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Archive: May 2021 (6 Posts)

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

Of Shattered Jade and Broken Pottery: Solving Tatiana’s Puzzles

Posted by: John Hessler

This post is part of the series Excavating Archaeology, which features selections from, and research on, the Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology & History of the Early Americas and related collections, housed in the Geography and Map Division and in the Rare Book & Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress. Break …

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

Working in Lila’s Shadow: Deconstructing the Textiles of the Early Americas

Posted by: John Hessler

This post is part of a series called Excavating Archaeology, which features selections from, and research on, the Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology & History of the Early Americas and related collections, housed in the Geography and Map Division and in the Rare Book & Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress. …

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

A Blue Like No Other: Polychrome Painting and the Vessels of the Diving Gods

Posted by: John Hessler

This post is part of a series called Excavating Archaeology, which highlights selections from, and research on, the Jay I. Kislak Collection of the Archaeology & History of the Early Americas and related materials, housed in the Geography and Map Division, and in the Rare Book & Special Collections Division of the Library of Congress. …

1853 Pilot Chart showing wind speeds

From Telegrams to Weather Apps: A Brief History of Wind Mapping

Posted by: Meagan Snow

Today it’s easy to check the weather without even leaving the house: hourly predictions for rain, wind, temperature, and humidity are available to most of us through our phones at the touch of a button. Warnings for severe weather flash across our screens to help keep us safe – but how did we get here? …

Brown, red, and yellow tinted map illustration of the continents of Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, with a circular frame around them

New Fire Insurance Map Research Guide Available

Posted by: Julie Stoner

The most heavily used collection in the Geography and Map Division are the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, a collection of large-scale, building level maps, dating from 1867 to the present which depict the commercial, industrial, and residential sections of some 12,000 cities and towns in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The Sanborn collection includes about …