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Guard Books

The original sequence of material and original folio numbers have been retained where possible and the contents are listed to item level. The letters cover the period 1754 to 1770 and are in approximate chronological order.The series has been placed in a general category as it covers a range of subjects.

James Barry

James Barry was born in 1741 and died in 1806. In 1777 Barry submitted a proposal to the Society to decorate the Great Room of its new premises. He offered to paint the whole room without fee, in return for canvas, paints and models. He began painting in April that year, and although he continued to alter the paintings until 1801, they were exhibited in 1783 and '84, with the proceeds going to Barry.\n\nBarry was his own publisher, and produced numerous works explaining the The Progress's symbolism, later editions of which contained appendices railing against his critics.\n\nIn 1782, Barry was elected to professor of painting at the Royal Academy, receiving a salary in return for six lectures a year. Barry used the position to engage with role of the artist in society, but went too far in putting forth his opinions and, together with his 1798 Letter to the Dilettanti Society's attacks on the state of arts patronage in England, angered the Academy was expelled in 1799. His was the Academy's only expulsion until Professor Brendan Neiland resigned in July 2004.\n\nThe Earl of Buchan came to Barry's aid after he lost his salary, paying expenses and moving him to a larger house so that he could finish his final painting, The Birth of Pandora. James Barry died in February 1806, and his body laid in state in the Society's Great Room, before being interred in St. Paul's Cathedral.

As well as various standing committees (see individual entries for Mechanics Committee, Polite Arts Committee, Agriculture Committee, Committee of Colonies and Trade and Chemistry Committee) the Society regularly set up ad-hoc committees to discuss a broad range of topics concerned with the programme and administration of the Society. These include the Committee of Correspondence and Papers and the Committee of Miscellaneous Matters\n\nRecords include minutes of the diverse committees and correspondence to the members of the committees. Correspondence in this section is mainly administrative or on topics which could not be covered by the main subject committees.

The manuscript versions of the Transactions were the draft versions of the printed Transactions, published from 1783 until 1847. They include original correspondence as well as drawings, plans and diagrams in support of claims for premiums and awards. From the late 1840s, papers were read at Society meetings. Some of these papers were reprinted in the Transactions (and the Journal from 1852). Manuscript copies of the text of these lectures, submitted by their authors, are included at the end of this series.\nIncludes correspondence and manuscript versions of papers printed in the Transactions

Committee of Chemistry

One of the original subject-based committees set up by the Society from 1754 to judge awards and premiums for discoveries in chemistry.\n\nRecords include minutes of the Chemistry Committee, correspondence about awards and attendance at and structure of committee. Additional correspondence to the committee is also included within the Guard Book series at PR/GE/110