John Minsheu

English lexicographer (c. 1560–1627), author of Ductor in Linguas (1st ed. 1617; 2nd ed. 1627) — a pioneering English multilingual dictionary. Matters to this vault as the earliest documented source (dated by his own entry to 1499 usage) connecting the chess "Bishop" piece's shape to a bishop's mitre, known to the vault only at second hand via H.J.R. Murray's 1913 quotation of the 1627 dictionary entry — Minsheu's own text has not yet been read directly.

References

• claim-minsheu-1627-describes-chess-bishop-as-mitre-shaped
• claim-portuguese-chess-used-mitra-as-alternate-bishop-name
• Captures: 10-inbox/raw/2026-07-28-does-a-primary-source-confirm-the-alfil-to.md