During the pandemic, I dabbled in birding, and ever since, I’ve noticed more and more references to birds across cultural media—from literature to music. With the holiday season fully in swing, I’ve heard “The Twelve Days of Christmas” echoing through stores bedecked with evergreen garlands and festooned with sparkling ornaments. Until this year, though, I …
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.
A tiny masterpiece of Flemish illumination, the Warburg Book of Hours in the Rare Book and Special Collections Division recently received a new binding that allows readers to better view some of most beautiful paintings and trompe-l'œil manuscript borders in the Library’s collection.
