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Posted by: Stephanie Stillo
Meet Dr. Ashley Rose Young, Curator of American History in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division. An experienced cultural heritage professional and public historian, Ashley recently joined the Library to steward and interpret one of the world’s most significant collections of rare books and printed ephemera related to American life.
Posted in: American History, News and Events
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
Although T.S. Eliot was never a full-fledged member of the Bloomsbury Group, he developed relationships with many of its members, including Virginia and Leonard Woolf. In fact, the Woolfs published many of Eliot’s most important works on the small press they operated out of their kitchen.
Posted in: 20th Century, Fine Press, Literature, Poetry, Publishing, type
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
1922 was a pivotal year in the modernist literary movement, highlighted by the first edition publications of both James Joyce’s Ulysses and T.S. Eliot’s groundbreaking poem “The Waste Land.” In Eliot’s negotiations over publication rights to the poem, he utilized and tested an emerging network of modernist institutions.
Posted in: 20th Century, History of the Book, Literature, Poetry, Publishing
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
In another installment in Bibliomania's series on how books were made in the 15th-18th centuries, this post describes the processes of making woodcut illustrations, copperplate engravings, and etchings.
Posted in: 15th Century, 16th Century, 17th Century, 18th Century, Education Outreach, Famous Printers, Fine Prints, History of the Book, Illustrated Book
![Williams, Jonathan. Ruff, David, Metal-engraver. Garbage litters the iron face of the sun's child. Jargon 1. [Jonathan Williams], [San Francisco], 1951](https://blogs.loc.gov/bibliomania/files/2025/07/mm-jargon-001-01a.jpg)
Posted by: Mark Manivong
The Jargon Society released its first publication numbered Jargon 1 in 1951, “Garbage Litters the Iron Face of the Sun’s Child,” a folded pamphlet with poetry by Jonathan Williams and an etching by David Ruff. Founded that same year by Williams and Ruff, the Jargon Society would go on to publish 115 titles, mostly by up-and-coming writers and photographers.
Posted in: 20th Century, Appalachia, Contemporary Book Arts, LGBTQIA+, Poetry, Publishing, Uncategorized
Posted by: Marianna Stell
In 1540, humanist polymath, mathematician, astronomer, and cartographer, professor, and printer, Peter Apian (1495-1552) published one of the most lavishly illustrated scientific books ever printed. Dedicated to German Emperor Charles V and Ferdinand I, King of Bohemia, the Astronomicum Caesareum (Imperial Astronomy) contains 21 volvelles and 58 hand-colored woodcuts that involve some of the most spectacular dragons in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division.
Posted in: 16th Century, Astronomy, Famous Printers, History of Mathematics, History of Science, History of the Book, Illustrated Book
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
As we prepare to celebrate the United States' 250th birthday on July 4, 2026, the Rare Book and Special Collections Division is producing a series of short films that highlight items related to American history and culture with particular focus on the Founding era.
Posted in: 17th Century, 18th Century, 19th Century, 20th Century, African American Poetry, American History, Children's Literature, Classics, Education, Education History, Education Outreach, Literature, Women's Stories
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
As the Library begins a year-long run-up to the 250-year anniversary of the founding of the United States on July 4, 1776, the Rare Book Division will co-host an event with the Manuscript Division on July 17 to explore the history of the Declaration of Independence and its illustrated reproductions. This "Made at the Library" event will feature Dr. John Bidwell's discussion of his recent book, "The Declaration in Print and Script: A Visual History of America's Founding Document."
Posted in: 18th Century, 19th Century, American History, Education Outreach, News and Events
Posted by: Patrick Hastings
Joyceans around the world celebrate Bloomsday every year on June 16 because it is the single day on which James Joyce's modernist novel Ulysses is set. Robert Motherwell, a prominent Abstract Expressionist artist, was a lifelong reader of Ulysses. His etchings illustrate The Arion Press's monumental 1988 edition of the novel.
Posted in: 20th Century, Famous Printers, Fine Press, Fine Prints, Illustrated Book, Literature