Notes and Queries, Number 185, May 14, 1853 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc.

A scholarly appeal unfolds in this mid‑nineteenth‑century issue of a literary correspondence journal, where the editor laments the scarcity of English emblem books and the patchwork nature of existing studies. He notes that while continental emblem collections were prolific and widely translated, England’s own contributions have been few, often derivative, and rarely documented in a single, comprehensive catalogue.

The article presents a detailed list of known English emblem writers—from early seventeenth‑century devotional works to later poetic collections—inviting readers to add any missing titles or information. It also poses two specific queries: the whereabouts of a now‑lost treatise mentioned by a former antiquarian, and the identity of a little‑known author, Thomas Combe, cited in an early bibliography. The piece serves both as a call for collaborative research and a snapshot of the era’s bibliographic enthusiasm.