ACCOUNTS, Sec, OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM. 45 



All letters and Trustees' minutes received during the last 45 years have been arranged, 

 bound in volumes, and indexed, copies and abridgements have been made from the 

 originals in the Principal Librarian's Office of all departmental reports sent to the 

 Trustees. 



The collection of English etchings by artists and amateurs has been re-arranged, all 

 recent acquisitions being incorporated, and an index of the names, 1,129 in number, 

 has been prepared in two divisions, chronological and alphabetical. 



The collection of German drawings has been re-arranged, all recent purchases being 

 incorporated, and the number of cases thereby increased from four to eleven. 



The works of Enea Vico have been mounted and arranged in three solander cases, the 

 names and references to the register being printed in bistre on the mounts. 



The etchings by Jonas Umbach have been mounted and arranged, the references to 

 Nagler being printed in bistre on the mounts. 



A large number of English etchings have been mounted and temporarily ari-anged in 

 alphabetical order. 



A catalogue has been prepared of illustrated books on ornament. 



A descriptive list has been prepared of the articles belonging to the Sloane Collection 

 recently brought from the old stores of the Museum, and dejiosited in the Department; a 

 transcript has also been made of that part of the old Sloane inventory, in which these 

 and other similar articles are mentioned. 



All English and foreign mezzotints recently acquired, as well as English portraits and 

 prints after English masters, have been incorporated with their respective collections. 



A large number of foreign portraits and historical prints, and prints after foreign 

 masters, have been treated in the same manner. 



Eight hundred and eighty-six titles have been prepared for the new catalogue of the 

 library of books of reference in the Department. 



Ninety-nine titles have been prepared for the catalogue of books of prints. 



Five thousand eight hundred and ten articles have been entered in the register of 

 recent acquisitions. 



Twelve thousand seven hundred and two articles have been impressed with the 

 departmental stamp and references to the register. 



Prints and drawings have been mounted on sunk boards to the number of one 

 thousand four hundred and three, and two hundred and ninety-two have been mounted 

 in the ordinary manner; and in all cases the names and references have been printed in 

 bistre on the mounts. 



Sixty-six thousand five hundred and sixty-nine titles have been transcribed in manifold 

 for the new general classified index of the contents of the Department. 



The following acquisitions, 8,980 in number, have been made during the past year : — 



By Bequest and Presentation; 1,202 Examples : — 



The most important acquisition is the magnificent collection of water colour drawings 

 bequeathed by the late John BLenderson, Esq. ; it consists of one hundred and sixty-four 

 works by John Robert Cozens, Antonio Canal, called II Canaletto, Thomas Girtin, J, 

 M. W. Turner, k.a., David Cox and William John Miiller, all of which are extremely 

 fine examples of the masteis, having been selected with the utmost care, and with that 

 taste and judgment for which Mr. Henderson was distinguished. 



Nine packs of playing cards from the Douce Collection, the most interesting of which 

 is a series of forty-three circular pieces by an anonymous German engraver of the 

 fifteenth century, described in Bartsch's " Peintre-Graveur," vol. x, p. 70-75 ; this com- 

 prises twenty-five of the original set, five of the set of copies A by Telmau de VVesel, 

 eleven of the set B, and two undescribed. In a descrijDtion of the Doucean Museum in 

 the " Gentleman's Magazine "for February 1835, these cards are ascribed to Martin 

 Schoen and Israel van Meckeln, but this is an error ; they are of such excessive rarity 

 that neither Bartsch nor Passavant had seen a sufficient number of them to be able to 

 say for what game they were intended ; presented by Colonel Meyrick. 



A medallion head in bas-relief of William Hookham Carpenter, Esq., late keeper of 

 the Department of Prints and Drawings, executed in marble by John Henry Foley, R.A.: 

 presented by William Carpenter, Esq. 



" The Return of the Life Boat," after E. Duncan, by A. Willmore ; the plate issued 

 by the Art Union of London for 1878 ; proof before letters; presented by the Council 

 of the Art Union. 



A highly interesting collection of drawings, two hundred and thirty-three in number, 

 carefully executed in Indian ink by George Keate the poet, Mr. Henderson's maternal 

 grandfather, consisting of viev\s in France, Italy, Savoy, and Switzerland; abound in a 

 volume; presented by the late John Henderson, Esq. 



A complete collection of the works of Mr. William Bell Scott, the well-known artist 

 and author, consisting principally of etchings executed by himself, and woodcuts and 

 engravings from his designs, amounting in all to five hundred and thirty-nine examples, 

 bound in three folio volumes ; presented by William B. Scott, Esq. 



Twenty-two plates etched by David C. Head, of Salisbury ; presented by John 

 Murray, Esq. 



1 70. G 2 -!— A working 



