Further to the examples of copying, before the price of printed music fell relative to wages in the later 19thc., it was usual for people to copy out music by hand and keep them in manuscript books. I have a few early examples myself (as a musician and librarian) and I was one of the very last people to handle Jane Austen's own manuscript writings of her favourite musical items before they were photographed and put away from public handling. Her favourites consisted of the popular airs of the day. A single sheet of music could equal a week's wages for a working man so it's not surprising that copying was rife, as it still is today with the advent of photocopiers. Georgina 10821 Georgina Colwell www.musicair.co.uk www.musictheatrebritain.co.uk ----- Original Message ----- From: <Dkn72a@aol.com> To: <SFHG-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, August 07, 2008 5:07 PM Subject: [SFHG] Enquiry Does anyone have any information about the date of Copyright Law commencement ? On 'Cash in the Attic' today the valuer Jonty Hearnden said the Victorians were very fond of sketching and painting. That they often copied a painting owned by the family. The copy of a gamekeeper shown was worth £50 - £60 and the original would have been worth £500 - £600. The Law in recent years is that a painting has to be over 100 years old to be out of copyright. I remember all the fuss about Tom Keating, in the 1950s who copied the Old Masters. Believe he had to go to prison. Also does anyone have any information about an artist surnamed Such ? Many thanks, Diane 10813 ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to SFHG-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message