The manuscript of the University Statutes (1653): marginal notes and notes for printing

Abstract

The manuscript used for the printing of the Statutes of the Universidade de Coimbra (at the printing house of Tomé Carvalho in 1654) is perceived as a rare sample in the history of the printed book. Its printing indications (present in the marginalia) reveal various rarities which include notes scattered in the text, all the indications for the splitting of the columns, font types, italics, punctuation, etc. By revealing this manuscript, we intend to make known the dialogue between printers and authors, which was silenced by the passage of time and is only made aware of in rare occasions such as findings like this. By comparing some of the manuscript pages side by side with the printed copy, we wish to understand what kind of instructions were given to the compositors, who developed a meticulous work in their presses until the final work, (da arte negra), was concluded. We also wish to make known some particular aspects of the contract signed by Manuel Carvalho (the son-in-law of the printer Tomé Carvalho) regarding the printing of these Statutes, a contract which he wasn’t able to fulfill himself due to his premature death (his father-in-law having fulfilled it for him).