Document Taken from Peru a Century Ago Returned by the Rosenbach Library
- by Michael Stillman
The 1599 contract is returned to Peru.
Some time a century or more ago, a document made its way from Peru to the United States. It had once been included in a volume with other documents currently held in the Peruvian archives. Exactly when or under what circumstances it was separated from the remainder of the volume is unknown, but it eventually found it way to the Rosenbach Library in Philadelphia.
The document is historically significant as it was a contract that formed the first theatrical company in the Americas. It was formed in Lima, Peru, and is dated June 28, 1599. That explains why the first theatrical company was not founded in what is today's United States. It would be another two decades before the Pilgrims landed.
It is a six-page document that was purchased by the legendary Philadelphia bookseller Dr. A. S. W. Rosenbach in the 1920s. He purchased it from South American scholar Bertram Lee. According to Wikipedia, Dr. Rosenbach handled eight Gutenberg Bibles and 30 Shakespeare First Folios over the course of his career. That's good company. Still, this document must have been extra special to Rosenbach as in 1938 he published an article about it, The First Theatrical Company in America. Rosenbach wrote, “we see an advanced stage of European civilization existed in Peru during the Golden Age of both the Spanish and English drama, before there was a single permanent English colony in North America.”
Dr. Rosenbach died in 1952. At his death, he left his estate to the Rosenbach Foundation, which established the Rosenbach Museum and Library. The contract has been in their possession since 1954.
In 2017, the Republic of Peru asked the U.S. State Department to look into the possibility of returning the document to Peru and the Peruvian National Archives. This began a slow-moving process that ended with the return of the document on March 14 last. The Rosenbach Library was in full agreement to return it to Peru where it is considered a national treasure.
United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero and FBI Philadelphia Special Agent in Charge Wayne A. Jacobs announced the repatriation, and a ceremony was held at the State Department by Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Foreign Affairs Minister Javier González-Olaechea accepted the contract on behalf of Peru. The presence of the Secretary of State is a sign that this was considered an important act diplomatically. “Thanks to very good work between our governments, we were able to return these documents to make sure that the extraordinary cultural heritage of Peru is further reinforced,” said Secretary Blinken.
Ketterer, May 26: Th. McKenney & J. Hall, History of the Indian tribes of North America, 1836-1844. Est: €50,000
Ketterer, May 26:Biblia latina vulgata, manuscript on thin parchment, around 1250. Est: €70,000
Ketterer, May 26: M. Beckmann, Fanferlieschen Schönefüßchen, 1924. Est: €10,000
Ketterer Rare Books Auction May 26th
Ketterer, May 26: A. Ortelius, Theatrum orbis terrarum, 1574. Est: €50,000
Ketterer, May 26: M. S. Merian, Eurcarum ortus, alimentum et paradoxa metamorphosis, 1717-18. Est: €6,000
Ketterer, May 26:PAN, 9 volumes, 1895-1900. Est: €12,000
Ketterer Rare Books Auction May 26th
Ketterer, May 26: Breviarium Romanum, Latin manuscript, 1474. Est: €15,000
Ketterer, May 26: Quran manuscript from the Saadian period, Maghreb, 16th century. Est: €10,000
Ketterer, May 26: E. Hemingway, The old man and the sea, 1952. First edition in first issue jacket. Presentation copy. Est: €3,000
Ketterer Rare Books Auction May 26th
Ketterer, May 26: Flavius Vegetius Renatus, De re militari libri quatuor, 1553. Est: €3,000
Ketterer, May 26: K. Marx, Das Kapital, 1867. Est: €30,000
Ketterer, May 26: Brassaï, Transmutations, 1967. Est: €6,000
Doyle The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore June 4, 2025
Doyle The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore June 4, 2025
DOYLE: Peter Max, Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore (Versions 1,2, 5, 6), 2001. Estimate $10,000-15,000
DOYLE: The iconic screen-used wall-mounted "M" from The Mary Tyler Moore Show. Estimate $5,000-8,000
DOYLE: The Mary Tyler Moore Show by Al Hirschfeld. Estimate $4,000-6,000
Doyle The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore June 4, 2025
DOYLE: Annie Leibovitz presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke for Vanity Fair. Estimate $4,000-6,000
DOYLE: Al Hirschfeld presents Mary Tyler Moore and Dick Van Dyke in the CBS Wednesday Night Lineup. Estimate $4,000-6,000
DOYLE: Richard McKenzie, Portrait of Mary Tyler Moore. Estimate $1,000-2,000
Doyle The Collection of Mary Tyler Moore June 4, 2025
DOYLE: Three Original Bill Hargate Costume Designs for The Mary Tyler Moore Hour. Estimate $600-800
DOYLE: The famous Bonnie and Clyde "Wanted" broadside. Estimate $500-800
DOYLE: Ticket to the Final Episode of the Mary Tyler Moore Show Estimate $400-600
Sotheby's Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
Sotheby's Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
Sotheby’s: The Shem Tov Bible, 1312 | A Masterpiece from the Golden Age of Spain. Sold: 6,960,000 USD
Sotheby’s: Ten Commandments Tablet, 300-800 CE | One of humanity's earliest and most enduring moral codes. Sold: 5,040,000 USD
Sotheby’s: William Blake | Songs of Innocence and of Experience. Sold: 4,320,000 USD
Sotheby’s: The Declaration of Independence | The Holt printing, the only copy in private hands. Sold: 3,360,000 USD
Sotheby's Sell Your Fine Books & Manuscripts
Sotheby’s: Thomas Taylor | The original cover art for Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Sold: 1,920,000 USD
Sotheby’s: Machiavelli | Il Principe, a previously unrecorded copy of the book where modern political thought began. Sold: 576,000 GBP
Sotheby’s: Leonardo da Vinci | Trattato della pittura, ca. 1639, a very fine pre-publication manuscript. Sold: 381,000 GBP
Sotheby’s: Henri Matisse | Jazz, Paris 1947, the complete portfolio. Sold: 312,000 EUR
One of a Kind Auctions Rare Autograph and Documents Ending May 29th, 2025
One of a Kind Auctions Rare Autograph and Documents Ending May 29th, 2025
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: George Washington Three Language Ship's Paper West Indies Trade Voyage.
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: An Extraordinary Archive of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry: Over 60 Historic Documents, Naval Commissions, Family Papers, and Photographic Material Spanning the 19th Century.
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: Abraham Lincoln Appointment for Vice-Consul of Russia.
One of a Kind Auctions Rare Autograph and Documents Ending May 29th, 2025
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: John Adams Signed Mediterranean Scalloped Top ship's passport.
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: Thomas Jefferson and James Madison Signed Ships Paper.
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: Herman Melville RARE -ALS (Moby Dick Author).
One of a Kind Auctions Rare Autograph and Documents Ending May 29th, 2025
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: Apollo 10: Flown Flag and Patch Display with Crew-Signed Covers from the Collection of NASA Engineer Clark C. McClelland.
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: James Garfield Rare Signature as President - Possibly the largest Autograph as President almost 6 inches long!
One of a Kind Auctions, May 29: Walt Disney Autograph over 7 inches in Length.
Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 29th May 2025
Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 29th May 2025
Forum, May 29: Darwin (Charles). On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, first edition, John Murray, 1859. £50,000 to £70,000.
Forum, May 29: Astronomy.- Apianus (Petrus). Cosmographicus Liber a Petro Apiano Mathematico Studiose Collectus., first edition, Landshut, 1524. £40,000 to £60,000.
Forum, May 29: Bound for Jean Grolier.- Negri Stefano. Stephani Nigri Elegantissime è Graeco authorum subditorum translationes, uidelicet., first edition, first issue, Milan, 1521. £15,000 to £20,000.
Forum, May 29: Gill (Eric). Eve, number 1 of 50, hand-coloured wood-engraving, signed at foot in pencil, [1926]. £6,000 to £8,000.
Forum Auctions Fine Books, Manuscripts and Works on Paper 29th May 2025
Forum, May 29: America.- Warre (Capt. Henry James). Sketches in North America and the Oregon Territory, first edition, Dickinson & Co., 1848. £25,000 to £35,000.
Forum, May 29: Wodehouse (P.G.) Psmith USA, autograph manuscript of his novel "Psmith Journalist", signed and dated at end and dated "11 November 1909, Hotel Earle, 103 Waverley Place". £15,000 to £20,000.
Forum, May 29: Women.- Wollstonecraft (Mary). A Vindication of the Rights of Woman: with Strictures on Political and Moral Subjects, first edition, uncut in original boards, 1792. £6,000 to £8,000.
Forum, May 29: Mathematics.- Whitehead (Alfred North) and Bertrand Russell. Principia Mathematica, 3 vol., first editions, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1910-13. £20,000 to £30,000.