Imagining the Author in Print > 1542 Chaucer
This 1542 folio of Chaucer was considered the “perfect work” of William Thynne, to cite his son Francis. This title page, with its columns and neo-classical detail, emphasizes Chaucer's antiquity and his status as the premier English poet.
The book's preface, dedicated to Henry VIII, argues that Chaucer is learned, witty, and wise – his poetry is instructive and delightful, as the Horatian maxim goes. The Chaucer that emerges from this volume is a scholar and a poet whose verse adorns the history of England.
The book is illustrated with woodcuts prefacing each tale. What we see here is the culture of mechanical reproduction showing off, or merely exploiting, its own technological potential: the woodcut found in front of “The Knyghtes tale” appears in front of “The Squyres Tale” as well.
One of the book's later owners discusses this edition, and its relation to Speght's Chaucer, by quoting Francis Thynne. According to Francis Thynne, his father William collated many manuscripts to perfect this edition.