Richard Field (printer)
Encyclopedia
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
, with whom he grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
.
Life and career
Field's family lived on Bridge Street, Stratford-upon-Avon, close to the Shakespeares' house on Henley Street. His father was a tannerTanning
Tanning is the making of leather from the skins of animals which does not easily decompose. Traditionally, tanning used tannin, an acidic chemical compound from which the tanning process draws its name . Coloring may occur during tanning...
. It is generally accepted that Shakespeare and Field knew each other in Stratford, since they were similar in age and their fathers were in similar businesses (tanner and glover). After Field's father Henry died in August 1592, William's father John Shakespeare
John Shakespeare
John Shakespeare was the father of William Shakespeare. He was the son of Richard Shakespeare of Snitterfield, a farmer. He moved to Stratford-upon-Avon and married Mary Arden, with whom he had eight children, five of whom survived into adulthood...
was one of the local officials charged with the appraisal of the deceased man's property.
In 1579 Richard Field began an apprenticeship with the London printers John Bishop and Thomas Vautrollier. Vautrollier died in 1587. In 1588, Field collaborated with Jacqueline Vautrollier, Thomas Vautrollier's widow and a printer in her own right, on The copie of a letter sent out of England to Don Bernardin Mendoza declaring the state of England. This piece of Protestant propaganda was the first work to bear Field's name. Field went on to marry Jacqueline in 1589. He succeeded to his former master's business, "one of the best in London." Field's shop was in the Blackfriars area of London, near Ludgate
Ludgate
Ludgate was the westernmost gate in London Wall. The name survives in Ludgate Hill, an eastward continuation of Fleet Street, and Ludgate Circus.-Etymology:...
. He regularly printed works for the most highly-regarded publishers in London, including William Ponsonby and Edward Blount
Edward Blount
Edward Blount was a London publisher of the Elizabethan, Jacobean, and Caroline eras, noted for his publication, in conjunction with William and Isaac Jaggard, of the First Folio of Shakespeare's plays in 1623....
. In 1592 his brother, Jasper Field, joined Richard's business as an apprentice.
Field's Protestantism led him to publish a number of Spanish-language Protestant works for sale in Catholic Spain, under the name "Ricardo del Campo." Examples include a translation of Calvin's reformed catechism, Catecismo que significa forma de instrucion, que contiene los principios de la religion de dios, util y necessario para todo fiel Christiano : compuesto en manera de dialogo, donde pregunta el maestro, y responde el discipulo (1596). His Spanish works included a number which claimed to be written by Cipriano de Valera
Cipriano de Valera
Cipriano de Valera was the editor of the first major revision of the Spanish Bible translation of Casiodoro de Reina. First published in 1602, this version of the Bible continues to be called the Reina-Valera, even after latter revisions. Valera was in exile in England during most of the reign of...
, including Dos tratados. El primero es del Papa y de su autoridad colegido de su vida y dotrina, y de lo que los dotores y concilios antiguos y la misma sagrada Escritura enseñan. El segundo es de la Missa recopilado de los dotores y concilios y de la sagrada Escritura (1599) and a Spanish New Testament (1596).
For his title pages, Field adopted an Aldine
Aldine Press
Aldine Press was the printing office started by Aldus Manutius in 1494 in Venice, from which were issued the celebrated Aldine editions of the classics . The Aldine Press is famous in the history of typography, among other things, for the introduction of italics...
device, an anchor with the Latin motto Anchora Spei, "anchor of hope."
In Field's era, the trades of printer and publisher were to some significant degree separate activities: booksellers acted as publishers and commissioned printers to do the requisite printing. Field concentrated more on printing than publishing: of the roughly 295 books he printed in his career, he was publisher of perhaps 112, while the rest were published by other stationers. When, for example, Andrew Wise
Andrew Wise
Andrew Wise , or Wyse or Wythes, was a London publisher of the Elizabethan era who issued first editions of five Shakespearean plays...
published Thomas Campion
Thomas Campion
Thomas Campion was an English composer, poet and physician. He wrote over a hundred lute songs; masques for dancing, and an authoritative technical treatise on music.-Life:...
's Observations in the Art of English Poesy in 1602, the volume was printed by Field.
Field rose to be one of the 22 master printers of the Stationers Company
Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers
The Worshipful Company of Stationers and Newspaper Makers is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Stationers' Company was founded in 1403; it received a Royal Charter in 1557...
. From 1615 on he kept his shop in Wood Street, near his home. Field had a number of apprentices, one being George Miller. After Field's death in 1624, his business passed to the partners Richard Badger and George Miller, who continued to employ the Aldine device.
Shakespeare's poems
Field is best remembered for printing the early editions of three of Shakespeare's non-dramatic poems:- Venus and AdonisVenus and Adonis (Shakespeare poem)Venus and Adonis is a poem by William Shakespeare, written in 1592–1593, with a plot based on passages from Ovid's Metamorphoses. It is a complex, kaleidoscopic work, using constantly shifting tone and perspective to present contrasting views of the nature of love.-Publication:Venus and Adonis was...
— Field printed the first four editions of the narrative poem, the quartosBook sizeThe size of a book is generally measured by the height against the width of a leaf, or sometimes the height and width of its cover. A series of terms is commonly used by libraries and publishers for the general sizes of modern books, ranging from "folio" , to "quarto" and "octavo"...
of 1593 and 1594 and the octavosBook sizeThe size of a book is generally measured by the height against the width of a leaf, or sometimes the height and width of its cover. A series of terms is commonly used by libraries and publishers for the general sizes of modern books, ranging from "folio" , to "quarto" and "octavo"...
of 1595 and 1596. - The Rape of LucreceThe Rape of LucreceThe Rape of Lucrece is a narrative poem by William Shakespeare about the legendary Lucretia. In his previous narrative poem, Venus and Adonis , Shakespeare had included a dedicatory letter to his patron, the Earl of Southampton, in which he promised to write a "graver work"...
— Field printed the first quarto edition of 1594. - The Phoenix and the TurtleThe Phoenix and the TurtleThe Phoenix and the Turtle is an allegorical poem about the death of ideal love by William Shakespeare. It is widely considered to be one of his most obscure works and has led to many conflicting interpretations. It has also been called "the first great published metaphysical poem". The title "The...
— working for Edward Blount, Field printed the 1601 first quarto edition of the poem Love's Martyr by Robert ChesterRobert Chester (poet)Robert Chester is the mysterious author of the poem Love's Martyr which was published in 1601 as the main poem in a collection which also included much shorter poems by William Shakespeare, Ben Jonson, George Chapman and John Marston, along with the anonymous "Vatum Chorus" and "Ignoto"...
. In addition to Chester's poem, the volume contained short poems by other hands, including Shakespeare's work.
In contrast to the early printed editions of Shakespeare's plays, Field's texts for the two narrative poems meet a high standard of quality. Scholars have sometimes supposed Shakespeare's direct involvement: "The two early poems, both carefully printed by Field, are probably the only works the publication of which Shakespeare supervised." Others, however, have disputed the idea of the poet's personal involvement, arguing that Field, "a highly efficient printer with a reputation for honesty and scrupulousness," could have produced the high-quality texts on his own.
Field entered Venus and Adonis into the Stationers' Register
Stationers' Register
The Stationers' Register was a record book maintained by the Stationers' Company of London. The company is a trade guild given a royal charter in 1557 to regulate the various professions associated with the publishing industry, including printers, bookbinders, booksellers, and publishers in England...
on 18 April 1593, and published as well as printed the first two editions, but on 25 June 1594 he transferred the rights to the poem to bookseller John Harrison ("the Elder"). Harrison published Lucrece as well as future editions of Venus, and sold the books from his shop at the sign of the White Greyhound in St. Paul's
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
Churchyard. Harrison later published editions of Lucrece that were printed by other printers.
Other connections
Another association between Shakespeare and Field has been theorized. It has often been noticed that many of the texts that Shakespeare used as sources for his plays were products of the Vautrollier/Field printshop. These texts include Thomas NorthThomas North
Sir Thomas North was an English translator of Plutarch, second son of the 1st Baron North.-Life:He is supposed to have been a student of Peterhouse, Cambridge, and was entered at Lincoln's Inn in 1557. In 1574 he accompanied his brother, Lord North, on a visit to the French court. He served as...
's translation of Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
, Sir John Harington's translation of Orlando Furioso
Orlando Furioso
Orlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...
, Robert Greene
Robert Greene (16th century)
Robert Greene was an English author best known for a posthumous pamphlet attributed to him, Greene's Groats-Worth of Wit, widely believed to contain a polemic attack on William Shakespeare. He was born in Norwich and attended Cambridge University, receiving a B.A. in 1580, and an M.A...
's Pandosto, the works of Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
, and possibly Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed
Raphael Holinshed was an English chronicler, whose work, commonly known as Holinshed's Chronicles, was one of the major sources used by William Shakespeare for a number of his plays....
's Chronicles. Since Field would have kept a copy of each of these books in his shop, it has been theorized that Shakespeare used Field's shop as a library during his early career. James Shapiro
James Shapiro
James Shapiro, MD was born in Leeds, England and obtained his medical degree at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. He is currently a Canadian Research Chair in transplantation and the Director of the Clinical Islet Transplant Program at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada.Shapiro is...
argues that the influence of Plutarch was especially significant in Shakespeare's mid-career and that he "probably worked from a copy of Plutarch given, or lent him, by Field, an expensive and beautiful folio that cost a couple of pounds".
Richard and Jacqueline Field lived on Wood Street in the parish of St. Olave in the early 17th century; Shakespeare moved in with the Mountjoy family in nearby Silver Street in 1602. Mrs. Field and the Mountjoys were members of the community of Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
exiles in london, and likely knew each other on that basis — a further probable connection between Shakespeare and the Fields.
Cymbeline
There is no direct evidence for a connection between Shakespeare and Field after 1601; but an indirect connection exists in a reference in Shakespeare's CymbelineCymbeline
Cymbeline , also known as Cymbeline, King of Britain or The Tragedy of Cymbeline, is a play by William Shakespeare, based on legends concerning the early Celtic British King Cunobelinus. Although listed as a tragedy in the First Folio, modern critics often classify Cymbeline as a romance...
, believed to have been written around 1610. In IV,ii,377 of that play, Imogen gives the decapitated corpse of Cloten the name "Richard du Champ," French for Richard Field. (When printing Spanish texts, Field called himself "Ricardo del Campo.") Shakespeare's reason for giving his friend and colleague's name to the headless corpse of a villain is a matter of speculation. However, at this point in the play Imogen believes the body to be that of her husband Posthumus. When discovered (dressed as a young man) embracing the corpse, she dissembles by inventing the imaginary "du Champ", referring to him as "a very valiant Briton and a good", calling herself his devoted servant. For this reason the name is typically interpreted as an affectionate compliment to Field.