This blog post was written by Andrew White Could a poem inspired by an obscure folly, no matter how beautiful, hope to be anything but an obscure folly itself? Case in point: the masterful sonnet written by Robert Browning in honor of Helen’s Tower, a 19th century architectural folly built by an Anglo-Irish aristocrat in …
This post has been adapted from the Free Library of Philadelphia’s blog. See original post here. Two months ago, I spent an evening in a dimly lit room scrutinizing the handwriting of a long-dead person with a group of mostly strangers. Scraps of 150-year-old paper were passed around for us to hold in our own …
The Miriam-Webster dictionary defines Manumission as ‘formal emancipation from slavery’ (note that The Rosenbach has two first editions of Noah Webster’s landmark Webster’s Dictionary!). Manumission was one vehicle that enslaved Africans leveraged to gain their freedom. Slave laws made manumission difficult, however, requiring large sums to legally manumit slaves. Here at The Rosenbach we have …
When you walk into a museum’s gallery space, the site that meets your eye is usually quite serene: a calm, quiet space all set up for you, the visitor, to explore, enjoy, and learn from artworks and artifacts. But this final product comes only at the end of many months, if not years, of planning, …
Mexico: Race and Revolution in the Borderlands will be offered with live English-to-Spanish translation for Spanish-speaking visitors. The border between Mexico and the United States has been at the heart of trade, politics, art, and spirituality for centuries. A new Behind the Bookcase: Hands-on Tour at the Rosenbach titled Mexico: Race and Revolution in the …
We often think of the abolition movement beginning in the early 1820s with people like Frederick Douglas, Sojourner Truth and Charlotte Grimke. But since the beginning of slavery in the United States, there were people whose lives were devoted to ceasing and ending it. A few of these early anti-slavery advocates are here at The …
Famous and beloved Irish aria will be performed live on harp during The Rosenbach’s 2019 Bloomsday celebrations on Sunday, June 16. “Where have I been wandering in my sleep? And what curious noise awoke me from its pleasant dream? Ah, Thaddeus, would you not like to know my dream? Well, I will tell it …
This blog post was written by Andrew White January 25 is Burns Night, when we celebrate the works of Scottish poet Robert Burns, the Bard of Ayrshire. It’s also a tradition here on Delancey Place, where our celebration features a night of readings, music, and whisky. The Rosenbach is home to the largest extant collection of …
Eighty years ago this December, Dr. A.S.W. Rosenbach hosted a rare book auction designed to help refugees from Nazi Germany Cover of the catalogue for the charitable auction held at the Hotel Plaza, New York City, December 8, 1938. This copy belonged to John Fleming, who catalogued the items for sale. Note the Rockwell Kent …
Break out your garlic necklaces and wooden stakes! Today marks Irish writer Bram Stoker’s 171st birthday. Author of Dracula—the inspiration for many a nightmare and pop-culture meme over the past two centuries—Stoker compiled and wrote his iconic novel over the course of seven years. His handwritten notes, including character and chapter outlines, chronologies, and more, …