Pynson, who had learned to print in Normandy, came to England some time before 1492 and started as a printer outside Temple Bar, near the church of St Clement Danes, where he continued up to 1500. In 1500, while still living there he along with his servants were the victims of a murderous attack from a riotous gathering headed by one Henry Squire. In his evidence before the Star-Chamber Pynson stated that his servants were so terrified by frequent threats and attacks that they had left him, and his business was suffering in consequence. This is quite likely to have been the cause of his moving, since he would be much safer and better protected within the City. The move was not a distant one for it was to a house which had belonged to the College of St Stephen in Westminster with the sign of the George next to St Dunstan’s Church in Fleet Street, at the corner where Chancery Lane runs into it. He was still but a few doors from Temple Bar, but this time on the right side of it. The year 1500 was also an important one to Pynson, for in that year Cardinal Morton died, who had been a valuable patron, and at whose cost the beautiful Sarum Missal of 1500 had been produced.
The first book issued by Pynson at his new address was an edition of the Sarum Directorium Sacerdotum, of which there is a perfect copy at Ripon, and an imperfect one in the British Museum, which belonged to Cranmer. The colophon sets forth that it was printed “intra barram novi templi” in 1501, so that the date of Pynson’s move to St Dunstan’s parish is clearly defined as between the publication of the Book of Cookery in 1500 and this Directorium in 1501.
The only other book issued this year was a small tract describing the escort and reception to be accorded to Katherine of Aragon.
Before speaking further of Pynson I should like to refer to a point which I emphasized when speaking of De Worde and Notary, that is, the method he followed in dating his books. In my former lectures I asserted that he probably began his year on January 1, and for this reason. The beautiful Missal printed at the expense of Cardinal Morton was finished on January 10, 1500, and the Cardinal died in September of that year. If Pynson meant by his January 10, 1500, what we should call 1501, then the book would have been issued after the Cardinal’s death, and though the colophon tells us that the book was printed at his command and expense, it has no mention of his being dead.
The book called the Rule of St Benet has sometimes been pointed out as a proof of Pynson beginning his year on March 25. The words in the preface run, “We have ... caused it to be emprinted by our wel beloved Rycharde Pynson of London printer. The XXII. day of the monethe of January, the yere of oure Lorde M.CCCCC.XVI. and the VIII. yere of the reigne of oure soverayne lorde kynge Henry the VIII.” In this case January 22, 1516, is clearly what we should call 1517, but then the words are not those of the printer but of the author, and it is noteworthy that the printer in his colophon gives no date at all. Doubtless a detailed examination of all books printed between January 1, and March 25, would settle the question, but such an examination is at the present time very difficult. To perform such work exactly a very large number of minute tests have to be formulated and applied, and library after library visited, frequently three or four times as new developments are discovered. When the day comes that our best libraries have adequate photographic facilities these questions will be nearer solution. In 1502 Pynson printed nine books, mostly of a liturgical or scholastic nature, the only one deserving of particular notice being the Sarum Processional issued in November. Of this book one copy is known printed upon vellum, which is now in the library of St John’s College, Oxford.
In 1503 Pynson printed three books, the first English translation of the Imitatio Christi, a new edition of the Directorium Sacerdotum, and an edition of the Mirror of the Life of Christ. This last book I can only give on the authority of the catalogue of Edwards the bookseller, in 1794, for I do not know where any perfect copy is preserved. A slightly imperfect copy however presumably of this edition was sent to me to examine a few years ago. In 1504 the only dated book is a very fine Sarum Missal, of which there is a copy in Emmanuel College and a copy on vellum, slightly imperfect, in Manchester. A curious work on natural philosophy by Hieronymus de Sancto Marcho issued in 1505 has Pynson’s device on the title, though it seems probable that he was not the printer. The printer, whoever he was, had not a full supply of numerals, and in place of the two 5’s in the date he has printed two small black-letter h’s as the nearest approach in type to the numeral. The remaining books of this year are of small interest.
In 1506 Pynson issued an edition of the Principia of Peregrinus de Lugo for the Oxford bookseller George Castellain. The imprint runs “per Ricardum Pinson cum Solerti cura ac diligentia honestissimi juvenis ac prudentissimi Hugonis Meslier.” Nothing whatever is known of this assistant of Pynson’s, whose name occurs only in this book. In this same year was issued an edition of the Kalendar of Shephardes, which has a curious preface referring to the earlier edition of 1503, which was translated from the French into the Scottish language and printed at Paris by Antoine Verard; and also a Sarum Manual of which there are two copies on vellum, one in the library of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, the other at Stonyhurst. In 1507 two noteworthy books were issued, an edition of the Golden Legend, of which the unique (and happily quite perfect) copy is at Lambeth, and a Sarum Breviary, of which two copies are known, both printed on vellum and not quite perfect. The copy in the Rylands Library, the one described by successive bibliographers, was in the collections of Ratcliffe and Count MacCarthy but the date had been cut out of the colophon and the book was usually ascribed to 1508. However, four years ago another copy appeared for sale in an auction and was bought by a private collector. In it the colophon was quite perfect and gave the exact date, August 25, 1507.
Some time after May, 1508, on the death of William Faques, Pynson succeeded to the office of Printer to the King; so that he was not as usually stated appointed by Henry VIII. At first an annuity of two pounds was paid him and in 1515 the sum was raised to four pounds. The office of King’s Printer though in many ways lucrative was not without its drawbacks. Though he obtained all Government work he was compelled to lay aside his other work until it was finished, which must sometimes have been inconvenient.
The stirring events of 1509 seem to have had no effect on Pynson’s work, and while W. de Worde issued some thirty dated books he contented himself with five, and only one was of any importance from a literary point of view. This was Alexander Barclay’s translation of Brant’s Ship of Fools. This fine folio is printed in black-letter and roman type and contains a number of excellent woodcuts. It also contains the full-page cut of Pynson’s arms here used for the first time, and probably only lately granted to him on his appointment as King’s Printer, which carried with it the title of Esquire. A small work of Savonarola issued on the eighth of September this year is interesting as being the first dated work issued in England printed entirely in Roman letter, though it is not improbable that the undated oration of Peter Gryphus also issued this year may be a month or two earlier.
It is quite evident on examining the various accounts paid to Pynson by the King that a great deal of his official work has absolutely disappeared. In the many cases where definite proclamations, statutes, or similar productions are quoted, hardly any evidence of their existence is now to be found. Of course having once served their purpose they would become obsolete and mere waste, but as many were printed on vellum—in one case we find 400 skins printed, in another 450—it seems impossible that all could have been entirely destroyed. Numbers no doubt found their way into the hands of the bookbinders and were used to line bindings, for which purpose, having one side blank, they were very suitable; and it is from old bindings that the greater number of those extant have been recovered.