Hollis, Thomas ( 1720-1774 )
An eccentric English philanthropist and
propagandist of the idea of liberty. Hollis
distributed books in support of liberty,
particularly to libraries abroad, such as those at
Berne, Zurich, and Harvard College. The bindings
were commissioned from John Matthewman or Richard
Montagu, and decorated with emblematic tools
designed by G. B. Cipriani, the original drawings
for which are now at Harvard. When the first set
of tools was destroyed in a fire in Matthewman's
shop in 1764 a second set was engraved by Thomas
Pingo. These subjects include Britannica, Liberty,
the caduceus of Mercury, the wand of Aesculapius,
the owl of Minerva, a cock, a liberty cap, and the
short Roman sword, or pugio . The simpler
bindings were by Matthewman, while Montagu
executed the more elaborate presentation bindings.
( , 244 , 297 )
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