at auction. The folio passed through several hands before being bought by Queen's College, Oxford, in the mid-nineteenth century. Use of the collection during Garrick's lifetime David Garrick's collection of old plays was well known during his lifetime and he made it available to friends and acquaintances. Various contemporary works make reference to his library. In his introduction to the 1760 edition of John Dryden's collected works, Samuel Derrick wrote that "we are particularly obliged to Mr. Garrick, who with great civility gave us the use of his fine collection of old 4to [i.e. quarto] plays." Isaac Reed, the editor of the 1780 edition of Robert Dodsley's A select collection of old plays, wrote that "The present volumes were originally compiled from the only collection then known to exist, that which had been formed by the Earls of Oxford. This afterwards came into the possession of the late Mr. Garrick; and, with great additions, hath since been bequeathed by him to the British Museum. The mention of this gentleman's name naturally reminds the Editor, that he should be deficient in point of gratitude, if he omitted to notice the readiness with which he was allowed the free use of whatever Mr. Garrick's library contained for the service of this work." Collection in the British Museum and Library Garrick's collection was transferred to the Museum in 1780 and was said to have been delivered from the actor's home in the Adelphi to the British Museum on a hand cart escorted by three Museum representatives. Since then it can be said to have had a turbulent history. In 1767 the British Museum had been authorised by an act of Parliament "to exchange, sell, or dispose of, any duplicates of printed books ... laying out the money arising by such sale, in the purchase of other things that may be wanting in, or proper for, the said Museum". The first such sale took place in 1769 and raised £564. The second sale occurred in March 1788 and raised £529. Included in the later sale were approximately 43 items from the Garrick Collection identified as duplicate items and deemed inferior to copies already in the Museum's possession. The checking of copies was, however, not rigorous and the Museum ended up selling unique editions and printings. In the period 1805-06 the Museum implemented a policy of transferring items from other collections to supplement the now