George Wythe’s Bookplate

This original engraved bookplate from the eighteenth or early nineteenth century belonged to George Wythe. To identify his books, he pasted bookplates such as this one on the inside cover of the volumes in his library. The design bears the Wythe family coat of arms, which features three griffins—legendary protective creatures—on the central shield. The Latin inscription bears the motto "Secundis Dubiisque Rectus," meaning "Upright in Prosperity and Peril."