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Category: Preservation

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Instrumentally Yours

Posted by: Jennifer Gavin

The late 19th century gave rise to some truly imaginative, public-minded Americans. We all know about the Thomas Edisons, the Henry Fords, the Garrett Morgans. But there were others who, while not household names today, lived very interesting lives and left behind fascinating legacies. Among these we find Dayton C. Miller, born on a farm …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Inquiring Minds: The Document Man

Posted by: Erin Allen

Armed guards? Check. Secret rendezvous points? Check. Mysterious steel briefcase? Check. Sounds like a James Bond movie. But it’s just a day in the life of Christopher Woods, director of the National Conservation Service in Britain. By day, he’s a leading conservator in the field with more than 29 years experience working in the heritage …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Library in the News: December 2014 Edition

Posted by: Erin Allen

Every year, the Library of Congress announces the addition of 25 films to the National Film Registry, and we are always excited about the enthusiasm for the selected films and the opportunity to spread the word about our preservation efforts. The Washington Post reached out to some of the filmmakers for their thoughts on their work …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Sensationalism! Yellow Journalism! More, More, More!

Posted by: Jennifer Gavin

It’s the day after Christmas, ho-ho-ho-hum. The presents are already open, your elbows are getting rubbed a little raw with all these relatives around, and you’re sick of holiday cookies and candy and fruitcake. It’s all too tempting to jump on the old cellphone and see what snarky things are being said on social media, …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Anatomy of the Flute

Posted by: Erin Allen

(The following is a feature on “Technology at the Library” from the September-October 2014 issue of the Library of Congress Magazine, LCM. You can read the issue in its entirety here.)  The Library of Congress holds the largest collection of flutes in the world, due in great measure to the generosity of Ohio physicist and amateur flutist Dayton …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Conservation Corner: A Persian Manuscript

Posted by: Erin Allen

(The following is a guest post written by Yasmeen Khan, senior book conservator in the Conservation Division.) Conservation staff recently treated I recently examined a rare Persian manuscript in preparation for display in the Library of Congress exhibition, “A Thousand Years of the Persian Book.” The bound 103-leaf manuscript, dated 1583 and attributed to Central Asia, …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

Library in the News: August 2014 Edition

Posted by: Erin Allen

In August, the Library of Congress was busy with exhibitions and expositions, opening “American Ballet Theatre: Touring the Globe for 75 Years” on Aug. 14 and hosting the 14th annual National Book Festival on Aug. 30. “At the company’s heart was ballet theater, a physical way of creating a new world onstage,” wrote Sarah Kaufman …

Image of an ornate clock showing 2:05 with sculpted male figures sitting on each side of the clock face

InRetrospect: June 2014 Blogging Edition

Posted by: Erin Allen

The Library of Congress blogosphere helped beat the heat in June with a variety of engaging posts. Here are a sampling: In the Muse: Performing Arts Blog Connecting to Samuel Barber: A Young Musician’s Connection to a Musical Manuscript Music Division intern Rachael Sanguinetti talks about her appreciation of the composer’s works. Inside Adams: Science, …