Volpone: or, the Fox 
Ben Johnson
London: T. Johnson. 1714 
97.4606

This book was gifted to Carl Weeks “in memory of Rotary [Club] friendship” from B.R. MacHatton. Within the simple leather binding are a few surprises—it is a bound-with (or sammelband) meaning multiple, disparate works were bound together. This was a common practice for historical books when items were bought directly from a printer; a number of titles of the same size could be collected over a number of years before going to a bindery, which makes for some interesting finds! A 1714 copy of the Ben Johnson play Volpone, or The Fox, is followed by a 1713 Discourse of Free Thinking, and a 1720 printing of  another play, The Siege of Damascus by John Hughes. And at page 55 of the second title, a pressed butterfly! How long this butterfly has been pressed in the pages remains a mystery. Can you help identify what type of butterfly it is? When this book visits a book conservator, we will remove the specimen to have it further examined and encased in preservation safe material to not cause any further damage to the book.

Leather codex.
Volpone, or the Fox. First play in the bound-with.
A charming woodblock icon.
A Discourse of Free Thinking. Second title in the bound-with.
A surprise in the pages--a butterfly!
Butterfly, verso.
The Siege of Damascus. Second play and last title in the bound-with.
Binding detail.