Plate 14 shews at the bottom two other names also. These are taken, the
one on the left from a deed of purchase of a dwelling house in
Blackfriars dated March 10th 1612-13 (now in the City Library of the
Corporation of London); the other on the right is from a mortgage of the
same property executed on the following day, viz: March 11th 1612-13,
which is now in the British Museum.
Neither of these documents states that it was "signed" but only says
that it was "sealed," and it was at that date in no way necessary that
any signatures should be written over the seals, but the clerks might
and evidently did, place upon these deeds an abbreviated name of William
Shakspeare over the seal on each document. In the case of the other two
parties to the documents, the signatures are most beautifully written
and are almost absolutely identical in the two deeds.
Look at these two supposititious signatures. To myself it is difficult
to imagine that anyone with eyes to see could suppose them to be
signatures by the same hand.
[Illustration: The Signatures (so called) of "Shakespeare," which are the
best possible reproductions of the originals, and shew that all are
written in "lawscript" by skilled penman.
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