If you’re visiting Central Library this summer to see Working in America, SLPL’s current exhibit in the Great Hall, we encourage you to head up to the 3rd floor afterward to view a selection of miniature books now on display in Rare Books & Manuscripts. Fascinating to folks of all ages, miniature books are commonly…
17th Century Scientific Illustration and Lister’s Gifted Daughters
An exceptional early natural science title we’ve recently delved into is Martin Lister’s Historiae Conchyloriorum. An English physician, Lister (1639–1712) is best remembered as one of the world’s first experts in spiders, insects, fossils, and shells. Historiae Conchyloriorum, his masterwork printed over several years (1685-1692), is considered the first systematized publication on shells. What makes…
Tessering through Time
If you’ve been looking forward to director Ava DuVernay's film adaptation of Madeleine L'Engle's classic science fiction fantasy novel for children, A Wrinkle in Time, Rare Books & Manuscripts would like to share with you our very special copy of the treasured tale. Originally published in 1962, A Wrinkle in Time won L’Engle the Newbery Medal…
St. Louis Sherlockian Collection Dedication
On Saturday, February 10th, the formal dedication of the St. Louis Sherlockian Collection was held in Rare Books & Manuscripts at Central Library. A wide variety of books, periodicals, and fanzines devoted to the study of Sherlock Holmes and his author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the collection has been cataloged and is available for research…
Holiday Homicide and the Dell Mapbacks
Rare Books & Manuscripts is thrilled to see you’ve made it safely into the New Year, unlike NYC real-estate tycoon Myron Jettwick who met his end aboard his yacht, the Trade Wind. It’s a good thing successful private eye Cotton Moon’s boat, Coquilla, was anchored nearby on the East River and he was free to take on…
Madame Tussaud and the Chamber of Horrors
Halloween may be over, but November’s falling leaves, chill in the air and early arriving darkness are enough to keep that creepy feeling around for a while. I know I let out an audible gasp after stumbling across the 1888 catalog for Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum in London in our pamphlet collection. Not only are…
Secret scenes among the pages
Rare Books & Manuscripts recently acquired this lovely little copy of An Anthology of Modern Verse. While the title was first published in 1921, this particular book is a twenty-fourth edition, printed in 1929. So, what makes this collection of classical English poetry compiled by British educator Sir Algernon Marshall Stedman Methuen special? When the…
Explosive Politics: A Miniature Artists’ Book
Special Collections is home to a small but growing assortment of contemporary artists' books. Our latest acquisition, Explosive Politics: Contrasting Views of Civic Discourse, by Ed Hutchins is a timely one, especially given that the Fourth of July is right around the corner. Thought provoking in both design and content, the book is composed of…
Quilting a “Book of Hours”
Nearly two years ago, international award-winning local quilter Suzanne Marshall visited Special Collections to view and study a Book of Hours prayer book printed in 1504. She was joined by her husband, Garland, who helped take snapshots of the complex ornamentation which lies inside the pages of the small text. Recently, I was thrilled to see, in person, this stunning HANDMADE quilt…
“Peace Fake” – The False Armistice
Among the more curious items now on display in Central Library’s Great Hall, as part of our World War I: My Fellow Soldiers exhibit, is this St. Louis Times front page. The November 7, 1918 extra edition’s bold headline announcing “The War Has Ended” was actually a premature declaration based on an erroneous report out…
1 - 10 of 21
- Go to page 1
- Go to page 2
- Go to page 3
- Next page
