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File:B-a-c-h Reger.jpg

"B-A-C-H is beginning and end of all music", signed autograph document by Max Reger (dated 7 May 1912)

An autograph is a person's own handwriting or signature. The word autograph comes from Ancient Greek (αὐτός, autós, "self" and γράφω, gráphō, "write"), and can mean more specifically:[1][2]

  • a manuscript written by the author of its content.[1][2] In this meaning the term autograph can often be used interchangeably with holograph.[1][3]
  • a celebrity's handwritten signature.[2] Autograph collecting is the activity of collecting such autographs.[1]

History[]

Template:Incomplete section What might be considered the oldest "autograph" is a Sumerian clay table from about 3100 BC which includes the name of the scribe Gar.Ama.[4] No ancient written autographs have been found, and the earliest one known for a major historical figure is that of El Cid from 1098.[5]

Autograph manuscript[]

"Autograph" can refer to a document transcribed entirely in the handwriting of its author, as opposed to a typeset document or one written by an amanuensis or a copyist. This meaning overlaps that of "holograph".[3]

Celebrity's signature[]

File:JohnHancockSignature.jpg

John Hancock's signature on the United States Declaration of Independence

Autograph collecting is the hobby of collecting autographs of famous persons.[1] Some of the most popular categories of autograph subjects are presidents, military soldiers, athletes, movie stars, artists, social and religious leaders, scientists, astronauts, and authors.[citation needed]

See also[]

  • Asemic writing
  • Profiles in History

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Wikisource-logo.svg Thompson, Edward Maunde (1911). [Autographs "Autographs"]. In Chisholm, Hugh. Encyclopædia Britannica. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 45–47. Autographs. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Gove, Philip B. (ed.), 1981. Webster's Third New International Dictionary, p. 147. ISBN 0-87779-206-2
  3. 3.0 3.1 Tomita, Yo (2016). "Autographs, Copies and Original Manuscripts". In Leaver, Robin A.. The Routledge Research Companion to Johann Sebastian Bach. Taylor & Francis. pp. 52–54. ISBN 9781315452807. https://books.google.com/books?id=SCklDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA52. 
  4. "The Earliest Autograph Signatures (Circa 3,100 BCE) : HistoryofInformation.com". {{cite web}}:
  5. Fletcher, Richard A. (1 January 1989). "The Quest for El Cid". Oxford University Press – via Google Books. {{cite web}}:

Further reading[]

  • Collecting Autographs and Manuscripts by Charles Hamilton, Univ. of Oklahoma Press, 1961, 269 pages.
  • Autographs and Manuscripts: A Collector's Manual edited by Ed Berkeley, Charles Scribner's Sons Pub., 1978, 565 pages.

External links[]

  • Template:HathiTrust Catalog (early 20th-century periodical, full view)
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