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The Tragedy of Dido, Queen of Carthage, a play by Christopher Marlowe |
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_ [Note: The following paragraphs have been transcribed from a handwritten page. Some text is illegible, and this has been marked with asterisks where appropriate.] The tragedy of Dido is one of the scarcest plays in the English language. There are but two copies known to be extant; in the possession of D^r Wright and M^r Reed. M^r Warton speaks in his _Hist. of Eng. Poet_ (III. p. 435) of an Elegy being prefixed to it on the death of Marlowe; but no such is found in either of those copies. In answer to my inquiries on this subject he informed me by letter, [crossed-out text] that a copy of this play was in Osborne's catalogue in the year 1754, that he then saw it in his shop (together with several of M^r Oldys's books that Osborne had purchased), + that the elegy in question--"on Marlowe's untimely death" was inserted immediately after the title page; that it mentioned a play of Marlowe's entitled _The Duke of Guise_ and four others; but whether particularly by _name_, he could not recollect. Unluckily he did not purchase this rare piece, + it is now God knows where. Bishop Tanner likewise mentions this elegy in so particular a manner that he must have seen it. "Marlovius (Christopherus), quondam in academia Cantabrigiensi musarum alumnus; postea actor scenicus; deinde poeta dramaticus tragicus, paucis inferior Scripsit plurimas tragedias, sc. Tamerlane.-Tragedie of Dido Queen of Carthage. Pr. Come gentle Ganymed. Hanc perfecit + edidit Tho. Nash Lond. 1594. 4^to.--Petrarius in praefatione ad Secundam partem Herois et Leandri multa in Marlovii commendationem adfert; hoc etiam facit Tho. Nash in _Carmine Elegiaco Tragidiae Didonis praefiso in obitum Christop. Marlovii_, ubi quatuor ejus tragidiarum mentionem facit, nec non et alterius _de duce Guisio_." _Bib. Britan._ 1740. I suspect M^r Warton had no other authority than this for saying that this play was left imperfect by Marlowe, and completed + published by Nashe; for it does not appear from the title page that it was not written in conjunction by him + Marlowe in the lifetime of the former. Perhaps Nashe's Elegy might ascertain this point. Tanner had, I believe, no authority but Philipses, for calling Marlowe an actor. There was an old Latin play on the subject of Dido, written by John Rightwise and played before Cardinal Wolsey + again before Queen Elizabeth in 1564. There is also another Latin play on this subject Dido, tragedia nova so quatuor pri*ibus *** **************** Virgilii disampla Antwerp ed, 1559.
THE Played by the Children of her Written by Christopher Marlowe, and Actors
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