Archive Animals – Cats

Written by Louise Cowan, Trainee Liaison Librarian

Our Special Collections Library and Archive is full of interesting creatures, big and small.  They can be found everywhere from our Children’s Collection story books to the detailed scientific tomes of our Cole Library.  So far we’ve explored the Ducks, Horses and Bees but today is the turn of the graceful Cat. Here are just a few of my favourite titles on Cats from our collections:

 

Cats in Literature

Orlando the Marmalade Cat – Kathleen Hale
[Children’s Collection 823.9-HAL]

This beautiful series of Children’s books created by Kathleen Hale feature the adventures of Orlando the

Orlando the Marmalade Cat, 1964

Orlando the Marmalade Cat, 1964

ginger cat, his wife Grace and their three kittens, Pansy, Blanche and Tinkle.

In ‘Orlando’s Invisible Pyjamas’ poor Orlando gets himself covered in paraffin oil, which makes him bald from waist to tail.  Grace manages to coax Orlando from hiding with the promise of knitting him some fur pyjama trousers.  While Grace knits, Orlando regales the kittens with stories from their family photo album.

According to MacCarthy (2000), Hale wrote to “reinvent a childhood, to recreate the domestic structure she had so badly lacked.”  And the bright story books with their tales of a tightly knit family of cats were a perfect distraction for children during WWII.  Indeed the bright colours of the ‘Orlando’ books are one of their best features; inspired by the series ‘Babar’ (Jean de Brunhoff), Hale had “envisaged a large format book in seven colours,” (MacCarthy, 2000) and although after some convincing from her publisher, only four were used, the effect is just as attractive.  After the publication of her first two Orlando books, Hale even learned the art of lithography herself, (Roberts, 2014) her efforts with the medium setting new standards for Children’s illustrated books.

As well as copies of a number of Hale’s books, our collection also includes archival material relating to their publication, such as uncorrected proofs of the text, holographs, typescripts and carbon typescripts.

For more information on Orlando see our 2007 featured item, Kathleen Hale, Orlando (The Marmalade Cat) buys a farm, 1972 

Sources:
Roberts, P. (2014) Orlando the Marmalade Cat
MacCarthy, F. (2000) Obituary: Kathleen Hale

 

Cats in Music and Art

Tabby Polka by Procida Bucalossi / Louis Wain
[Spellman Collection of Victorian Music Covers – Box 11]

This charming image comes from our Spellman Collection of Victorian Music covers, which consists of around 2,500 Victorian sheet music covers, illustrating virtually every aspect of Victorian life, culture

Tabby Polka [Spellman Collection]

Tabby Polka [Spellman Collection]

and preoccupations.

This particular piece, dating to c.1865 was composed by Procida Bucalossi (1832-1918), a theatre conductor and composer at the Prince of Wales’s Theatre, London who was known for his dance arrangements for the Savoy Operas. (Stone, 2001).

The artist behind the illustration is Louis Wain (1860-1939), a British artist renowned for his wonderful pictures of cats.  Later in life, Wain began to show signs of mental illness but continued to draw and paint.  His artwork however, took on an unusual quality and he “produced the first of his fascinating series of “kaleidoscope” cats,” which included intricate geometric patterns and “images in which the figure of the cat is exploded in a burst of geometric fragments.” (Boxer, 2016)

Sources:
Stone, D. (2001) THE D’OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY
Boxer, J. (2016) Louis Wain –  Henry Boxer Gallery 

 

Cats in Science

Celestial Atlas by Alexander Jamieson, 1822
[Reserve Middle Folio 523 JAM]

Felis - Celestial Atlas, 1822

Felis – Celestial Atlas, 1822

One of the many constellations described in “A Celestial Atlas” by Alexander Jamieson in 1822, Felis was composed by French astronomer Jerome de Lalande in 1799 from stars between Hydra and Argos Navis.  Sadly Felis did not make the list of 88 modern constellations when the IAU (International Astronomical Union) created an official set of constellation boundaries in 1930.

Sources:
International Astronomical Union, (2016) The Constellations
Ridpath, I. (2016) Felis the Cat

 

The Cat by St. George Mivart, 1881
[Cole Library 185]

Cat Paws - The Cat, 1881

Cat Paws – The Cat, 1881

‘The Cat’ by British biologist St George Mivart is a fascinating, in-depth study of our feline friends.  The book provides highly detailed anatomical descriptions and illustrations, such as this of the cat’s paw:

Of these [pads of the feet] there are seven in the fore paw, and five in the hind paw.  Each pad consists of a mass of fibrous tissue and fat and a large trilobed one is placed beneath the ends of those bones on which the animal rests in walking.

Many of the careful illustrations, particularly those of the cat’s muscles, have been coloured over and annotated, showing that the book was very much in use by its owner.

Annotated Cat Paws - The Cat, 1881

Annotated Cat Paws – The Cat, 1881

As well as anatomy, ‘The Cat’ also delves into the development and psychology of the cats, and one of my favourite features of the study are the small footnotes which include interesting anecdotes about the nature of the cat, such as this one from p369:

Mr Douglas A. Spalding found kittens to be imbued with an instinctive horror of dogs before they were able to see it.  He tells us: – “One day last month, after fondling my dog, I put my hand into a basket containing four blind kittens, three days old.  The smell my hand had carried with it set them puffing and spitting in the most comical fashion.” (Nature, October 7, 1875. P507)

gif of cat anatomy from Anatomie descriptive et comparative du chat by Hercule Straus-Durckheim, 1845. [Cole Large 09]

Anatomie descriptive et comparative du chat by Hercule Straus-Durckheim, 1845. [Cole Large 09]

All items are available upon request, find out more about using our Library and Archives here.

Cataloguing Cole: Fishes, Photographs and the Forces

Written by Sharon Maxwell, Archivist (Cataloguing & Projects)

Some of the original packaging used by Cole to house his archive

Some of the original packaging used by Cole to house his archive

I have recently been cataloguing the personal papers of Professor Francis J Cole, (1872-1959), the first Professor of Zoology at the University of Reading. The fascinating papers in the Cole collection include research for his academic writings and publications, bibliographies and indexes relating to his library and his bibliographic studies and photographic material including thousands of glass negatives and lantern slides used by Cole in his teaching.  Cataloguing this material has given me an insight into Cole’s research methods and his interests.

Cole was born in London, England on 3 February 1872. On leaving school Cole’s aim was to go to Oxford and read zoology. He learnt zoology at the Royal College of Science, and he also attended lectures at the Royal Institution and studied at Christ Church, Oxford and the University of Edinburgh.  In 1894 he was appointed lecturer in zoology at Liverpool University College, later the University of Liverpool.  He stayed there for twelve years and combined work during term time at Liverpool with research during vacation at Jesus College, Oxford.  In this way he obtained a B.Sc.

In later years Cole re-used many of his old College notebooks to record his research notes, examples of which can be seen here, alongside a photograph of Professor Cole taken in 1939 (MS 5315/2/2)

In later years Cole re-used many of his old College notebooks to record his research notes, examples of which can be seen here, alongside a photograph of Professor Cole taken in 1939 (MS 5315/2/2)degree at Oxford by research in 1905.

degree at Oxford by research in 1905. In 1906 Cole took up an appointment as lecturer in zoology at University College, Reading, and in the following year became the first occupant of the chair of zoology, which he held until his retirement in 1939.  In these thirty-two years he built up a flourishing department, founded a Museum of Comparative Anatomy which is now called by his name, and collected a magnificent library of early works on medicine and comparative anatomy.

 

He was awarded the Rolleston Prize at Oxford in 1902 for his researches on the cranial nerves of fishes, Chimaera.  Later he published a series of papers on the myxinoid fishes and received the Neill Gold Medal and Prize of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1908.  His D. Sc., Oxford, followed in 1910. During World War I he was commissioned in the 4th Territorial Battalion

A small image of Professor Cole in his uniform and a notebook he used to record notes for his work with his Battalion on the east coast during WWI, you can see his diagram detailing positions and trenches

A small image of Professor Cole in his uniform and a notebook he used to record notes for his work with his Battalion on the east coast during WWI, you can see his diagram detailing positions and trenches

of the Essex Regiment and was stationed on the east coast in charge of a coastal gun emplacement.

 

Cole’s detailed notes and transcriptions of each letter written by Leeuwenhoek

Cole’s detailed notes and transcriptions of each letter written by Leeuwenhoek

Returning to Reading after the war Cole turned more and more to the history of biology. His collection includes research for many of his major publications on this subject, including the zoological researches of Antony van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723), and his history of comparative anatomy.

The material that has survived in Cole’s archive gives you an insight into his style of research, he liked to produce detailed indexes to sources that he used, which refer you to material within his own library and to sources he found in other libraries and museums, so that you can closely follow his research path.  He also took great care with the illustrations produced to accompany his published writings, drawing many of the original images himself and annotating proofs until they were perfect for publication.

Proofs and original drawings by Cole for his study on the nerves and sense organs of fishes, (MS 5315/1/2)

Proofs and original drawings by Cole for his study on the nerves and sense organs of fishes, (MS 5315/1/2)

 

Cole clearly liked to enliven his lectures and talks, and his collection includes thousands of glass

Index cards created by Cole to keep track of his vast collection of glass negatives, (MS 5315/3/14)

Index cards created by Cole to keep track of his vast collection of glass negatives, (MS 5315/3/14)

negatives and lantern slides.  Ceri, our Reading Room Assistant is currently cataloguing these images and each negative will soon be digitised so that an image of the negative will appear alongside its catalogue description. Our volunteers Ron and Jan are carefully re-packaging these items into acid-free covers and boxes to preserve them for the future.

Professor Cole’s papers are available for research in the reading room, reference MS 5315 and the glass negatives will be available to view on our online catalogue in the near future.

 

Sources and further reading:

Much of the biographical information above was taken from an article written by N.B. Eales in the Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences 1959, Vol. XIV, No. 1

See also the Cole Library and the Cole Museum for further insight into Professor Cole’s collections

Travel Thursday – Great Western Railway

Written by Louise Cowan, Trainee Liaison Librarian

Title page of 'The History and Description of the Great Western Railway' by J. C. Bourne - 1846

‘The History and Description of the Great Western Railway’ by J. C. Bourne – 1846

The Great Western Railway (GWR) was founded in 1833 and received an enabling Act of Parliament in August 1835 that allowed the company to provide a double tracked line from Bristol to London (Daniel, 2013).

Five years ago, no man had ever travelled from London to Bristol, even by the mail in much less than twelve hours; upon the opening of the railway the distance was performed in four hours 

(Bourne, 1846)

Isambard Kingdom Brunel was appointed as the project’s engineer, determining the route, sections and estimates (Bailey, 2006).  He also designed a controversial broad gauge track in an effort to increase speeds and passenger comfort (Daniels, 2013).

Construction of the line finally began in 1836; initial stages saw work being completed between Bristol and Bath in the West, and Reading and London in the East with connecting lines and stations quickly following. (Daniels, 2013).  Upon completion in 1841, the GWR was considered such an outstanding achievement that it was dubbed ‘God’s Wonderful Railway’ by many (Trueman, 2016) and in 1846 John C. Bourne published “The History and Description of the Great Western Railway” with the express purpose of highlighting, the “constructive skill and general grandeur of appearance,” of the project.

Bourne’s work is a fascinating insight into an exciting period in the history of transport and travel; it gives a brief history of the political and economical challenges faced by the GWR, an overview of the scientific and engineering principles involved in the construction of railways and locomotives, and then presents an array of beautiful lithographs highlighting the remarkable construction and architectural work found along the tracks.

but the straightness of a railway, and the rapidity of the motion upon it, entirely shut out its far greater and more numerous works, and thus some of the most magnificent structures in the kingdom, though crossed daily by thousands, are actually seen by few.

(Bourne, 1846)

Highlights from among the lithographs include:

Paddington Station, London (Bourne, 1846)

Paddington Station, London (Bourne, 1846)

An early Paddington Station, the London terminus of the railway designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

The railway leaves Paddington in cutting, but the Kensal-Green Cemetery, with its glittering temple, is seen on the right, and on the left an occasional view of the Vale of the Thames.

(Bourne, 1846)

 

 

The Wharncliffe Viaduct (Bourne, 1846)

The Wharncliffe Viaduct (Bourne, 1846)

The Wharncliffe Viaduct, the largest piece of brickwork along the railway and one of the first pieces of work to be complete.

The arches are elliptical, eight in number: the span of each is seventy feet, and the rise seventeen feet six inches.  The piers are composed each of two square massive pillars of brick, slightly pyramidal, and of a character somewhat Egyptian.

(Bourne, 1846)

 

The Engine House, Swindon (Bourne, 1846)

The Engine House, Swindon (Bourne, 1846)

The engine house at Swindon, which gives an interesting behind the scenes look into the operations of the GWR:

[It is]capable of accommodating about a hundred engines: these consist of the engines in actual use, of the stock of spare engines, and of those undergoing repair.  At this station every train changes its engine, so that from this circumstance alone, at least twice as many engines are kept here as at any other part of the line.

(Bourne, 1846)

 

By 1842, GWR and two other railways owned by the company had over 170 miles of line and in that year, conveyed 869, 444 passengers without a single casualty.

 

Great Western Railway Map

Great Western Railway Map

This fantastic map from our Eynsham Park Estate archive shows the

Detail of the Great Western Railway Map showing lines near Reading

Detail of the Great Western Railway Map showing lines near Reading

success of GWR roughly sixty-eight years later.  Lithographed by the well-respected W. & A.K. Johnston Ltd, and designed to be hung on the wall, the map highlights the reach of the GWR across the South of England with the red lines indicating GWR’s main lines, branch lines and running powers.

 

Great Western Railway Ticket designed by De la Rue.

Great Western Railway Ticket designed by De la Rue.

Our archives hold a number of other fascinating pieces of GWR ephemera including some beautiful photographs of Reading Station (c.1880 – 1930s), portraits of Railway Workers, and this lovely blank specimen of a season ticket printed by De la Rue c.1930.

 

 

 

 

  a work of mechanical art represents the united efforts of many generations

(Bourne, 1846)

Bridge Over the River Avon (Bourne, 1846)

Bridge Over the River Avon (Bourne, 1846)

You can find more on the Great Western Railway from our collections here  and information on accessing our archives here.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources and further reading:

Bailey, M. R. (2006) Briefing: I. K. Brunel: Engineer of the Great Western Railway. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers – Transport 2006 159:2, 57-61

Bourne, J. C. (1846) The History and Description of the Great Western Railway. London: David Bogue [Reserve Large Folio 47 – Available upon request]

Daniel, John (2013) Great Western history, 1835 – 1892.

Trueman, C.N. (2016) Trains 1830 To 1900.

An A-Z of the University’s Museums and Collections

@52Museums Instaphabet

@52Museums Instaphabet

Earlier this month the University of Reading’s Museums and Collections collaborated on an exciting project for @52Museums on Instagram.  The 52 Museums programme, which began in January 2016, sees a new museum taking over the running of the 52 Museums Instagram and Twitter page each week in order to share their collections, exhibitions, achievements and more with the world.

To best showcase our fantastic range of collections we produced an A-Z guide or ‘instaphabet’ featuring lettering from our Typography collection and Special Collections Library alongside art, artefacts and anecdotes from the Museum of English Rural Life, Cole Museum of Zoology, URE Museum of Greek Archaeology, our Herbarium, Art collection and Volunteers.

Some of the highlights from the Special Collections Library and Archive include:

Di - De la RueD is for De la Rue
The De la Rue printing firm was founded in Bunhill Row, London in 1837. It manufactured Christmas and other social stationery, playing cards, stamps and railway tickets, and undertook security printing.
Our collection consists of correspondence, financial papers, designs and specimens from the period 1837-1965; including designs for Reading’s famous Huntley and Palmers Biscuit Company.

 

Ri - Ruralia commoda - Ptrus de CrescentiusR is for Ruralia Commoda
The Ruralia commoda is the oldest printed book in our rare book collections. Written by Petrus de Crescentius in 1471, it is an early agricultural manual, and is said by some to have been the most important original medieval work on agriculture, husbandry and horticulture.

 

 

Yi - Yellow Brick RoadY is for Yellow Brick Road
This beautiful illustration of the Yellow Brick Road by W.W. Denslow is from our 1st edition copy of ‘The wonderful wizard of Oz’ by L. Frank Baum (1900). Our Special Collections Library is home to a fantastic Wizard of Oz collection, comprising around 800 volumes, including many editions and translations of The Wizard of Oz, and other associated items.

 

See our full #instaphabet in all its glory on Instagram!

William Wordsworth: A letter to Longman, 1820

Written by Adam Lines, Reading Room Supervisor.

William Wordsworth to Longman, 11 April 1820 - MS 1393 2/67/2

William Wordsworth to Longman, 11 April 1820 (MS 1393 2/67/2).

Before I started working at the University of Reading Special Collections, I spent a year in Grasmere working with the collections at the Wordsworth Trust. Before that I studied for a BA and an MA in English Literature and centred both of my dissertations on William Wordsworth. So by the time I left Grasmere at the start of 2015 it’s fair to say that I had the poet, his work and legacy firmly etched in my mind. My first search on the University of Reading Special Collection’s online catalogue was, not surprisingly, for ‘William Wordsworth’. To my delight there was a result: a single letter written by Wordsworth from 1820. The majority of original Wordsworth manuscripts are housed by the Wordsworth Trust but a few can be found scattered in archives across the world. The reason an example can be found in Reading is because it is part of the Longman Group Collection, the firm responsible for publishing much of Wordsworth’s work during his lifetime.

R. G. Longman's volume of letters.

R. G. Longman’s volume of letters (MS 1393 2/67).

The letter doesn’t stand alone. It is housed in a small volume with other letters to Longman by Wordsworth’s sister Dorothy as well as his friend Samuel Taylor Coleridge. It belonged to R. G. Longman and these letters were clearly treasured by the Longman family as the volume was created especially to house them. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the volume contained only letters written by Coleridge as his name is the only one to grace the spine. A note inside the cover states: ‘4 ST Coleridge letters left to me by my uncle, T. N. Longman’. A further note underneath this was added many years later recording the addition of the letters by William and Dorothy. Given the strong bond of love and friendship between the three of them, it seems only fitting that the letters should reside together.

The inside cover of R. G. Longman's volume of letters, with the inscription '4 ST Coleridge letters left to me by my uncle, T. N. Longman’.

The inside cover of R. G. Longman’s volume of letters, with the inscription ‘4 ST Coleridge letters left to me by my uncle, T. N. Longman’.

The year 1820 saw Wordsworth at a mid-point in his life as a writer. His ‘golden decade’ (1799-1808), during which he wrote the majority of his greatest works, was behind him and widespread fame and notoriety was still a few years ahead.  On the 11 April 1820 he wrote to Longman asking them ‘to transmit the following additional corrections and Errata to the Printer without delay.’ The alterations were for The River Duddon, a series of sonnets about the river in his native Lake District following it from its source to the sea. He was also concerned about the reprint of another of his volumes, Miscellaneous Poems, and gave precise instructions as to how he wished it to be printed. After initially favouring three volumes, he wrote ‘I prefer a smaller size in 4 vols. and likewise a Paper more of a cream colour than has recently been used.’  The exchange of manuscripts, proofs and corrections between writer and publisher would take a lot longer than it would today, especially in the case of Wordsworth who is famous for his constant desire to revise his work, and that he lived far from the publishing centre of London. This letter came late in the preparation process as the Longman divide ledger shows that The River Duddon was published by the end of April.

Divide ledger entry for 'Wordsworth's River Duddon' MS 1393 1/A3

Divide ledger entry for ‘Wordsworth’s River Duddon’ MS 1393 1/A3

What’s wonderful about the context of this letter is that the publication history can be traced beyond the letter itself using the same archive. Much of Wordsworth’s poetry is celebrated for its quality, but did it sell?

The River Duddon was printed in an edition of 500 copies and 14 years after it was first published there were 30 copies left unsold. These figures are roughly in line with Wordsworth’s previous volumes demonstrating a consistent but fairly low circulation among the reading public of the time. This changed as his popularity grew, and it’s interesting that the postscript of this letter (‘Announce in the Ad [for The River Duddon]: the Topographical description of the lakes’) refers to a work that would go on to outsell anything Wordsworth had written before. In 1810 he supplied a description of the Lake District to accompany a set of etchings by the Revd Joseph Wilkinson, however his name was not attributed to it. The River Duddon volume, therefore, was the first proper outing of the work fully credited to Wordsworth, but here it was still an addition to something else.  When it was published separately for the first time in 1822 in an edition of 500 copies, it quickly sold out within the year and a second edition was published in 1823 amounting to 1000 copies which went on to sell out as well. This makes sense because the guidebook market in the early nineteenth century was saturated by guides to the Lake District which was fast becoming one of the places to travel to. Although Wordsworth seemingly added to a large market of literature on the subject, his Guide to the Lakes (as it became known) stands out above the rest in its unique approach to landscape. The majority of picturesque guidebooks at the time directed tourists to designated ‘stations’ where they could find a suitable viewpoint. Wordsworth’s Guide, written with an insider’s perceptive, considers the landscape as a whole and how people can be emotionally affected by nature.

Having researched and written about Wordsworth’s Guide whilst I was at university, it’s fascinating to see an early mention of it in such a peripheral manner. In fact, it’s rather nice to know that his handwriting, so familiar to me after my time in Grasmere, is just down the corridor.

You can find out more about the Longman Group Collection here, and how to access our archives here.

 

College Song No. 1, “The Song of the Shield”

Written by Guy Baxter, Archivist

The Song of the Shield

The Song of the Shield

Since the University celebrated the 90th anniversary of the granting of its Royal Charter last Thursday, many people have been asking for the words of College Song No. 1, “The Song of the Shield”, which was performed with gusto by the University Chamber Choir that evening under the direction of Samuel Evans. It was discovered in the University Archive just a few months ago.

The music was written by J.C.B. Tirbutt (1857-1908), who lectured at Reading and who was the organist at All Saints church. The words are by the then

Sheet music for 'The Song of the Shield'

Sheet music for ‘The Song of the Shield’

Principal (and later Vice-Chancellor) W.M. Childs (1869-1939). More about the

inspiration for the song, the Coat of Arms, may be found here, and it is fitting that the original Grant of Arms from 1896 was on display last Thursday as well.  As for the style: well, it’s unlikely to be covered by will.i.am any time soon, but it’s very jolly and evokes a strong sense of the College in its early days when everyone would have known each other. Rumours of compulsory singing of the song before every lecture next term are thought to be unfounded.

Lyrics for 'The Song of the Shield'

Lyrics for ‘The Song of the Shield’

Congratulations to all involved in bringing this hidden piece of our past to light. The other music performed at the meeting of the University Court on 17 March included Prelude and fugue in C minor BWV 549 by J.S. Bach, which was also performed at the inaugural organ recital in the Great hall in 1911; I Vow to Thee, My Country by Gustav Holst (words by Cecil Spring-Rice) – Holst taught at the College from 1920-1923; and My Spirit Sang All Day, No.3 from Seven Part Songs op.17 by Gerald Finzi, whose literary collection is held here

Special Collections will continue to support the 90th Anniversary events with a series of displays during the Summer and Autumn.

Johannes Kepler – Astronomiae Pars Optica

Written by Louise Cowan, Trainee Liaison Librarian

The theme of this year’s Science Week taking place from 11-20 March is ‘Science in Spaces’ so to celebrate here is our first edition of ‘Ad Vitellionem Paralipomena, Quibus Astronomiae Pars Optica Traditur’ (Supplement to Witelo, in Which Is Expounded the Optical Part of Astronomy) by German astronomer Johannes Kepler.

Astronomiae Pars Optica

Astronomiae Pars Optica

Born in 1571, Kepler was a leading figure during the scientific revolution of the 17th Century.  While usually best known for his discovery of three major laws of planetary motion, which “turned Nicolaustables Copernicus’s Sun-centred system into a dynamic universe, with the Sun actively pushing the planets around in noncircular orbits,” (Britannica Academic, 2016) his work on optics was equally ground-breaking and earned him the title ‘father of modern optical study,’ (Skydel and Whelan).

diagram

Written in 1604, ‘Astronomiae Pars Optica’ explores the properties of light, applying the ideas of reflection and refraction to explain astronomical phenomena, such as the size of astronomical bodies and the nature of eclipses.  It also investigates the workings of light with regard to pinhole cameras and the human eye.  In his explanation of vision, Kepler was the first to recognise the importance of the retina and the inversion of images within the eye, and the first to explain how eyeglasses, in use for over three centuries, actually worked, (Britannica Academic, 2016).  Kepler’s understanding diagram2of light and vision later allowed him to invent the Keplerian telescope in 1611; by replacing the concave eyepiece used by Galileo with a convex lens, Kepler was able to make considerable improvement to the design; although this inverted the image produced, it enabled a much wider field of view, (Di Liscia, 2015).

Our edition of ‘Astomomiae Pars Optica’ includes notes on the front endpapers handwritten by Francesco Tognetti, an Italian man of letters c.1810-1820.  His notes discuss Kepler’s life and work and are signed ‘from Tognetti’ suggesting that the book was given by him as a gift.

fromtognettii

I used to measure the heavens,
now I shall measure the shadows of the earth.
Although my soul was from heaven,
the shadow of my body lies here.

Kepler’s self-composed epitaph

 

Sources:

Archive Animals – Horses

Written by Louise Cowan, Trainee Liaison Librarian

Unsurprisingly, the Special Collections and Museum of English Rural Life Libraries have a number of items relating horses; from journals to artwork, rare books and DVDs. Here are just a few of my favourites:

Horses in Fiction:

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell

Black Beauty – Anna Sewell, illustrated by Cecil Aldin (1912) [Children’s Collection 823.8 SEW]

The Special Collections library holds a number of editions of Anna Sewell’s horse autobiography, ‘Black Beauty’. Originally published in 1877, it tells the story of the titular horse, from his early days growing up on a farm with his mother, to the hardships he suffered pulling cabs in London. The story advocates fairer and kinder treatment of horses and has been described as “the most influential anticruelty novel of all time.” (Unti, 1998)

This edition was published in 1912 and contains a number of beautiful illustrations by British artist and illustrator Cecil Aldin.

Unti, Bernard (1998). “Sewll, Anna”. In Bekoff, Marc. Encyclopedia of Animal Rights and Animal Welfare. Greenwood Press. p. 313.

 

Horse History and Care:

Modern Practical Farriery, A Complete System of the Veterinary Art – W.J. Miles c.1870 [MERL Reserve FOLIO 4340 MIL]

This wonderful book provides a holistic guide to horses; including their history, anatomy and medical care.

Group of Ponies - Modern Practical Farriery

Group of Ponies – Modern Practical Farriery

In an attempt to uncover their place of origin, Miles explores the history of the horse from Biblical times to the reign of Alfred the Great. He notes that psalmist David, “speaks with proud distain of horses as used in war,” and that in the era of Solomon a horse would set you back 150 shekels or £17 10s (roughly £800 in today’s money) an immense sum for the time. Having traced the horses ancestry to Africa and Eastern and Northern Asia, Miles goes on to discuss the natural history of the animal, looking at horses from all around the world, including wild horses, those of Persia, India and Arabia.

The books gives detailed advice on how to train, ride, race, buy and look after the health and wellbeing of a horse. Unsurprisingly, considering the title of the book, a large section is devoted to ‘shoeing’. It notes the interesting idea that Roman Emperor Nero had his horses shod with silver while his wife Poppea shod her mules with gold! There are also a number of careful diagrams, showing the tools of the farriery trade and the different types of shoe: such as the ‘Pointed Shoe’ supposed to bring comfort to all horses and horsemen (though Miles doesn’t seem convinced) and the ‘Bar Shoe’ useful for horses with poorly feet.

Horse feet and shoes - Modern Practical Farriery

Horse feet and shoes – Modern Practical Farriery

 

Horses in Science:

The Anatomy of an Horse by Andrew Snape, 1683 [Cole 092F/15]

Horse Anatomy - 'The Anatomy of an Horse'

Horse Anatomy – ‘The Anatomy of an Horse’

This comprehensive and beautifully illustrated book was written by Andrew Snape (1644-1708) who was one of the farriers to King Charles II. One of the most comprehensive books of its type, (U.S. National Library of Health) it contains five chapters describing the anatomy of different parts of the horse including; the lowest belly or paunch, the middle venter or chest, the uppermost venter or head, the muscles of the body and the bones.

 

Snape begins by defining anatomy as ‘an opening or cutting up of the body of any animal or living creature whatsoever, whether frequenting the land or water, whereby the knowledge of the frame of its body, and the use of its parts may be attained unto.’ He then goes on to describe each of the parts from the outside in. His description of the brain is particularly interesting; he describes it as being split into two parts; the brain (at the front and consisting of the cortex) and the after-brain (at the back and divided into four parts one of which is called ‘Worm-like processes’ as it looks like the worms found in rotten timber).

Anatomy of the horse's brain - 'The Anatomy of an Horse'

Anatomy of the horse’s brain – ‘The Anatomy of an Horse’

The action of the brain is to elaborate the Animal Spirits, which from it are transmitted to the Medulla oblongata, and from thence into the Nerves, for the sensation and motion of the whole body.

The brain he declares to be “one of the most noble parts of the whole body ranked for its dignity even with the Heart itself.” And points out how “absurd and ridiculous a thing it [is]then for any man that hath any brain himself, to imagine a Horse to have none? Yet such men I have my self met withal.”

Although the illustrations included in ‘The Anatomy of an Horse’ are spectacular, they are not entirely original as they appeared first in Carlo Ruini’s Anatomia (1598) (Peter Harrington) and a number can also be found in our copy of ‘la parfait cavalier ov la vraye connoissance dv cheval ses maladies et remedes’ by J. Jourdin, C. Ruini and L. Chamhoudry which was published 28 years earlier in France in 1655 [Cole 092F/20]

 

Horses on DVD!

The Shire Horse – Fifth Avenue [MERL Library]

The Shire Horse DVD

The Shire Horse DVD

 

 

A comprehensive look at the history of the Shire horse in Britain, from the animal’s introduction by William the Conqueror in 1066, to their role in the First World War and near extinction with the rise of the combustion engine in 1960s.   A thoughtful and informative documentary with particular insights from Mr Roy Bird MBE and The Shire Horse Society.

Valentine’s Day Cards – The John Lewis Printing Collection

Written by Louise Cowan, Trainee Liaison Librarian

Victorian Valentine's - a folded lace card

Victorian Valentine’s – a folded lace card

February 14th celebrates Valentine’s Day, the Christian feast day of the martyred St Valentine of Rome. While we know that the celebration originated around 498 A.D when it was instated by Pope Gelasius, little is actually known of St Valentine and his life. The most popular version recounts the story of Valentinus, a priest who was imprisoned and sentenced to death by Emperor Claudius. While in jail “he befriended his jailer’s daughter and on 14 February 270, wrote her letter signed ‘From your Valentine’,” (Lewis, 1976). The day’s ties to love and romance however, go back much further, to the pagan fertility festival, Lupercalia, which was celebrated across 13-15th February.

Despite its long history, the first written Valentine greeting is often attributed to Charles, Duke of Orleans who wrote romantic notes to his wife while imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1415, (Novareinna). The seventeenth century saw Valentine’s Day become ‘the most festive day of the year,’ (Lewis, 1976), and it was popular enough to be mentioned by Shakespeare in Ophelia’s lament in Hamlet – (Act 4, Scene 5) (Telegraph, 2010).

To-morrow is Saint Valentine’s day, /All in the morning betime,/And I a maid at your window,/To be your Valentine.

However, Valentine’s Day cards did not come into fashion until the end of the eighteenth century and though early cards were often hand-made, the trend developed quickly so that by the beginning of the 19th century, cards had become ‘highly complicated pieces of print and assembly with lace-like embossing.’ (Lewis, 1976)

Victorian Valentine's Day Cards

The embossing and lace-effect seen in the cards above from our John Lewis Printing Collection was achieved ‘by placing the paper on an engraved die and pressing it,’ (Lewis, 1976). There were however, numerous styles of Victorian Valentine’s cards in production, including: acrostic verses spelling out the loved one’s first name; puzzle purses, a folded puzzle containing verses to be read in a certain order; love knots and rebus riddles, Valentine’s which substituted words for pictures, (Novareinna). This rebus from our John Lewis printing collection is quite simple but effective:

Rebus style Valentine's Card

A number of the cards in our John Lewis printing collection are also quite humorous (and a little bit cheeky!) particularly the card on the right (below) which offers ‘Something to tickle my fancy – a little corrective to be applied when the patient is troublesome’!

Victorian Valentine's Days Cards

As well as cards, the collection also features a small number of love notes, including this letter with a charming little poem:

John Lewis Printing Collection - Valentine's Letter

‘’In vain I’ve racked my brains,
In vain I’ve taken endless pains,
For not a single thought will come,
Except, “I love you”, little one!
I love your shy and gentle air,
I love your curls of golden hair,
I love your little winning wiles,
Your merry laugh, your beaming smiles,
Your bonny brow, your eyes so blue,
Your parted lips of rosy hue
I love your cheeks, your chin, your nose
I almost think I love your toes!
I love you all dear Georgie mine,
I am your faithful Valentine.”

 

As with postcards the introduction of the penny stamp boosted Valentine’s card sales in 1840 and the tradition of sending anonymous greetings came into fashion. However, the rise in popularity of Christmas cards in the nineteenth century eventually saw to a decline in Valentine’s (Lewis, 1976). Today, Valentine’s Day remains the second most card-heavy celebration with an estimated 1 billion cards being sent worldwide in 2010. (Telegraph, 2010)

 

Sources:

Lewis, J (1976) Collecting Printed Ephemera. London: Cassell and Collier Macmillan

Telegraph (2010)

Novareinna

Hallmark

Victorian Rituals

Mary Shelley and Gideon Mantell

Written by David Thomas, UMASCS Graduate Trainee Library Assistant

smTitle page of Animalcules

Gideon Mantell’s Thoughts on Animalcules

We recently made quite a discovery in Special Collections – a book that had once belonged to Mary Shelley. Shelley’s gothic masterpiece Frankenstein: or, The Modern Prometheus is arguably more popular than ever and is still inspiring films such as the latest Victor Frankenstein which was released last year starring James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliffe.

However, the book in question is based on much firmer scientific principles. It is the geologist Gideon Mantell’s Thoughts on Animalcules: or, A glimpse of the invisible world revealed by the microscope (1846), Reserve–593-MAN. Special Collections actually has two copies of this book, one in Reserve and one in the Cole Library and the discovery was made during a duplicate check. Mantell was a Sussex doctor but became famous as a pioneering palaeontologist and one of the first people in the world to study dinosaur fossils. At first Mantell and Shelley may seem an unlikely couple but through shared interests, ill-health and ultimately location they became well acquainted.

The link that first brought them into contact was Mantell’s interest in poetry including that of Percy

Percey Shelley portrait

Percey Shelley

Shelley, Mary’s husband who had died tragically in 1822. Mantell was good friends with Horace Smith who was among the group that bought Mantell an Iguanadon fossil in Maidstone in 1834 which is still on display at the Natural History Museum. Smith had been a friend of Percy, and had given Mantell one of Percy’s letters for his autograph collection. Mary’s first correspondence with Mantell began in 1839 as she was compiling an edition of Percy’s letters and asked Mantell if she could see the one in his collection. Strangely Mantell lied and said that the letter had gone with his son, who had emigrated to New Zealand. Despite this he did give Mary copies of some of his recent works with Mary replying that “The books are delightful”.

 

No further correspondence took place but eventually the two were brought together once again, this time geographically. Mantell had moved to London at No. 19 Chester Square, Pimlico in 1844, coincidentally Mary bought 24 Chester Square in 1846. It was in this year that their friendship developed which culminated in the gift of Thoughts on Animalcules. Their first documented meeting was in March 1846, Mantell “being sent for to Mrs Shelley” who was “very ill from neuralgia of the heart”. In January, Mantell had been suffering from “severe pain from neuralgia of the right leg”, and on top of this, a spinal injury following a carriage accident in 1841 was made worse by a fall in July. There are further diary entries relating to meetings with Mary in June, October and December.

smInscription to Mary

Mantell’s inscription to Mary Shelley

The book was sent on 4th January 1847 as a New Year present, Mantell’s inscription to Mary is as follows “To Mrs. Shelley with the highest regards of the author, January 1. 1847.” The most likely reason for Mantell’s gift was that the book has a section from Percy’s Queen Mab opposite the preface. This was one of Shelley’s most controversial poems and when it was published by Edward Moxon in his Poetical Works (1839) edited by Mary (a copy of which is in our Matthews/Shelley Collection) the references to atheism were removed.

smExtract from Queen Mab opp. Preface

Percy’s Queen Mab

Sadly it seems that Mantell saw Mary much less after she had received the book. Notably, when Mantell records news of Mary’s death in 1851 she is “Mrs Shelley the relic of Percy Bysshe Shelley the poet”. Instead of writing “relict”, an archaic word meaning widow, Mantell’s use of “relic” and his constant references to her husband have led scholars such as Dennis Dean to conclude that “Mary meant more to him as memorabilia than as a person.” Their only other meeting recorded in his diary after 1846 was in July 1848 when, “Mrs Shelley (widow of Percy Bysshe Shelley) called & gossiped with me” as they had on Halloween in 1846. It is true that Mantell’s diary entries show him becoming increasingly tired, frustrated, and in pain throughout 1846, yet his visits to Mary must have been something of a light relief.

 

References:

Dennis R. Dean, ‘Mary Shelley and Gideon Mantell’, Keats-Shelley Journal, Vol. 30 (1981), pp. 21-29 accessed at http://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/30212893.pdf?acceptTC=true

The journal of Gideon Mantell, surgeon and geologist: covering the years 1818-1852, edited with an introduction and notes by E. Cecil Curwen (1940)

The Unpublished Journal of Gideon Mantell: 1819 – 1852, edited with an introduction by John A. Cooper (2010) accessed at http://brightonmuseums.co.uk/discover/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2014/11/mantell_journal.pdf