| Level | Fonds |
| Finding Number (Click this to view full catalogue structure) | DSH9 |
| Title | Mary Cowden Clarke Correspondence |
| Extent | 4 items |
| Date | 1869-1874 |
| Thumbnail (Click this image to open a larger image) | 
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| Description | Three letters, dated 14 August, 19 September and 2 October 1874, from Mary Cowden Clarke to Matthew Mason, printer and publisher, concerning revisions to be made to 'The Complete Concordance to Shakespeare' (originally published in 1845), and proposals for the publication of its companion volume, 'The Shakespeare Key', by Charles and Mary Cowden Clarke. Also includes six-page manuscript prospectus for 'The Shakespeare Key', which was published in 1879. |
| Arrangement | Letters arranged in chronological order |
| Location | This collection is held at the Shakespeare Institute Library, Stratford-upon-Avon |
| Access Conditions | Access to all registered researchers. |
| Copyright | Permission to make any published use of any material from the collection must be sought in advance in writing from the Director of Special Collections (email: special-collections@contacts.bham.ac.uk). Identification of copyright holders of unpublished material is often difficult. Special Collections will assist where possible with identifying copyright owners, but responsibility for ensuring copyright clearance rests with the user of the material. |
| Language | English |
| Access Status | Open |
| Physical Description | Fragile manuscript material |
| Administrative History | Mary Victoria Cowden Clarke (nee Novello), born 1809. Married Charles Cowden Clarke, 1828.
Publications: 'Complete Concordance to Shakespeare', 1845; 'The Adventures of Kit Bam, Mariner', 1848; 'The Girlhood of Shakespeare's Heroines', 1850; 'The Iron Cousin', 1854; 'The Song of a Drop O'Wather, by Harry Wandworth Shortfellow', 1856; 'World-noted Women', 1857; 'Trust and Remittance: Love Stories in Metred Prose', 1873; 'A Rambling Story', 1874; 'The Shakespeare Key', 1879.
[Compiled from 'Who Was Who, 1897-1916'] |
| Custodial History | Material found contained in a copy of Mary Cowden Clarke's 'Complete Concordance to Shakespeare', 1889 edition, purchased by Ronald Knowles in 1986. The 'Concordance' was inscribed 'To Frank Girran. With E. Mason's fond regards. January 1st 1890'. Knowles surmises E. Mason to be a relation of Matthew Mason, to whom the letters are addressed. |
| Acquisition | Gift received from Ronald Knowles, Lecturer in English at the University of Reading, through Professor Philip Brockbank on behalf of the Shakespeare Institute, December 1986. |
| Copies | High quality copy on staff R drive and on disk 1 (Tiff images). |
| Associated Materials | Material on Mary Victoria Cowden Clarke available at the following repositories:
corresp and literary MSS, Leeds University, Brotherton Library; notes, poem and misc corresp, Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Records Office; 1851-96: letters (49), Huntin |
| Publication Note | 'The Shakespeare Key: unlocking the treasures of his style, elucidating the peculiarities of this construction, and displaying the beauties of his expression', by Charles and Mary Cowden Clarke (London: S. Low, Marston, Searle and Rivington, 1879) |