Conservator, Andrea Krupp is rebinding a collection of Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper using a sewing frame. Here she is sewing a handy archival pocket for a foldout map to the binding. The bindery, by far has the best #ToolsOfTheLibraryTrade.

Arabic Fragment, a West African Gris-Gris, 1773.

A gris-gris or wanga is a traditional West African talisman consisting of transcribed prayers, roots, herbs, and other objects used to ward off evil. An enslaved Islamic priest wrote this snippet of Arabic calligraphy. It was written in Leyogan in colonial Saint-Domingue (now Ayiti/Haiti). Translation: “In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful Say: He is Allah, the One and Only! Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not nor is He begotten. And there is none like unto Him.”

From Negro Pasts to Afro-Futures : Black Creative Re-Imaginings is on display now through October 18, 2019.

In 2018, the Print Department received an addition to the Morris Collection including envelopes like the one shown, filled with negatives ranging from the late 19th century through the mid 20th century. An amazing element of the Morris Collection is the amount of information that come with the photographs. Often collections come with a lot of guess work, where we can only attribute a date range or what we plainly see, versus accurate and detailed information about time and location, what buildings or what people are pictured. Marriott C. Morris was meticulous in his records, which has allowed this collection to be so robust, and we thank him for that!

This envelope is part of the most recent addition to the Morris Collection, currently in process. [P.2018.77]

So you’ve heard us mention our First Biennial Innovation Award, and now you’re wondering how we’ll be evaluating proposals… well, you’re in luck! We are pleased to share the evaluative criteria the award committee will be using.

The Innovation Award will recognize a project—digital or analog—that critically and creatively expands the possibilities of humanistic scholarship.

The recipient of the Innovation Award will receive a $2,000 prize, a spotlight interview in our “Talking in the Library” podcast, and recognition at the 288th Annual Dinner of the Library Company of Philadelphia (October 29, 2019).

Submissions are due by August 1, 2019.

We look forward to reviewing all proposals!

James Reid Lambdin. Benjamin Franklin. Ca. 1880. Oil on canvas.

This trade card is one of twenty-five in a series issued by W. Duke Sons & Co., gotta catch em’ all!

Donaldson Brothers (Firm), printer. Rolling cigarette. [graphic]. New York : Donaldson Brothers [ca. 1890] 1 print : chromolithograph ; 10 x 6 cm. (4 x 2.5 in.)

Exhibit A. Munchin.

Exhibit B. Food Coma.

This watercolor is from our Du Simitiere collection. Pierre Eugène Du Simitière (1737-1784) was a collector, artist, and historian, who opened the first public museum, the American Museum, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the American Musuem, Du Simitière presented his many materials collected during his travels and from his collections.

Charles Stearns, “Religious Dancing of the Blacks, Termed ‘Shouting’” from The Black Man of the South and the Rebels (New York, 1872).

This image was published post-Emancipation. However, by the antebellum era, after the Second Great Awakening, a great number of enslaved people converted to Protestant Christianity. The enslaved put their distinctive mark on worship and integrated enthusiastic religious practices with linkages to West Africa like polyrhythmic singing, “holy dancing,” and drums. Although the South banned the creation of Black-controlled churches, Black people found ways to worship privately with each other as a community act.

From Negro Pasts to Afro-Futures : Black Creative Re-Imaginings is on display now through October 18, 2019.

Call for Proposals – First Biennial Innovation Award

The Library Company of Philadelphia is still accepting applications for its First Biennial Innovation Award. The Innovation Award will recognize a project—digital or analog—that critically and creatively expands the possibilities of humanistic scholarship.

The recipient of the Innovation Award will receive a $2,000 prize, a spotlight interview in our “Talking in the Library” podcast, and recognition at the 288th Annual Dinner of the Library Company of Philadelphia (October 29, 2019).

Proposals will be evaluated by a committee of leaders in higher education, research libraries, and cultural heritage institutions who will evaluate how proposed projects make scholarly work new again. That scholarly work might take the form of an article, chapter, academic monograph, scholarly edition, or other project, in either print or digital form. “Innovation” will be defined broadly, and may include refashioning scholarly work with new partners, for new audiences, or into new forms.

We welcome proposals from applicants in all fields and at all career stages, including graduate students, junior and senior faculty, as well as independent scholars. Visit the Innovation Award webpage for complete details.

Submissions are due by August 1, 2019.

This gilt and black stamped on our copy of The Man in the Moon, and Other People (1874) is stoking our romance for the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. It does leave us wondering, who are these “other people”?

Raymond, Rossiter W. The Man in the Moon, and Other People. New York : The American News Company, 1874.

Queen B! We found this royal insect in our copy of Charles Butler’s The Femininʻ Monarchiʻ, or The Histori of Beeʻs (Oxford, 1634), which was likely previously owned by Benjamin Franklin. #BugginOut

Butler, Charles. The femininʻ monarchiʻ, or the histori of beeʻs. Oxford [England], Printed by William Turner, for đe author. M.DC.XXXIV. [1634]