One unsigned manuscript, in a ca. 17th-century hand, of a play titled The Dutch Lady. Written on small folio sheets watermarked with the initials "ED" (or possibly "FD"). The original endpapers are watermarked with a coat of arms over "ADVRAN," which resembles Heawood nos. 661 and 678, both of which date to the late 17th century.

In English.

Title taken from manuscript title page, date conjectured from contents.

Dramatis personae on verso of leaf [1].

Leaf 56v, which contains the conclusion of the play and precedes the epilogue, has a full sheet of laid paper, watermarked with the arms of Amsterdam, pasted on. This sheet contains the closing dialogue between Hotlove and Juscara and is written in a noticeably different hand than the rest of the manuscript.

Originally bound in early, possibly original calfskin double-panelled in gilt and blind with gilt floral cornerpieces. Rebound in a modern conservation binding of heavy paper and housed, with the original binding, in a gray cloth box.

The catalog of the Barton Collection describes this play as, "laid in London, after the accession of James I." However, numerous references are made to events that mirror those of the English Civil War (1642-1651) and the religious and social tensions of the Commonwealth Protectorate period. At one point, a character references John Saltmarsh's Dawnings of Light, which was published in 1645. Saltmarsh, who died in 1647, is referred to in the past tense. Anti-puritanism is a strong subtext of the play, with numerous references made to the overreaches of Parliament and the corruption of overzealous divines.

Boston Public Library. Barton collection catalogue, Misc., page 169

Cataloged 2015 jmoschella