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Matthew
Boulton's Baskerville family bible
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On 26 March 2020,
Boulton’s Baskerville family bible will be auctioned in London. This
particular bible is arguably one of Baskerville’s most important volumes due
to the quality of its bindings and the use of his endpapers. Annotated by a
contemporary hand with details of the Boulton family, it is also of great
significance to Birmingham as it represents the relationship between the
printer John Baskerville and the industrialist Matthew Boulton, two of the
most influential figures in the city’s history. We feel very strongly that
the bible should remain in its ancestral home and made publicly available.
A consortium of city heritage organisations, including the Baskerville Society, Birmingham Museums Trust, Cadbury Research Library (CRL), Civic Society, and the Lunar Society, has been formed in order to bid for the bible at auction and ensure the volume remains in Birmingham. If successful in our bid, the bible will be housed at the Cadbury Research Library at the University of Birmingham which has the resources to provide appropriate care for the book, together with its other Baskerville holdings, and make it available to the public in perpetuity. As the bible is to be sold at auction it is impossible to predict exactly how much it will fetch; but it may sell for a considerable sum. Because of this uncertainty, rather than fundraising to help with the purchase, we are inviting individuals and organisations to make financial pledges which we can call in if needed. Unfortunately, time is against us and we would require pledges to be made by Friday, 21 March 2020 at the latest. If you agree to become a pledgor, you are promising to make a contributory gift towards the purchase of Boulton’s Baskerville family bible. Your gift may be called on in full should we have to pay a high price for the bible, or in part if the bible sells for less than expected. We would not call in funds until after the auction. While the bible will be fully owned by the CRL it will have been purchased with the assistance of the generous gifts of individuals and organisations whose support will be fully acknowledged. If you would like to make a pledge then please contact Caroline Archer or Malcolm Dick using the details below or to download the pledge letter and pledge agreement please use the links below. We do hope you will give some thought to becoming a pledgor and help to secure this important example of Birmingham’s history and rare piece of typographic heritage so that it can be cared for and enjoyed by current and future generations. Thank you, |
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