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Rawlinson Manuscripts

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Dr Rawlinson's collection contains manuscripts on:
  1. History, both English and international, and politics, including the state papers of John Thurloe and the papers of Samuel Pepys;
  2. Theology, including sermons and liturgies;
  3. Poetry;
  4. Classics;
  5. Academica;
  6. Statutes;
  7. Numismatics;
  8. Essex.

It also contains letters as well as collections that Rawlinson acquired and formerly belonged to Thomas Hearne (these include the manuscripts of Dr Thomas Smith, 1661-1709.)

Dr Rawlinson also bequeathed oriental manuscripts to the library, which are not described in this catalogue.

Descriptions of items in this collection often quote the original titles of documents. Some of these original titles may contain offensive terminology.

Dates

  • Creation: 8th-18th century

Extent

3571 boxes (392.81 linear metres)

Language of Materials

  • English
  • Latin
  • French
  • Greek, Modern (1453-)
  • Greek, Ancient (to 1453)
  • Dutch; Flemish
  • Italian
  • German
  • Spanish; Castilian
  • Portuguese
  • Danish
  • Irish
  • English, Old (ca.450-1100)
  • Welsh
  • Arabic
  • Catalan; Valencian
  • Hebrew

Preferred Citation

Oxford, Bodleian Libraries [followed by shelfmark and folio or page reference, e.g. MS. Rawl. A. 1, fols. 1-2].
Please see our help page for further guidance on citing archives and manuscripts.

Full range of shelfmarks:

  1. 4o Rawl. 39, 41-44, 118, 145, 201-202, 204, 245, 263, 323, 335, 550, 582;
  2. 8o Rawl. 57, 135, 196, 280, 300, 401, 426, 429, 451, 470, 510, 570, 576, 578, 582, 584-585, 588, 594-595, 614, 621, 629, 645-646, 662, 681, 1047, 1052, 1064, 1079, 1093, 1095-1097, 1102-1103, 1105-1108;
  3. MSS. Hearne's diaries 1-192;
  4. MSS. Rawl. A. 1, A. 2/1-3, A. 3-23, A. 24/1-2, A. 24*, A. 25-40, A. 41/1-3, A. 42-60, A. 61/1-3, A. 61*, A. 62/1-2, A. 62*, A. 63-138, A. 139a-b, A. 140-194, A. 195A-C, A. 196-386, A. 387a-b, A. 388-499;
  5. MSS. Rawl. B. 1-282, B. 282*, B. 283-329, B. 331-388, B. 389a-c, B. 390-397, B. 398a-b, B. 399, B. 399*, B. 400a-g, B. 401, B. 402a-b, B. 403-406, B. 407a-b, B. 408-415, B. 416a-c, B. 417-419, B. 420 a-b, B. 421-435, B. 435b, B. 436-456, B. 457a-b, B. 458-520;
  6. MSS. Rawl. C. 1-225, C. 225b, C. 226-400, C. 400*, C. 401-462, C. 464-611, C. 612a-b, C. 613-667, C. 668a-b, C. 669-858, C. 859A-C, C. 859A*, C. 860-989;
  7. MSS. Rawl. D. 1-366, D. 368-401, D. 403-943, D. 945-1037, D. 1039-1374, D. 1376-417, D. 1419-81, D. 1483-6, D. 1488-1511, D. 1514-6;
  8. MSS. Rawl. E. 1-206, E. 208-19, E. 221-61;
  9. MSS. Rawl. Essex 1-30;
  10. MSS. Rawl. G. 2-199;
  11. MSS. Rawl. I. 1-8, I. 10-11;
  12. MSS. Rawl. J. fol. 1-33, Rawl. J. 4o 1-38, Rawl. J 8o 1-18;
  13. MSS. Rawl. letters 1-138;
  14. MSS. Rawl. liturg. b. 1, c. 1, c. 3, d. 1-6, e. 1*, e. 2-13, e. 15-25, e. 27-9, e. 31-4, e. 36-47, f. 1-13, f. 16-39, g. 1-11;
  15. MSS. Rawl. N. 1-14;
  16. MSS. Rawl. poet. 1-242, 244-6;
  17. MSS. Rawl. Q. b. 1-5, Rawl. Q. c. 1-12, Rawl. Q. d. 1-12, 14-19, Rawl. Q. e. 1-33, Rawl. Q. f. 1-6, Rawl. Q. g. 1;
  18. MSS. Rawl. statutes 2-19, 21-57, 59-65;
  19. MSS. Smith 1-86, 88-125, 127-34, 136, 138-140, 142-3.

Collection ID (for staff)

CMD ID 16115

Additional Description

Abstract

Richard Rawlinson's collection of manuscripts, 8th-18th century.

Biographical / Historical

Richard Rawlinson was born on 3 January 1690 and died on 6 April 1755. His father, Sir Thomas Rawlinson, was a wine merchant, and lord mayor of London in 1706. After being educated at St. Paul's school and Eton, Rawlinson matriculated at St. John's college, Oxford, as a gentleman commoner on 9 March 1708, and proceeded BA in 1711, MA in 1713, receiving the honorary degree of DCL in 1719. He was FRS and FSA, and a Bishop among the Nonjurors (1728). In 1719-1726 he travelled in Holland, France, Germany and Italy, gradually amassing a foreign, classical and English library, as well as coins; and few book sales between 1715 and 1755 took place in London without contributing both manuscripts and printed books to his collection. When his elder brother Thomas, who was also a great book collector, died in 1726, Rawlinson catalogued his manuscripts, and at the sale in 1734 secured a large proportion of them, including Oriental volumes. In 1750 Rawlinson founded an Anglo-Saxon Professorship at Oxford. Further details are given in the Dictionary of National Biography.

Arrangement

When the Summary Catalogue of Western Manuscripts was published [Falconer Madan, et al., A summary catalogue of western manuscripts in the Bodleian Library at Oxford which have not hitherto been catalogued in the Quarto series (7 vols. in 8 [vol. II in 2 parts], Oxford, 1895-1953; reprinted, with corrections in vols. I and VII, Munich, 1980), vol. III], an attempt was made at organising the collection into artificial series.

Series in the Summary Catalogue of Western Manuscripts are:
  1. Rawlinson A: English history
  2. Rawlinson B: English history
  3. Rawlinson C: History, theology
  4. Rawlinson D: Miscellaneous
  5. Rawlinson E: Sermons
  6. Rawlinson F: Poetry
  7. Rawlinson G: Classics
  8. Rawlinson H: Letters
  9. Rawlinson I: Mainly theology
  10. Rawlinson J: Academica
  11. Rawlinson K: Hearne & Smith - English history
  12. Rawlinson L: Liturgical
  13. Rawlinson M: Statutes
  14. Rawlinson N: Numismatics
  15. Rawlinson O: Oriental (not described below)
  16. Rawlinson P: Miscellaneous, Essex

Series A-D described in the Quarto Catalogue were not physically rearranged however even though a number of volumes from series A-D were listed under other series in the Summary Catalogue arrangement.

The present online catalogue retains the series A-D exactly as described in the Quarto Catalogue and the other series include those manuscripts, which are not part of the Quarto Catalogues, but were nevertheless part of the Rawlinson collection.

Other Finding Aids

Falconer Madan, et al., A summary catalogue of western manuscripts in the Bodleian Library at Oxford which have not hitherto been catalogued in the Quarto series (7 vols. in 8 [vol. II in 2 parts], Oxford, 1895-1953; reprinted, with corrections in vols. I and VII, Munich, 1980), vol. III, nos. 10884-16087. William D. Macray, Catalogi codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Bodleianae partis quintae fasciculus primus viri munificentissimi Ricardi Rawlinson, J.C.D., codicum classes duas priores, ad rem historicam praecipue et topographicam spectantes, complectens (Oxford, 1862) [covers MSS. Rawl. A and B]/. William D. Macray, Catalogi codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecæ Bodleianæ partis quintæ fasciculus secundus, viri munificentissimi Ricardi Rawlinson, J.C.D., codicum classem tertiam, in qua libri theologici atque miscellanei, complectens; accedit in uniuscujusque classis(Oxford: 1878) [covers MSS. Rawl. C and index to Rawl. A, B, and C]. William D. Macray, Catalogi codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Bodleianae partis quintae fasciculus tertius, viri munificentissimi Ricardi Rawlinson, I.C.D., codicum classis quartae partem priorem (libros sc. miscellaneos octingentos et sexaginta) complectens (Oxford, 1893) [covers MSS. Rawl. D. 1-860]. William D. Macray, Catalogi codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Bodleianae partis quintae fasciculus quartus, viri munificentissimi Ricardi Rawlinson, I.C.D., codicum classis quartae partem alteram (libros sc. miscellaneos sexcentos et quinquaginta sex) complectens (Oxford, 1898) [covers MSS. Rawl. D. 861-1516]. William D. Macray, Catalogi codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Bodleianae partis quintae fasciculus quintus, viri munificentissimi Ricardi Rawlinson, I.C.D., codicum classis quartae, indicem continens (Oxford, 1900) [Index to MSS. Rawl. D]. Our best descriptions for medieval items in this collection are in Medieval Manuscripts in Oxford Libraries.

Custodial History

The following manuscripts with Rawl. shelfmarks were owned by Thomas Hearne:
  1. 4o Rawl. 145, 201-202, 204, 335, 582;
  2. 8o Rawl. 57, 135, 196, 280, 401, 426, 451, 470, 510, 570, 578, 582, 584-585, 588, 595, 621, 629, 645, 662, 681, 1047, 1052, 1079;
  3. MSS. Rawl. A. 366, A. 371, A. 374, A. 407, A. 415, A. 419, A. 427-428, A. 439, A. 442, A. 446;
  4. MSS. Rawl. B. 149, B. 159, B. 168, B. 176, B. 180-185, B. 190, B. 197-198, B. 201, B. 203-206, B. 213, B. 221, B. 225, B. 237, B. 246-247, B. 254, B. 258-259, B. 263-264, B. 272, B. 276, B. 330, B. 399, B. 399*, B. 414, B. 433, B. 445, B. 457B, B. 458, B. 471;
  5. MSS. Rawl. C. 22, C. 67, C. 146, C. 163, C. 186, C. 228, C. 234, C. 259, C. 276-277, C. 292, C. 314, C. 331, C. 339, C. 434, C. 462, C. 466, C. 472, C. 506, C. 538, C. 557, C. 649, C. 655, C. 668A, C. 738, C. 758, C. 772, C. 781, C. 849-851, C. 863-864, C. 876, C. 919, C. 930;
  6. MSS. Rawl. D. 5, D. 9, D. 113, D. 123, D. 141, D. 180, D. 192-194, D. 221, D. 224, D. 243, D. 253, D. 260-261, D. 263, D. 267, D. 274, D. 280, D. 289, D. 315-319, D. 321-326, D. 328, D. 332, D. 348, D. 350, D. 358, D. 366, D. 370, D. 374-375, D. 377-378, D. 384, D. 396-401, D. 445, D. 654, D. 683, D. 697, D. 731-732, D. 797-798, D. 800, D. 837, D. 891, D. 893, D. 939, D. 943, D. 946, D. 970-971, D. 979, D. 1002, D. 1017, D. 1020-1021, D. 1029, D. 1059, D. 1071-1072, D. 1110, D. 1144, D. 1164-1166, D. 1168-1177, D. 1188, D. 1222-1223, D. 1267-1268, D. 1290, D. 1373, D. 1377;
  7. MSS. Rawl. G. 8-9, G. 27, G. 31, G. 67, G. 84-85, G. 96, G. 99, G. 109, G. 139, G. 165, G. 172, G. 178-182;
  8. MS. Rawl. I. 8;
  9. MSS. Rawl. letters. 1-27, 39, 65, 86, 110;
  10. MS. Rawl. liturg. e. 43;
  11. MSS. Rawl. N. 1-2;
  12. MSS. Rawl. poet. 38, 64, 88, 145, 148, 199;
  13. MSS. Rawl. Q. c. 1-3, d. 1-14, e. 2-12, e. 14-20, f. 1, g. 1;
  14. MSS. Rawl. statutes 19, 36, 45.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Rawlinson gave many printed books and a few manuscripts to the Library during his lifetime. Finally by his will, besides bequests to Hertford and St. John's Colleges and to the Ashmolean Museum, he bequeathed to the University all his manuscripts, medals, coins, matrixes and impressions of seals, prints, paintings and copperplates; and all such printed books as were on vellum or silk, or were not duplicates of books already in the Library. His musical manuscripts were left to the Music School, and only came into the Librarian's custody in 1885.

MS. Rawl. C. 925 has now been re-shelmarked as MS. St. Amand 70.

Bibliography

  • T. Birch ed., A Collection of the State Papers of John Thurloe, Esq. Secretary to the Council of State and the two Protectors Oliver and Richard Cromwell (London, 1742).
  • C.E. Doble (ed.), Remarks and collections of Thomas Hearne, Oxford Historical Society ; Vols. 2, 7, 13, 34, 42-43, 48, 50, 65, 67, 72 (Oxford: Printed for the Oxford Historical Society at the Clarendon Press, 1885-1921).

Subjects

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Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Rawlinson Manuscripts
Status
Published
Author
Collection Level Description by Emily Tarrant; EAD version 2022 by Pauline Soum-Paris
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Bodleian Libraries Repository

https://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/weston
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