From the introduction of the printing press in Europe onwards, printers and booksellers in England depended heavily on the import of books from the Continent. Antwerp developed into a dominant printing centre in the sixteenth century for the distribution of books across the continent and thus also to the British Isles. The Officina Plantiniana of Antwerp-based printer-publisher Christophe Plantin was a particularly important trade partner upon which several members of the Stationers’ Company in London relied to buy and distribute books in England. Plantin, who had a successful printing and bookselling business in Antwerp as early as 1555, supplied his overseas networks from quite early on, and he continued to sell and distribute books across the Channel throughout his career. We, Zanna Van Loon, curator of rare books and manuscripts, and Kristof Selleslach, curator of the archives, of Museum Plantin-Moretus, are currently conducting research in the Plantin-Moretus archives to map these sixteenth-century English trade networks with the Officina Plantiniana and highlight the importance of Antwerp's printing business for the English market.
Because we are aware that the early modern English book trade is a blooming field of research, we want to join forces and coordinate an international collaboration around this with a view to a common output. By establishing a research network, we aim to promote knowledge exchange in order to stimulate (book) historical research on book trade networks, the Officina Plantiniana, as well as increase the international visibility of our collections, while bringing together specialists who are working on the topic. If you would like to join our research network, feel free to message us by e-mail (zanna.vanloon@antwerpen.be and kristof.selleslach@antwerpen.be), and pass on this call to interested contacts in your network.