626 translation of Ovid’s Metamorphoses as part of the collection donated to the Dickinson College Library in 1960.

Jim’s insight meant that a copy of the 1626 edition likely never existed in the Dickinson College Archives, so at some point in the donation and cataloging process, someone made an error. Had it been simply the wrong year that was recorded, one might not dwell too long on it, as human error is common and there were no computers in 1960 to keep the streamlined catalogs that the archives have today. But it was more than just the year—all archival documents record the full information for the 1626 edition, which include the publisher and location of publication (William Stansby, London) and the complete title, Ovid’s Metamorphoses English’d. John Lichfield published the 1632 edition in Oxford and it had a much longer title which signified its status as an illustrated translation. Furthermore, this information is all located on the title page of the text. One would only have to open the book to realize that the copy in the archives’ possession was the 1632 illustrated edition, not Sandys’ 1626 translation. I cannot account for this mistake, nor can Jim and Malinda, but it demonstrates the incredible responsibility book collectors, conservationists, archivists, and librarians have when it comes to the texts they preside over. Making mistakes is human, and easy, but misrecorded information can also affect the work and research of future students and scholars. Fortunately, the online catalog correctly lists the 1632 edition as the version that Dickinson College holds in the archives.

Works Cited

“Edwin Eliott Willoughby (1899-1959) | Dickinson College.” Dickinson.edu, 2019, archives.dickinson.edu/people/edwin-eliott-willoughby-1899-1959. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.

Gerencser, Jim and Malinda Triller-Doran. Personal Interview. 2 December 2024. 

George Sandys’ 1632 publication Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures was, at the time, only his most recent translation of Ovid’s epic. He first produced a shorter translation, only the first five books of Metamorphosis, in 1621, just before traveling to the Virginian colony of Jamestown (Ellison). Sandys was a prolific travel writer whose works were read by the likes of Francis Bacon, Michael Drayton, and John Milton, but perfecting his translations of Metamorphosis seemed to be a passion project for him.

Figure 1: George Sandys, courtesy of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography

After the first illustrated translation of 1632, Sandys published a second illustrated version in 1640. John Legat published this edition in London as John Lichfield, the Oxford printer who published the 1632 edition, had passed away five years earlier in 1635 (Roberts). The differences between the two illustrated editions are unclear, aside from a portrait accompanying the frontispiece (Figure 2). The Latin inscriptions and Roman-style wreath on the subject’s head suggest the portrait depicts Ovid, the original author of Metamorphosis. Various other versions of Sandys’ Metamorphosis translations would be published long after his death in 1644. Not all were expanded editions of the illustrated versions—many were different versions of his earlier English translations. This was likely an economic decision, as illustrated books were considerably more expensive to produce. 

Figure 2: Portrait of Ovid alongside the frontispiece in the 1640 illustrated edition. Courtesy of Early English Books Online, scanned reproduction courtesy of The Huntington Library.

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It is difficult to determine the true worth of a copy of Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures, such as the one held in the Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections. Dickinson’s copy has extreme wear on the back cover, which would diminish its worth. Another copy of the same 1632 illustrated edition is listed online for $3,500 by Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Manuscripts. The seller’s description indicates slightly less damage to the binding, but similar levels of preservation to the Dickinson copy. However, it would be difficult to determine if the books were truly of a similar condition and therefore of similar value without comparing them side by side. Interestingly, Liber Antiques lists a copy of the 1640 second illustrated edition for $9,500. This difference in price begs questioning, but it is unclear why the two editions are valued so differently. It could be due to the conditions of the individual copies, or perhaps the second illustrated edition had fewer copies printed and is therefore more rare, but there is no way to be certain without a professional appraisal. Whatever the factor is, it is unlikely that the illustrations themselves contribute to the value. Copies of Sandys’ 1626 translation—not illustrated—can be found online ranging in price from $7,800-$9,000. While surprising, this indicates that the illustrations have little, if any, bearing on the worth of the book.

Discerning the actual fate of the Dickinson College Archives’ copy before it arrived in Carlisle proves a more daunting task. There are not many physical clues as to who owned the book over the years and how it was used aside from a few inscriptions in ink on the title page (See Figure 3).

Figure 3: Title page with handwritten inscriptions at the top of the page.

The phrase “Thomas Chadwick’s Book” can be made out alongside the year “1780.” About an inch to the right, the year “1730” is written. Other marginalia on the page, clearly from another time given the variations in handwriting and ink color, is illegible. The writing tells us that a man named Thomas Chadwick once owned this book. Perhaps he acquired it in 1780, or that was just the year he chose to claim ownership of it in writing. No results come up for Thomas Chadwick in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, so it is probable that Mr. Chadwick was by all accounts a regular man who enjoyed classical literature. There is also the possibility that he may have lived in the United States of America, which would have been in the middle of the Revolutionary War at the time Chadwick’s inscription implies that he owned it. There are no other identifying marks indicative of other previous owners of the Dickinson copy of Ovid’s Metamorphoses. 

While there seems to be scant information on the physical copies of the 1632 illustrated edition Ovid’s Metamorphoses Englished, Mythologiz’d, and Represented in Figures and its subsequent editions, the text itself continues to enjoy longevity. The University of Nebraska Press reprinted the original text in 1970 and other publishers have followed suit. A 2010 reprint by Kessinger Publishing is currently on sale on Amazon, for $54.60 instead of $59.95. In recent years, faculty at the University of Virginia have digitized the 1632 illustrated edition as an etext for free use. The permeation of Sandys’ work into the twenty-first century is a testament to his talent as a translator and writer. As a friend of King Charles I, Sandys enjoyed special privileges such as the exclusive publication rights to translations of Metamorphosis following the publication of his first full translation in 1626 (Bauman Rare Books). Though Sandys himself may not be a household name, many of his peers and the writers he inspired are well-known. He was a contemporary of Milton and Sir Francis Bacon, who read his work, and influenced the likes of John Dryden and Alexander Pope with the poeticism of his translations. He was revered for maintaining the qualities in translation that made Metamorphosis (at least in format) an epic poem, down to the number of lines in Ovid’s original Latin text. Given his poetic prowess and attention to detail, it is no wonder Sandys’ translation is one that stands the test of time. 

Works Cited

Ellison, James. “Sandys, George (1578–1644), writer and traveller.” Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  January 03, 2008. Oxford University Press. 

Gordon, Laura. “SANDYS, George.” Database of Classical Scholars | Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, https://dbcs.rutgers.edu/all-scholars/9091-sandys-george.

“Ovid’s Metamorphosis Englished – Ovid – Bauman Rare Books.” Baumanrarebooks.com, 2024, [LINK]. Accessed 7 Dec. 2024.

Roberts, R. Julian. “Lichfield, Leonard (bap. 1604, d. 1657), printer.” Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  September 23, 2004. Oxford University Press.

Works Consulted

Frequently Asked Questions | ABAA. https://www.abaa.org/about-antiquarian-books/faq. 

Sandys’ Ovid 1632 (Linked Table of Contents)–Ovid Illustrated, University of Virginia Electronic Text Center. https://ovid.lib.virginia.edu/sandys/contents.htm.

Additional Links

Listing of illustrated 1632 edition by Phillip J. Pirages Fine Books and Manuscripts:

https://www.pirages.com/pages/books/ST17496-030/mythology-ovid/ovids-metamorphosis-englished-mythologizd-and-represented-in-figures

Listing of 1640 illustrated edition by Liber Antiques:

https://www.liberantiquus.com/pages/books/4781/ovid-george-sandys-abraham-van-diepenbeeck-artist-publius-ovidius-naso-43-bce-17-ce/ovid-s-metamorphosis-englished-mythologiz-d-and-represented-in-figures-an-essay-to-the

Kessinger Publishing’s 2010 reprint on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Metamorphosis-Englished-Mythologized-Represented-Figures/dp/1169810470