Dating Trille Labarre’s Nouvelle méthode: Caught Between Printing and Publishing?

When was Trille Labarre’s noteworthy five-course guitar method engraved and printed? And when was it actually published—sold to the public? Could years have elapsed between the two activities? This essay reviews the various methods used to date undated printed music of that era in the hopes of achieving some clarity. The first technique involves looking for personal names, like dedicatees, engravers, and publishers. The latter approaches are more analytical.