Steuart, David (1747 -1824)

Possibly the stamp of David Steuart of Dalguise, Perthshire, whose bookplate occurs in the Clements specimen. The fess should be checky as in the bookplate, not gules as in the stamp. Neither Papworth nor Balfour Paul's Ordinary of Scottish arms gives any other similar arms. David Steuart, was the fifth son of John Steuart of Dalguise in Perthshire. He conducted a business in Edinburgh as a banker in partnership with Robert Allan. In 1778 he was elected to the town council, and was Provost from 1780 to 1782, taking a principal part in the planning of the new town. His partnership with Mr Allan being dissolved, he traded as a general merchant in Leith and a wine merchant in Edinburgh, but without great success, and was finally declared bankrupt in 1800. An ardent bibliophile, his library, though small, contained a Gutenberg Bible and a splendidly illuminated Breviary printed on vellum by Nicolas Jenson in Venice in 1478. Both volumes are now in the National Library of Scotland. Having travelled on the Continent in his youth to prepare himself for a career in business, his knowledge of foreign languages was reflected in the contents of his library. Part of the library was exposed for sale by auction in Edinburgh by Cornelius Elliot in May 1801, as "a small, but select collection of books, in which is to be found some of the finest specimens of typography extant, from the first attempt on wooden blocks until the present time." The prices offered not reaching their reserves, most of the lots were bought in by the Provost or his friends, though some were later bought privately by the Advocates Library. He retired about 1815 to Gretna Hall, near Annan, the house of his son in law Mr Mair. There he died on 17 May 1824. His full arms were: Or a lion rampant between three mullets, over all a fess checky argent and azure a martlet for difference, crest a demi lion rampant, motto "HINC ORIOR"