The Verse Nobody Knows: Rare or Unique Poems in Early Modern English Manuscripts

This essay examines the phenomenon of rare or unique poems found in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century manuscript collections, positioning them within the familial, collegial, or coterie environments within and for which they were written. These include verses composed by compilers, politically dangerous or obscene texts, and texts related to scandals or topical events of local interest. These poems rarely feature in literary surveys, but they open a unique window onto early modern society and its mores, and indicate the social breadth, depth, and extent of literary composition.