Identity area
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Authorized form of name
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Dates of existence
History
Mearne was born in Reading in 1624, served Robert Bates as an apprentice 1637-1646, and had set up his own book bindery in Little Britain by 1653. Upon the Restoration, Mearne was appointed Bookbinder to the King and enjoyed royal favour for the remainder of his life. In 1668, Charles II intervened to see Mearne appointed to the Company’s Court of Assistants. In 1675 Mearne’s position as Binder to the King was expanded to the life-long offices of Bookbinder, Bookseller, and Stationer to the King, which he held with his son Charles. At the same time, Mearne consolidated his influence in the Stationers’ Company, serving as under-warden for two terms (1672-1674), upper-warden (1676-1677), and finally Maser of the Company (1679-1680, 1682-1683). He was particularly known in both the Company and to the King for being involved in searches for illicit printing activity. Mearne remains famous in the book trade to this day for his elaborate and highly desirable bindings. He is credited with creating the “cottage style”, often found in red and black leather.
Places
Birth: Reading (1624)
Legal status
Functions, occupations and activities
King’s Binder (1660-1683), Assistant (1668-1683), Under-Warden (1672-1674), King’s Stationer and Bookseller (1675-1683), Upper-Warden (1676-1677), Master (1679-1680; 1682-1683)
Mandates/sources of authority
Internal structures/genealogy
Charles Mearne (son), bookbinder, freed by patrimony 1682
General context
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Control area
Authority record identifier
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Rules and/or conventions used
International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) 2nd edition - ICA 2004 ISBN 2-9521932-2-3
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation, revision and deletion
Language(s)
English
Script(s)
Latin
Sources
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography