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Posted by: Michael North
Among the books in Thomas Jefferson's Library that Congress purchased in 1815 was a copy of William Cheselden's The Anatomy of the Human Body, and Jefferson's annotations show that he studied the text carefully, connecting it to his study of ancient literature and history.
Posted in: American History, History of Science, Provenance
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Likely created in Tours in the 1470s in a workshop influenced by the French painter and manuscript illuminator, Jean Fouquet (c. 1420 - 1480), a Book of Hours in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress reminds us that Halloween is just around the corner.
Posted in: 15th Century, Manuscript and Letterpress (Hand Press), Seasonal
Posted by: Mark Manivong
James Merrill (1926-1995) was a poet and writer who won nearly every major poetry award in the United States. The Rare Book and Special Collections Division acquired a Merrill Collection in 2015 that holds a surprising number of his works bearing inscriptions to his romantic partners. This blog post looks at some of the inscriptions to four of Merrill's lovers.
Posted in: American History, Poetry
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Clementina Rind (d. 1774) was the first female newspaper printer in Virginia and associated with Thomas Jefferson, Peyton Randolph, and other American founding fathers. The Rare Book and Special Collections Division at the Library of Congress holds a controversial religious text given to her by her father, which was later owned by Thomas Jefferson.
Posted in: American History, Provenance, Women in Book History
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Memory training was an important part of education in the Middle Ages. Borrowing from classical sources, medieval techniques offered elaborate and creative methods for memorizing lengthy works and speeches. The blockbook Ars memorandi, likely printed in Germany around 1470, offers a surprising lesson for those interested in the history of graphic design or mnemonic theory.
Posted in: 15th Century, 16th Century, Manuscript and Letterpress (Hand Press)
Posted by: Amanda Zimmerman
Among many fascinating books related to the Civil War, the Library of Congress also holds a demurely-bound, water-damaged volume inscribed by its author. This volume, the autobiography of Confederate spy and Maryland native Rose O'Neal Greenhow (1815-1864), documents her exploits as a persistent thorn in the side of President Abraham Lincoln and the Union cause.
Posted in: 19th Century, American History, Women in Book History
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Christine de Pizan (1364-1430), first professional woman author in Europe, was considered by Simone de Beauvoir to be the first woman to 'take up her pen in defense of her sex'. The Library of Congress has a rare copy of Christine’s work, Epistre d'Othea, printed by Philippe Pigouchet around 1499.
Posted in: Manuscript and Letterpress (Hand Press), Women in Book History
Posted by: Marianna Stell
Monica Varner, Collections Manager in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division, dives into the provenance of an American imprint from 1705.
Posted in: American History
Posted by: Amanda Zimmerman
In the early 1860s amidst growing unrest between the North and South, American humorist, journalist and political commentator David Ross Locke (1833 - 1888) debuted a character that would be popular with abolitionists for years to come - and with Abraham Lincoln in particular.
Posted in: 19th Century, American History