Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Book ownership
(1,172 words)

1. Definition

Book ownership means holding print media as property, without regard to the material nature of the book and regardless of how ownership came about (gift, exchange, purchase, or inheritance) [2]. These modes of acquisition were all present in the 16th and 17th centuries, but inheritance and purchase later became the most commonplace. Establishing book ownership does not necessarily show that the owner read the book. Rather, it provides informa…

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Weyrauch, Erdmann, “Book ownership”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_017833>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160907



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