Source Texts are a Key Issue in Shakespeare Authorship Research
Scholars have carefully identified the source texts that must have been used in the creation of the works of Shakespeare. Those sources include many books in Latin, Italian and French that had not been translated into English in Shakespeare's time. No plausible explanation has ever been offered of how William Shakespeare might have acquired the language skills to read those books.
In addition, even though Shakespeare was wealthy, no evidence has ever been found of him owning any books at all. This is in contrast to contemporaries like Ben Jonson or John Donne who left behind large libraries. Since the works of Shakespeare demonstrate familiarity with such a wide variety of literature, this is a glaring anomaly. Perhaps more than anything else, this incongruity has given rise to the Shakespeare Authorship Question.
How the Billingbear Book List Matches Shakespeare's Known Sources
There is a truly extraordinary correspondence between known Shakespeare sources and the Billingbear book list. Most striking of all is Cinthio's Gli Hecatommithi, a text that wasn't commonly read in England at the time but was the source of both Othello and Measure for Measure. Other important texts include Boccaccio's Decameron, Chaucer's Works, the Latin source text for Hamlet, Orlando Furioso, and many other works of history and philosophy that have been identified as likely sources for Shakespeare.
It's not just the major sources that are listed. The list includes many books on Italian history and politics that align very closely with the topics of Shakespeare's Italian plays. In almost every respect, this is the library you would expect from the author of the works of Shakespeare.
Dating the Source Texts to Henry Neville
Almost all of the source texts were printed in 1581 or before. This is extremely strong evidence that they were, in fact, owned by Henry Neville. Neville traveled in Italy around 1579-81. For example, Gli Hecatommithi and Orlando Furioso are both 1580 printings. So it is very likely that he purchased books during his travels and shipped them home to England.
Some of the volumes are currently at Audley End, but most are not. It may very well be possible to locate some of these volumes to inspect them to offer further confirmation of Neville's ownership.
A New Chapter in Shakespeare Authorship Research
This is the most powerful documentary evidence ever demonstrated for a Shakespeare Authorship Candidate. It is also important for Shakespeare research. Up until now, research into Shakespeare's sources has always been limited to analyzing the plays and poems for clues. Now, we can analyze this book catalog and see how and when the books were incorporated into or referenced by Shakespeare's works.
Questions Answered:
How did you discover the book catalog?
I've known about the catalog since December 2018. In March I ordered copies of 5 out of the 44 pages of the catalog, but it wasn't until August 27, 2019 that I was able to visit the Berkshire Record Office in person and see the entire catalog.
Did previous Neville researchers examine the catalog?
As far as I can tell, no. Neville researchers have examined the books at Audley End, and so have seen some of the books listed in the catalog. But many of the most important Shakespeare sources are not at Audley End; they are only listed in the catalog.
If the books aren't at Audley End, where are they?
I don't know. Locating all of the books in the catalog is an important next step. It should provide many additional clues to how Henry Neville wrote the works of Shakespeare.
Could someone much later have tried to recreate Shakespeare's library?
Many of the books in the catalog are directly connected to Henry Neville. The dates also are very early. If someone in the 1700s wanted to recreate Shakespeare's library, there would be no need to acquire pre-1580 books. Henry Neville, however, was travelling in Europe in 1580-81 so it makes sense for the title to date to that era.
Anything is possible, but it seems more likely that the early books were simply purchased by Henry Neville at the time. The Neville family lived continuously at Billingbear from Neville's life and there are many books in the library we can identify as certainly belonging to Henry Neville.
