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Of the 160 First Folios listed in a census of 1902, 14 were subsequently stolen-and only two of these were ever recovered

Of the 160 First Folios listed in a census of 1902, 14 were subsequently stolen-and only two of these were ever recovered. In his efforts to catalog all these precious First Folios, renowned Shakespeare scholar Eric Rasmussen embarked on a riveting journey around the globe, involving run-ins with heavily tattooed criminal street gangs in Tokyo, bizarre visits with eccentric, reclusive billionaires, and intense battles of wills with secretive librarians.

Every marginal note, bookmark, stain, and so on has now been recorded. As Rasmussen notes, one unintended consequence of this effort is that stealing a First Folio with the hope of later selling it as a newly discovered copy is now less likely to be profitable because all known copies are so well documented.

The Shakespeare Thefts book. He explores the intrigue surrounding the Earl of Pembroke, arguably Shakespeare's boyfriend, to whom the First Folio is dedicated and whose personal copy is still missing.

Eric Rasmussen, who with a team of fellow scholars is engaged in tracking and examining every known copy of Shakespeare's First Folio, has unearthed wonderful anecdotes of theft, fraud, and the peculiar mania of passionate bibliophiles. Stephen Greenblatt, author of Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare. Shakespeare's First Folio contains thirty-six plays of wit, passion, crime, and folly.

Of the 160 First Folios listed in a census of 1902, 14 were subsequently stolen-and only two of these were ever recovered.

The Shakespeare Thefts - Eric Rasmussen. Additional praise for. The shakespeare thefts. Like a Shakespearean play, we uncovered a fascinating world between the covers of one of the world’s most expensive printed books, one populated with thieves, masterminds, fools, and eccentrics, all of whom have risked fortunes and reputations to possess a coveted First Folio. Chapter one. The most hated man in england.

The Shakespeare Thefts. St. Martin's Griffin. Of the 160 First Folios listed in a census of 1902, 14 were subsequently stolen-and only two of these were ever recovered.

William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, published in 1623, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio

William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies is a collection of plays by William Shakespeare, published in 1623, commonly referred to by modern scholars as the First Folio. Printed in folio format and containing 36 plays (see list of Shakespeare's plays), it was prepared by Shakespeare's colleagues John Heminges and Henry Condell.

In his lecture Rasmussen took a few examples of the strange but true stories that surrounds this book, and I was delighted that he chose to talk about the wonderful story about the Royal Shakespeare Company’s copy. I first heard RSC veteran actor Tony Church tell it in a lecture given in around 1980