I’m not sure if this etching can reveal anything about Christopher Columbus, who has a more complex profile these days than when the famous rhyme, “In fourteen hundred and ninety two Columbus sailed the ocean blue” became familiar to every kid in the schoolyard. What is interesting to learn about that rhyme is that it is only one couplet in a very long poem, “The History of the U.S.” by Winifred Sackville Stoner, Jr. The poem also features other famous folks who had an impact on America, including John Smith, Paul Revere and William Penn. Winifred was considered a child prodigy and wrote many “jingles” from a young age.
Month: October 2010
In 1836, Richard E. Locke, writing for the New York Sun, claimed that the noted British astronomer Sir William Herschel had discovered life on the moon. Flora and fauna included bat-men, moon maidens (with luna-moth wings), moon bison, and other extravagant life forms. Locke proposed an expedition to the moon using a ship supported by hydrogen balloons.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) website has all sorts of tips and safety advice for families, teachers, about smoke alarms, as well as Sparky the Fire Dog. What, no Smokey the Bear?
Our iPad was a popular new device to demonstrate our digital efforts. Many folks were thrilled they could see entire books at home for free with the Biodiversity Heritage Library and our online exhibits. The latest Kindle e-book reader we brought along was a big hit, too.
The inner workings of the watches are illustrated, from self-winding watches to spring wind-ups, as well as the quaintly named Trenton Movement and the Auburndale Rotary.
Since 1995 the Freer/Sackler Library has been the North American depository library for the JAC Project (Japan Art Catalog Project). Through the project the library receives every year 300-500 exhibition and collection catalogs on Asian-related subjects published in Japan and processes them in order to make them available for art historians and the general public.
This scene, although from a fictional story, shows the respect with which the craftsman Hon’ami Kōetsu (1558-1637) is regarded in Japan, where his skill not only in the family trade of sword polishing but also calligraphy, pottery, and lacquerware are esteemed.