Esther Inglis (1569?– 1624)
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Esther Inglis is an important, indeed possibly unique, "early modern British female book artist." Born around 1569 in Dieppe to French Huguenot parents fleeing religious persecution, she was raised in Edinburgh where she learned the art of calligraphy from her mother, Marie Presot. Her father, Nicholas Langlois, was Master of the French School in Edinburgh, under the patronage of James VI. Inglis married Scottish clergyman Bernard Kello around 1596 and used her calligraphic skills to make copies for him in his position as Clerk of Passports and other foreign correspondence. Some of her small, jewel-like calligraphic volumes appear to have supported Kello's involvement with the secret negotiations for the succession of James VI to the English throne. The volumes also figured in the patronage system, where Inglis and her husband hoped for remuneration for her work. Many of her little books are dedicated to members of the Protestant circles in England and Europe, including Elizabeth I; James VI and I; Prince Henry; Prince Charles; Lucy Harington, Countess of Bedford; Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury; Sir Anthony Bacon; Prince Maurice of Nassau; Catherine de Parthenay, Duchess of Rohan; and Catherine de Bourbon, sister of Henri IV.
She was not only an adept calligrapher, using over forty styles of handwriting, but she also illuminated her manuscripts with self-portraits, flowers and birds, or exquisite black-and-white title pages, historiated initials, and printer's devices copied from printed books. Many of her volumes are bound in velvet or silk which she likely embroidered herself, as her skill with needle as well as pen was remarked upon by a contemporary. One of her last works was a sumptuous copy of Emblemes Chrestiens by Georgette de Montenay, made for Prince Charles in 1624, the year of her death.
Inglis's sources
Inglis mostly copied out Biblical texts in English, French or Latin from Ecclesiastes, Genesis, Psalms, Proverbs, and the Book of Solomon. She also made copies of French religious poems:
- Quatrains by Guy du Faur, Sieur de Pybrac (1529-1584)
- Octonaires . . . sur la Vanité et Inconstance du Monde, by Antoine de la Roche Chandieu (1534-1591)
For a full discussion of her textual and design sources, see the Scott-Elliot and Yeo Catalogue.
Selected further reading
Folger Shakespeare Library, The Collation
Barker, Nicolas. Introduction to Esther Inglis's Les Proverbes de Salomon: a Facsimile. Arundel, England: Roxburghe Club, 2012.
Bracher, Tricia. "Esther Inglis and the English Succession Crisis of 1599." Women and Politics in Early Modern England, 1450-1700. Ed. James Daybell. Aldershot, England; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2004. 132-146.
Frye, Susan. Chapter 2 in Pens and Needles: Women's Textualities in Early Modern England. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2010.
Ross, Sarah Gwyneth. "Esther Inglis: Linguist, Calligrapher, Miniaturist, and Christian Humanist." Early Modern Women and Transnational Communities of Letters. Ed. Julie D. Campbell and Anne R. Larsen. Farnham, England; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2009. 159-181.
Tjan-Bakker, Anneke. "Dame Flora's Blossoms: Esther Inglis's Flower-Illustrated Manuscripts." English Manuscript Studies 1100-1700. Vol. 9, ed. Peter Beal and Margaret J.M. Ezell. London: The British Library, 2000. 49-72.
[Tjan]-Bakker, Anneke. "Esther Inglis & Maurice of Nassau." Quaerendo 48:1 (2018) 39-76. On Folger MS V.a.93. Ziegler, Georgianna. "'More than Feminine Boldness': The Gift Books of Esther Inglis." Women, Writing, and the Reproduction of Culture in Tudor and Stuart Britain. Ed. Mary E. Burke et al. Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2000. 19-37.
Ziegler, Georgianna. "Hand-Ma[i]de Books: The Manuscripts of Esther Inglis, Early-Modern Precursors of the Artists' Book." English Manuscript Studies 1100-1700. Vol. 9, ed. Peter Beal and Margaret J.M. Ezell. London: The British Library, 2000. 73-87.
Manuscripts chart
The chart lists 64 known manuscripts by Esther Inglis, four of which are untraced, and two of which have recently been identified and are in neither of the standard bibliographies listed below. The Folger Shakespeare Library and the Houghton Library at Harvard each own five of her manuscripts, the largest collections in the US. (I do not count Folger X.d.533 as a separate manuscript as it was part of V.a.93 and not counted separately in Scott-Elliot and Yeo.)
The chart is organized by:
- Location
- Shelf-mark
- E-Y No., referring to the Catalogue prepared by A.H. Scott-Elliot and Elspeth Yeo, Publications of the Bibliographical Society of America 84:1 (March 1990), 10-86.
- CELM No.: Catalogue of English Literary Manuscripts 1450-1700
- Title: see note on Sources above
- Date
- Dedication
- Self-Portrait: Scott-Elliot and Yeo identified 4 basic types, which are identified if possible
- Digital or other images available: Perdita refers to the subscription database of manuscripts by early English women writers; unfortunately, many of the images, made from microfilm, are grainy and difficult to see
- Binding: unusually, most of the manuscripts are in their original bindings
- Catalog Record
- Notes: "Barker" refers to the substantial Introduction by Nicolas Barker to his facsimile edition of Esther Inglis's Les proverbes de Salomon (Roxburghe Club, 2012)
Esther Inglish Manuscripts, A Census
United States of America
| Location | Shelfmark | E-Y No. | CELM No. | Title | Date | Dedication? | Self-portrait? | Digitized? Images? | Binding | Catalog record | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Folger | V.a.91 | 12 | *InE 15 | Octonaries | 1600/01 | No | Type 4 | V.a.91; Perdita b&w | Leather, gold-tooled | Hamnet record | |
| Folger | V.a.92 | 33 | *InE 20 | Octonaries | 1607 | William Jeffrey (active 1607) | No | V.a.92; Perdita b&w | Leather, gold-tooled | Hamnet record | |
| Folger | V.a.93 | 8 | *InE 31 | Les CL Psames de David | 1599 | Prince Maurice of Nassau (1567-1625) | Type 1 [X.d.533] | V.a.93 (selections) | Brown velvet, embroidered | Hamnet record | |
| Folger | V.a.94 | 36 | *InE 36 | Argumenta Psalmorum Davidis | 1608 | Prince Henry (1594-1612) | No | V.a.94 (selections); Perdita b&w | Red velvet, embroidered, pearls | Hamnet record | |
| Folger | V.a.665 | 0 | 0 | Psalms of David | 1612 | Prince Henry (1594-1612) | Type 3 | Pink or yellow velvet, embroidered | Hamnet record | ||
| Folger | X.d.533 | *InE 32 | Self portrait from V.a.93 | Type 1 [V.a.93] | X.d.533 | Hamnet record | |||||
| Harry Ransom Center (University of Texas-Austin) | Pforz MS 0126 | 21 | *InE 27 | A New Yeers Guift. [Book of Proverbs] | 1606 | Robert Sidney, 1st Earl of Leicester (1563-1626); no written ded. | No | Perdita color | Leather, gold-tooled | NA | |
| Houghton (Harvard) | MS Typ 428.1 | 2 | *InE 34 | Penmanship specimens [Psalms] | 1605 | Susan de Vere, Countess of Montgomery (1587-1629) | No | Limp vellum | HOLLIS record | ||
| Houghton (Harvard) | MS Typ 212 | 25 | *InE 35 | Argumenta Psalmorum | 1606 | Thomas Egerton, Baron Ellesmere (1540?-1617) | Type 2 | MS Typ 212 | Leather, gold-tooled | HOLLIS record | |
| Houghton (Harvard) | MS Typ 428 | 35 | *InE 11 | Argumentum singlorum capitum Geneseos | 1608 | Sir Edward Stanhope (1546?-1608) | No | Leather, gold-tooled | HOLLIS record | ||
| Houghton (Harvard) | MS Typ 347 | 44 | *InE 50 | Les six vingts et six quatrains de Guy de Faur | 1615 | No | No | Leather, gold-tooled | HOLLIS record | ||
| Houghton (Harvard) | MS Typ 49 | 46 | *InE 58 | Verbum sempiternum [by John Taylor] | 1615 | Samuel Kello (d. 1680) | No | MS Typ 49 | Green velvet, embroidered | HOLLIS record | |
| Huntington Library | mssHM 26068 | 3 | *InE 2 | Discours de la Foy | 1591 | Queen Elizabeth (1533-1603) | No | Digital Scriptorium, no images | Limp vellum, gold-tooled | Huntington Library record | |
| Huntington Library | 283000. Vol.5:III. | 52 | *InE 7 | Emblematical drawing of Mary Queen of Scots | 1622 | John Erskine, Earl of Mar (c1562-1634) | No | Huntington Library record | |||
| The Morgan Library and Museum | MA 2149 | 28 | *InE 6 | Argumenta singuloru[m] capitum Eccles | 1607 | Thomas Puckering (1592-1636) | No | Leather, gold-tooled | Corsair record | ||
| The Morgan Library and Museum | B1 350 A MS W.72 | 47 | *InE 19 | Octonaires sur la vanite | 1615 | Andrew Ramsay (1574-1659) | No | Leather, gold-tooled | Corsair record | ||
| Newberry Library | Wing MS miniature ZW 645 .K29 | 23 | *InE 29 | A New Yeeres guift [Book of Proverbs, select.] | 1606 | Lady Erskine of Dirleton | No | Perdita - b&w | Leather, gold-tooled | Newberry record | |
| Newberry | Wing MS miniature ZW 645 .K292 | 31 | *InE 47 | Les Quatrains du Sr. de Pybrac | 1606? | Sir Thomas Hayes? | No | Perdita - b&w | Leather, gold-tooled | Newberry record | |
| New York Public Library | Spencer Coll. French MS. 008 | 17 | *InE 3 | Le Livre de l'Ecclesiaste | 1601 | Catherine de Parthenay-Larcheveque, Vicomtesse de Rohan | Type 1 | Spencer Coll. French MS 008 (selections) | Leather, gold-tooled | NYPL record | |
| New York Public Library | Spencer Coll. MS. 14 | 13 | *InE 14 | Octonaries upon the Vanitie | 1609 | John, first Baron Petre | Yes | Spencer Coll. MS 14 (selections) | Leather, gold-tooled | NYPL record | |
| Private Library | Julian I. Edison, St. Louis | 11 | *InE 43 | Quatrains | 1599 | No | No | Two images b&w - Bibliotheque Raphael Esmerian, vol. 1, lot 9 | Leather, gold-tooled | NA | |
| Private Library | Julian I. Edison, St. Louis | 43 | *InE 21 | Octonaires sur la Vanite | 1615 | Prince Charles (1600-1649) | ? | Three images in color - Sotheby's Cat. 5 Dec. 1989, London, Lot 65 | Red velvet, embroidered | NA | |
| Private Library | Julian I. Edison, St. Louis | 45 | *InE 51 | Quatrains | 1615 | Robert Karr, Earl of Somerset (1584/6-1645) | Formerly | Leather, gold-tooled | NA | ||
| Private Library | USA | 0 | *InE 46 | Quatrains | 1600 | Henri, Vicomte de Rohan (1579-1638) | ? | One image in Sotheby's Cat. 13 Dec. 1994, London, Lot 21 | Leather, gold-tooled | NA |
United Kingdom (England)
| Location | Shelfmark | E-Y No. | CELM No. | Title | Date | Dedication? | Self-portrait? | Digitized? Images? | Binding | Catalog record | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bodleian Library | MS. Bodl. 990 | 9 | *InE 24 | Les Proverbes de Salomon | 1599 | Robert, 2nd Earl of Essex | Type 1 | MS. Bodley 990 (14 openings) | Rebound: Leather, gold-tooled | Digital Bodleian record | |
| Bodleian Library | MS. Bodl. 987 | 50 | *InE 52 | Les six vingts et six quatrains de Guy de Faur | 1617 | Joseph Hall, DD | Unique type - photographed as p.006 with MS. Bodl. 990 | Leather, gold-tooled | Perdita record | ||
| British Library | Sloane MS 987 | 1 | *InE 33 | Livret contenant diverses sortes de lettres [Psalms] | 1586 | No | No | Perdita - b&w | Modern leather | British Library record | |
| British Library | Add. MS 27927 | 10 | *InE 4 | Le Livre de l'Ecclesiaste / Cantique de Salomon | 1599 | Anthony Bacon (1558-1601) | Type 1 | Perdita - b&w | Brown velvet, embroidered (set in rebind) | British Library record | |
| British Library | Harleian MS 4324 | 40 | *InE 48 | Les Quatrains de Guy de Faur | 1614 | Sir David Murray of Gorthy | No | Perdita - b&w | Leather, 19th c | Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts record | |
| British Library | Add. MS 19633 | 41 | *InE 49 | Les Quatrains de Guy de Faur | 1615 | Prince Charles (1600-1649) | Yes | Perdita - b&w | Maroon velvet, embroidered | British Library record | |
| British Library | Add. MS 22606 | 51 | *InE 53 | Les six vingts et six quatrains de Guy de Faur | 1617 | Walter Balcanquall, BD | No | Perdita - b&w | Leather, gold-tooled | British Library record | |
| British Library | Royal MS 17.D.XVI | 54 | *InE 8 | Ce Livre contenant cinquante Emblemes Chrestiens | 1624 | Prince Charles (1600-1649) | Type 4 | Perdita - b&w | Crimson satin, embroidered, Prince of Wales feathers & crown | British Library record | |
| Christ Church, Oxford | MS. 180 | 7 | *InE 30 | Le Livre des Pseaumes | 1599 | Queen Elizabeth (1533-1603) | Type 1 | 180 - 162 openings | Crimson velvet, embroidered, Tudor rose & crown | Digital Bodleian record | |
| Royal Library, Windsor | Royal Library | 27 | *InE 17 | Cinquante Octonaires | 1607 | Prince Henry (1594-1612) | Type 2 | Pinkish velvet | NA | ||
| Wormsley Library | RH158 | 18 | *InE 26 | Les Proverbes de Salomon | 1601 | Catherine de Bourbon | Type 1 | Fully photographed and printed for Roxburghe Club, 2012 | 18th c French calf | NA | |
| Wormsley Library | BM1851 | 38 | *InE 37 | Psalms of David | 1612 | Sir David Murray | Yes | Purple silk; yellow, white, silver thread stripes | NA | ||
| Wormsley Library | BM1850 | 55 | *InE 39 | The Book of the Psalmes of Davide in prose | 1624 | Probably Prince Charles (see Barker) | Type 4 | White velvet, embroidered | NA | ||
| Private Library | PL Northamptonshire | 26 | *InE 12 | Argumenta in Librum Geneseos | 1606 | Thomas Wotton, Baron Wotton of Marley (1587-1630) | No | Leather, gold-tooled | NA | ||
| Private Library | PL Norfolk | 37 | *InE 1 | A Book of the Armes of England | 1609 | Prince Henry (1594-1612) | Yes | Green velvet, embroidered | NA |