A Deceptive Imprint: The First London Edition of Minell’s Commentary on Horace

The first English-printed edition of Horace’s Poemata with commentary by Jan Minell (1625–1683) was published in London in 1676 in duodecimo format with the imprint ‘Londini, typis A.C. sumptibus Societatis’ (Wing H2779). At first glance it seems like a normal school edition of Horace’s Odes with nothing unusual about it. Closer investigation reveals that the natural assumption that ‘sumptibus Societatis’ refers to the Stationers’ Company is mistaken, and the book presents compositorial features which are unusual in London editions of the period. The article investigates this publication and suggests who the publishers were and why they concealed its true origins.