Description: An exploration of the largely unknown world of household auctions in Georgian England, arguing their importance in supplying various consumer goods to households at all levels of society.
Brief description: Sara Pennell is Associate Professor in Early Modern History at the University of Greenwich, UK. She is the co-editor, along with Michelle DiMeo, of Reading and Writing Recipe Books, 1550-1800 (2013).
Review Quotes:
"The book is impressive in its arguments and in its depth of sources. Gathering and marshalling a vast array of material related to the trade in second-hand goods, it extends coverage from the 'consumer revolution' of the eighteenth century to the Victorian period." --Stephen G. Hague, Associate Professor of Modern European History, Rowan University, USA
"Covering the who, how and why of household auctions, Pennell and Stobart's volume shows how buying and selling used goods was crucial to the economic, cultural and social lives of the Georgians. It re-establishes the importance of the second-hand as a key means of consuming in eighteenth-century England." --Kate Smith, Associate Professor in Eighteenth-Century History, University of Birmingham, UK "Auctions were an essential source of material life, yet second-hand goods have long been relegated to a secondary interest of scholars. No longer: through nuanced analyses of an impressive array of sources, this excellent book brings to life the circuits of exchange that integrated new and used goods and the people who bought, sold, and used them." --Ellen Hartigan-O'Connor, Professor of History, University of California, USA