An addition to the Faust literature: an unknown 'harrowing of hell' in the British Library, London

Abstract

THE spread of material on the subject of Faust began in the sixteenth century with the existence of Faust as an historical figure, and with the appearance of a 'Faust-trilogy' (Faust-Buch of 1587, Wagner-Buch of 1593, Fausts Gaukeltasche of 1607). The subject entered English literature with an English version of the Faust-book (1587-8) and with Christopher Marlowe's dramatization. The Faust tradition of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries brought new versions of the Faust-book and further dramatic treatment in Dutch, German, and French, as well as adaptations into farces, pantomimes, and ballets by William Mountford (1697), John Rich (1723), Thomas Merrivale (1724), and John Thurmond (1724 and 1727).