Browse Items (87 total)

A black and white illustration on a book page. A room decorated with framed pictures, busts, and birdcages, lit by two candles. One candle sits on the mantlepiece and another on a table next to which, to the left of the illustration, is seated a young, smartly dressed man. He has a pencil in his mouth and is writing with another pencil in a notepad he holds in his hand. His legs are crossed and he leans toward the candle as if to work by its light. A pile of books are on the floor by his chair. Centrally seated is an older lady, her face framed by a frilled cap. Her hands are clasped together in her lap and an open book has been placed pages down on her knees. A cat occupies a chair to her right and then an older man is seated, hands clasped in a pointing motion, a cloth lying over one knee. A hat and cane are propped on another chair next to him. Another man with hair pulled up by the roots stands before the table, one arm raised emphatically, the other hand holding a book. One foot is leaving the ground as if the man is pacing. A pile of books and papers topped with a top hat are on the floor in the foreground of the illustration.
Illustration by Phiz of David learning shorthand from chapter 38 of David Copperfield

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The double page spread of a book. On the right hand page illustrated writing reads 'The Chimes A Goblin Story'. The letters in 'The Chimes' are made up of tiny bell shapes. The letters of 'Goblin Story' are formed by illustrations of tiny Goblins. Ornamental writing, parts gothic in style, give the subtitle and author. The page is decorated with ivy and images of spirits floating across clouds. On the left page is an illustration of an ornamental stone bell tower. A goblin sits on top of the tower and spirits like naked young women rush from the five ringing bells. Another goblin sits on top of the largest of the bells. Four cherubim hold the bell ropes at the bottom of the illustration. Both pages have the artist's signature and the right has the publisher's name printed at the bottom.
Illustrated frontispiece and title page by Daniel Maclise from The Chimes

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A sheet of paper with nineteen lines of Brachygraphy shorthand handwritten in ink. The lines are arranged in four paragraphs and interspersed with numerical figures, including '£600', '£700', and 38. The titles of two novels are also marked by Roman capitals: 'BR' for 'Barnaby Rudge' and 'OT' for 'Oliver Twist'.
Shorthand copy of a letter in which Dickens proposes a revised agreement to his publisher, Richard Bentley

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A sheet of paper that shows fold lines in half horizontally and vertically. A red catalogue stamp just off centre. In the bottom left quarter an upside-down longhand note reads 'copy letter [...] Friday 14th July 1837', handwritten in ink. At the top of the page, two and a half lines of Brachygraphy shorthand.
Shorthand copy of a letter in which Dickens proposes a revised agreement to his publisher, Richard Bentley

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A sheet of paper with nine lines of Brachygraphy shorthand handwritten in ink, occasionally interspersed by Roman letters ('B', 'OT', 'D'). The characters are arranged in three paragraphs. Beneath, to the left, is signed 'Bentley' with the date.
Dickens's shorthand copy of a letter from John Forster to Richard Bentley, proposing that Bentley come to a new agreement with Dickens

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A sheet of paper that shows fold lines in half horizontally and vertically. A red catalogue stamp just off centre. In the top right quarter, handwritten in ink, are details about the subject matter: 'Oliver Twist copy letter [...] Bentley from Forster October 22nd 1838'.
Verso side of Dickens's shorthand copy of a letter, containing details about the subject matter in longhand

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A page in a book. The paper shows age staining. On the page is printed a table divided into four columns, with the first column further subdivided in two. Above the table is the number one in brackets. The table has three headings: 'Alphabet', 'Letters' and 'Words'. A slim column on the far left shows simple Brachygraphy symbols. The second column shows alphabet characters and words that the symbol can also stand for. The next column provides examples of the Gurney spellings of words, eliminating duplicate letters and internal vowels (i.e. 'assault' becomes 'aslt'). The next column spells the word out using joined shorthand symbols. The final column translates the joined shorthand character back into a longhand word.
A table of shorthand symbols for letters of the alphabet, words that the same symbols can stand for, and spelt characters

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A page in a book. The paper shows age staining. On the page is printed a table. Above the table is the number three in brackets. The table is headed 'Arbitrary Characters for Prepositions and Terminations &c.' The table lists Brachygraphy characters in three narrow columns, each next to a wider column listing the accompanying definitions.
A table of shorthand symbols that stand for arbitrary characters

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A black and white illustration on a book page. The illustration is of a man with a rounded face. He is wearing a white wig, necktie, waistcoat and jacket. He is smiling with mouth closed. His portrait is illustrated in an oval decorative frame. Beneath the frame are depictions of books, papers and a pen and ink stand. At the bottom of the illustration are the words 'Thomas Gurney' separated by a crest.
A portrait of Thomas Gurney, inventor of the Gurney shorthand system.

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A printed title page from a book. The paper shows age staining. The text is surrounded by decorative curls mimicking handwriting flourishes.
The title page of Gurney's Brachygraphy manual

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