Ancient, Curious, and Famous Wills (1911)

This collection of wills will be enjoyed by the layman, the lawyer and the scholar as a reflection of the individual cited and of their times. All sorts of wills from the sublime to the absurd are included, such as the will of a pig, clauses in wills concerning slaves, the wills that established the Nobel Prize and the Rhodes scholarship, and many more.

This fascinating volume contains the text of wills that are “ancient”: Confucius’ will, Solon’s introduction of wills to the ancient Greeks; wills that are “curious”: a will that attempts to bequeath property to the devil, bequests to pets; and wills of the “famous”: well-known authors (Rabelais, Dickens, etc.), European royalty (Napoleon, Mary Queen of Scots, etc.) and U.S. presidents (George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, etc.). Well-indexed by subject and name.