Laing, David, 1793-1878 (antiquarian, bookseller, and librarian of the Signet Library)
Biography
David Laing, eminent historian, antiquary and bibliographer, was the second son of the Edinburgh bookseller William Laing (1764-1832) and his wife Helen Kirk, and was born on 20 April 1793. He was educated at the Canongate Grammar School and later on attended Greek classes at the University of Edinburgh. At the age of fourteen, he became apprenticed to his father who, at the time, was the only bookseller in Edinburgh dealing in foreign literature. Laing was able, occasionally, to travel abroad in search of rare or curious books. In 1821, he became a partner in his father's business and throughout his life he was an avid collector of manuscripts and rescued many from destruction. The first published work of his own was Auctarium Bibliothecae Edinburgenae sive Catalogus Librorum quos Gulielmus Drummondus ab Hawthornden D.D.Q. Anno 1627 (1815). Among other works, Laing also reprinted Thomas Craig's Epithalamium on the marriage of Darnley and Mary Stuart (1821). When Sir Walter Scott founded the Bannatyne Club in 1823 for the printing of material and tracts relating to Scottish history and literature, Laing - a friend of Scott's - became Secretary of the Club and chief organiser until its dissolution in the 1860s. Laing was also associated with the Abbotsford Club, the Spalding Club, and the Wodrow Society, each of which had been set up for the publication of manuscripts and for the revival of old texts. When the keepership of the Advocates' Library fell vacant in 1818, Laing was a candidate but was not elected. He became Keeper of the Library to the Society of Writers to Her Majesty's Signet, a post which he occupied from 1837 until his death. On his appointment to the post, he gave up his business as a bookseller and disposed of the stock in a public sale. Laing died at Portobello, in Edinburgh, on 18 October 1878.
Found in 173 Collections and/or Records:
2 copies of Laing's article for the Encyclopaedia Britannica on George Chalmers / David Laing., 1842
After the death of David Laing, his private library was sold in an auction occupying thirty-one days. His collection of charters and other papers is of national importance and the most distinguished of its kind in any Scottish university. It is an essential source for the 18th century, and a much used one for all periods of Scottish history from the earliest times. The Laing Collection falls into five sections, designated as La.I., La.II., La.III., La.IV., and La.V.
Album of Arms, British and Foreign, with coloured plates, processions, battles, etc., chiefly in Dutch, also known as Michael Van Meer's Album Amicorum, 1614-1617
E.Or Ms 644: Psalter, undated (c. 17th–18th cent. C.E.)
E.Or Ms 656: Maṣḥafa qǝddāse (Missal), undated (c. 19th–20th cent. C.E.)
This is an Ethiopic Missal, a liturgical book that contains the instructions and texts necessary for the celebration of Mass throughout the year. It contains numerous anaphoras.
E.Or Ms 673: Ethiopic Scroll, undated (c. 19th cent. C.E.)
This is a protective scroll. It begins with an illumination in yellow, blue, brown and black, featuring three figures and a type of ornate cross. There are five sections of text down the length of the scroll, each separated by an illumination. There are six illuminations in total. They feature human images, crosses and patterns. Specialist research is needed.
[Facsimile of sonnet 'Damon to Alexis' in Drummond's hand, with accompanying letter dated 26 May 1622], 1857
[Facsimile of sonnet 'Damon to Alexis' in Drummond's hand, with accompanying letter dated 26 May 1622]. Lithograph. 1857. Drummond, William, 1585-1649, Author; Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, Publisher; Laing, David, 1793-1878, Editor.
Published in: Archaeologia Scotica, vol. 4 (1857).
Note: Numbered: 'Vol IV, Plate VIII'. Accompanies Laing's article 'A Brief Account of the Hawthornden Manuscripts …'.
Fragment of the Old Norwegian General Law of King Magnus IV, 1300-1320
La.III.75: Esther Inglis, "A Treatise of Preparation to the Holy Supper and of our only Saviour and Redeemer Jesus Christ", 1608 (dated)
La.III.439: Esther Inglis, "Les Quatrains du Sieur de Pybrac", 1607 (dated)
