Quintus, Martin

over against Apothecaries’ Hall, Blackfriars, London; cabinet maker (fl. 1708-1723)

Took out a Sun Insurance policy on 4 December 1713. In 1707 the trustees of the newly formed Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, a scheme inspired by the enlightened clergyman Dr Thomas Gray assembled a sample lending library with the intention that this would be sent to deaneries across the country, the books numbering between 67 and 80 volumes would ‘be made up in such Boxes, or Book-Presses with Shelves in them and Locks and Doors to ’em, as will serve both to preserve ’em in the Carriage down, and in the Place where they shall be deposited for the Public Benefit. And being kept in such moveable Repositories, they can at any time be remov’d to any other part of the Deanary, as by the vote of the Clergy at a Visitation shall be judged most convenient to have ’em log’d in; and that without the Charge of building any Room wherein to lay ’em up.’

The trustees’ minutes and the accounts for 1708 record several batches of bookcases made by three different joiners. Fifteen were provided by Thomas Ratcliff for a total of £15. 1 6s.; in addition, Ratcliff was commissioned to make a ‘Pattern of a double Case’ for which he was paid £1.6s. On 29 September 1708 the minutes record that ‘another model of a double Case was made by Mr Bateman in Pettyfrance,’ while a further sample was procured from Martin Quintus. The meeting of the trustees on 27 October 1708 gave the go-ahead for more of these: ‘The Trustees having view’d the Patterns of the double Cases sent into the Repository Order’d that Mr Bateman be agreed with to make 14 Double Cases of the best Season’d Oak conformable to the Pattern he has sent in, but so as to afford them at 25s. each (and) Mr Quintus be desir’d to make 10 Double Cases conformable to the Pattern he has sent in, excepting that instead of 2 Pannels in a Door there should be but one.’ A double bookcase of this type was received by the Parish of Flookburgh, Lancashire (now Cumbria) from the SPCK in 1725, the hand-written written label with identifying number, book list and the SPCK records confirm that this was one of the type commissioned from Quintus. (illus. Riley, Regional Furniture (2007), figs 1-3). On 4 March 1723 he was paid 5s for ‘a Table Fire Screen for the Committee Room’; and 2s 6d ‘for cleaning the Society's Scrutore’ at Holy Trinity Church, Marylebone Rd.

Source: DEFM; Riley, ‘The Case for a Parochial Library’, Regional Furniture (2007).