This is a 17th-century Puritan biographical/historical work by English minister Samuel Clarke (1599–1682). It compiles short lives (biographies) of early Church Fathers, schoolmen, and later Protestant divines. The full title is often given as:
The marrow of ecclesiastical historie, conteined in the lives of the fathers, and other learned men, and famous divines, which have flourished in the Church since the days of the Apostles…
It was printed in London by William Du-gard in 1650 (sometimes referenced in two volumes or parts).
Key Details
- Author: Samuel Clarke, a nonconformist Puritan pastor (e.g., of St. Bennet Fink, London). He wrote several similar collections of “lives” or “marrow” extracts of ecclesiastical history.
- Content: Summaries of the lives, writings, and key events for figures from the early Church Fathers onward, emphasizing Protestant-compatible interpretations. It served as a kind of popular reference or devotional/historical compendium for English readers in the mid-17th century.
- Editions: The 1650 edition is the primary one. Later reprints or related works by Clarke exist (he produced multiple volumes on this theme in the 1640s–1650s).
Availability
- Original copies are rare antiquarian items and appear in auctions or specialist booksellers (e.g., rebound copies in good condition have sold for hundreds of dollars).
- Modern reprints exist via publishers like Kessinger or others (search for the full title + 1650). Some digitized versions may be on archive.org, Google Books, or university library catalogs.