BMJ  2008;336:1313 (7 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.39601.509942.59

Views & Reviews

Between the Lines

Gunning for it

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Having reached the age of wishing for fewer rather than more possessions, I still covet only one class of material object: antiquarian books of special interest.

To assist me in this irrational pursuit, several booksellers kindly send me their catalogues, which I pore over with fevered pleasure. Why books that were once held by historical figures should be so desirable to me, I leave to psychologists to discover; suffice it to say that recently I wanted desperately an early edition (1766, no place of publication) of Voltaire’s Treatise on Toleration.

I wanted it because it had once belonged to the great French gynaecologist and supporter of Lister’s methods, Samuel Jean de Pozzi, and bore his bookplate, which was designed by the painter Manet.

Pozzi was not only a famous surgeon but a renowned womaniser who had an affair (among many others) with the widow of the composer Bizet, and . . . [Full text of this article]

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

Related Article

Complexity theory

Tony Delamothe
BMJ 2008 336: 0. [Extract] [Full Text]