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Collection, use, dispersal: the library of Charles Hutton and the fate of Georgian mathematics

Abstract:
Charles Hutton (1737–1823) collected books from his childhood onwards, and by the time of his retirement owned what he and his friends believed was the best mathematical library in England. Following a misunderstanding with the British Museum, the collection was dispersed at auction in 1816, and few of the books can now be located. This paper discusses first Hutton’s activities as a collector of mathematical print from eighteenth-century Britain and beyond; it considers how, and how effectively, he became a contributor to mathematical print himself, reusing and extending the contents of his library. Finally it describes the dispersal of his library and of the mathematical culture in which he worked.
Publication status:
Published
Peer review status:
Peer reviewed

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Files:
Publisher copy:
10.1093/oso/9780198863953.003.0007

Authors


More by this author
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
HUMS
Department:
History Faculty
Oxford college:
All Souls College
Role:
Author
ORCID:
0000-0002-3383-7574

Contributors

Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
HUMS
Department:
History Faculty
Role:
Editor
Institution:
University of Oxford
Division:
MPLS
Department:
Mathematical Institute
Role:
Editor
ORCID:
0000-0003-3181-1968


More from this funder
Funder identifier:
https://ror.org/0505m1554
Grant:
AH/L015196/1


Publisher:
Oxford University Press
Host title:
Beyond the Learned Academy: The Practice of Mathematics, 1600-1850
Pages:
158-184
Chapter number:
7
Place of publication:
Oxford
Publication date:
2023-12-14
Edition:
1
DOI:
EISBN:
9780191896293
ISBN:
9780198863953


Language:
English
Keywords:
Subtype:
Chapter
Pubs id:
1536766
Local pid:
pubs:1536766
Deposit date:
2023-09-27

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