Momus Triumphans: or, the Plagiaries of the English Stage (1688[1687])

This volume offers an exhaustive inventory of every English play printed up to the late 1680s, ranging from comedies and tragedies to masques and operas. Its compiler painstakingly compared four earlier lists, correcting numerous errors and adding every work published after 1680, creating a reference that remains useful to scholars of early modern theatre. The careful organization and clear annotations make it a practical tool for anyone tracing the development of the stage in Restoration England.

In addition to its scholarly utility, the book sheds light on the heated literary disputes of its time, especially the author's pointed criticism of a leading dramatist whose tastes and politics shaped the period. By documenting the competing catalogues that preceded it, the work reveals how bibliographic ambition intersected with personal rivalries and shifting cultural values. Readers gain a glimpse into the networks of taste, religion, and power that influenced which plays were recorded and celebrated.