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Creasy Spines

“Every crease is a story.”

Illustration of the kind of find described. We don't reproduce press photographs.
Inscription· 1860s

An 1862 signature in a Shakespeare forgotten in the attic

By the Editors · As reported by Newsweek, 14 January 2026

FoundUnited States

Tucked inside The Complete Works of William Shakespeare

Pennsylvania artist Mark Loder bought a Complete Works of Shakespeare at a thrift shop more than 25 years ago and rediscovered it in his attic. Inside was the signature of James Buchanan Ziegler, dated January 13, 1862. At first many viewers online misread the faded 8 as a 5, which would have predated Shakespeare himself. Online researchers then traced Ziegler: born in York, Pennsylvania, he married Catharine Getz in 1864 and died in 1906.

This is our summary of a find reported in the press. For the full story, photographs and any updates, read the original report in Newsweek.

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