In the September issue of Vidimus, an announcement was placed concerning the liquidation by the publisher of the remaining stock of my book, Stained glass in the Netherlands before 1795. As this two-volume overview of all stained glass in public buildings in the Netherlands was received well at the time of its publication in 2011, I decided to take the risk and buy all the leftovers – over 180 sets – at a strongly reduced price. News about the sale spread quickly among Dutch art historians, Corpus Vitrearum members, and not in the least among readers of Vidimus. By mid-November the stock was sold out! The venture turned out well, even though I did not immediately realize the implications of my decision to act temporarily as a book-seller. It was a huge logistical operation to slowly empty the garage full of almost 1000 kg of books, find the cheapest carrier, pack and dispatch, email the right bills to the right recipients and keep tracking the completion of the process. Thanks to the help of my husband the project came to a happy end. It really gives great satisfaction to me to know that instead of being shredded to pieces, my books lie intact in so many homes all over the world, and that they can be consulted every now and then by lovers of stained glass. Thank you very much for your generous help!
Zsuzsanna van Ruyven-Zeman