While updating the catalog records for the Incunabula collection, a copy of the Pseudo-Augustinian work Sermones ad heremitas was recently re-cataloged. The Rare Book & Manuscript Library has three fifteenth-century imprints of this work, two from Venice and one from Strasbourg. The copy printed by Paganinus de Paganinis on 26 May 1487 is the smallest […]
Non Solus Blog
Three books from Alexander Pope’s library
June 10, 2010
While checking the special collections provenance file, three books owned by Alexander Pope were identified in our collections, in addition to the presentation copies of his collected letters that he inscribed to William Oliver. The Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s provenance file provides a wealth of information about notable former owners of the books in […]
Hans Christian Andersen Presentation Copy from the Library of Carl Sandburg (839.83 An2Eb)
June 3, 2010
While checking the recently-cataloged Hans Christian Andersen book inscribed to Mary Bruun against the special collections provenance file, a second book inscribed by Hans Christian Andersen was identified. This copy of The Sand-hills of Jutland has just as interesting a provenance as the last book. As soon as you open the book, a University of […]
Letters from John Ruskin primarily to Joan Severn (Post 1650 MS 0009)
June 2, 2010
Sitting quietly in our vault, awaiting further study is a cache of thirty unpublished letters from John Ruskin to his Scottish cousin Joan (Agnew Ruskin) Severn. Ruskin wrote over 3000 letters to Severn, many of which have been published in the thirty-nine volume edition of The Works of John Ruskin by Edward T. Cook and […]
Kierkegaard Sammelbände: A Cataloging Problem, Solved
May 28, 2010
At the Rare Book and Manuscript Library’s monthly No. 44 Society meetings, it is a tradition to share a book from the RBML vault that is related to the historical events of the day. On May 5th, a discovery was made while retrieving a first edition of Soren Kierkegaard’s Forord (1844) for the anniversary of […]
To the End of the World and Back (Post-1650 MS 334)
May 25, 2010
Under the direction of Captain Sir William Parry, the HMS Hecla and HMS Griper left port on 11 May 1819 destined for the Arctic. Their objective was to continue the search for the Northwest Passage and to pursue the Longitude prize by surpassing the record for a sailing vessel traveling the farthest north (previously set […]
Histoire des Ballons from the Library of Amelia Earhart (Q. 629.13322 T52h)
May 24, 2010
This two-volume set detailing the history of ballooning in Europe from 1783-1890 was written by balloonist Gaston Tissandier. Tissandier was a prolific author of books on balloons and patented the method of application of the electric motor in balloon flight. His work followed that of Henri Giffard who invented the first engine-powered airship. Although Tissandier […]
Hans Christian Andersen’s Presentation Copy to a Young Neighbor (IUA15161)
May 21, 2010
The Danish author Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) gained international fame for his fairy tales. In fact, at the time of this blog posting, Edward Erikson’s famed statue of the Little Mermaid, which is permanently located in Copenhagen Harbor, is on display in Shanghai, China for EXPO 2010. It is timely that the Rare Book & […]
Moon Type Books
May 18, 2010
At the early age of four Dr. William Moon (1818-1894) lost sight in one eye due to scarlet fever and by 1839, he became totally blind. Moon quickly devoted his attention to learning the various types of type for the blind and eventually began teaching other blind pupils of various ages, which led to the […]
Alexander Pope Presentation Copies
May 6, 2010
While cataloging the Nickell Collection of 18th-century English Literature, a presentation copy from Alexander Pope to William Oliver has been discovered. Alexander Pope (1688-1744) is best known for his poems, which include The Rape of the Lock (1712) and An Essay on Man (1733-4). But Pope was also a prolific letter writer due to a […]