A New England Correspondence Archive: Descriptive Notes and Approach to Valuation Recently a Massachusetts antiques dealer sought me out to evaluate an archive of approximately 100 autograph letters received by one Edward B. Dearborn (1807-1886), including many related to teaching, mostly in rural New England schools in the late 1820s and early 1830s. What at first appeared to be a boring batch of... [more]

In a few days I'll be heading out to Colorado Springs for my fifth tour of duty on the faculty of the Colorado Antiquarian Book Seminar. Hard as it is for me to believe that five years have passed since my first visit to CABS, as a guest lecturer in 2010, harder still must it be for those who were involved with it from the start — wonderful dealers like Ed Glaser and Mike Ginsberg — to realize... [more]

As mentioned in a post last Friday, there are a number of scholarships available to anyone interested in attending Rare Book School. The 2013 scholarship cycle has just begun and RBS is now accepting applications. The deadline for submission is October 15. Click here for a full list of scholarship opportunities and additional information. [more]

The ABAA is pleased to announce the 2013 recipients of the Edwin Glaser Scholarships to the Colorado Antiquarian Booksellers' Seminar: Rebecca Bott (Botolphston Books), Lawrence Hammar (Blue Jacket Books), and Zachary Stacy (Books-O-Rama). Congratulations! Rebecca Bott offered an extensive background in antiquarian books and manuscripts. She worked as a student assistant at her university's rare b... [more]

Sourcebooks publishing house has recently released a line of ebook/iPad apps called The Shakesperience. Using the iPad's technological capabilities, these books provide a multimedia experience that allow readers to interact with Shakespeare's plays. Each play features an embedded glossary of approximately 2,000 terms; video and audio commentary, interviews, and introductions by thespians; classic ... [more]

Rare Book School has posted five lectures from the 2012 summer sessions online. Listen to Stuart Bennett on "Trade Bookbinding in the British Isles, 1660-1800", Matthew P. Brown's lecture on "Bell's Liberties", Anne-Marie Eze's presentation on "A Most Fascinating and Dangerous Pursuit: Rare Books at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum", Ezra Greenspan's discussion on "The Biographer and the Myster... [more]

The Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America is delighted to announce the winners of the National Collegiate Book Collecting Contest! First Prize: Jordan Haug, University of California San Diego, "Mormon Fundamentalism & Polygamy" Second Prize: Jessica Anne Kahan, University of Michigan, "Romance Novels in DJ, 1925-1935" Third Prize: Andrew Ferguson, University of Virginia, "Bibliography &... [more]

After a friend showed Thom Adorney, a retired Colorado schoolteacher, an antique whaling journal written by an ancestor in the 1850s, Mr. Adorney had a great idea: why not give students at the local Ute Meadows Elementary School the unique opportunity to unlock history for themselves? For over a year now, that's exactly what students have been doing. The entire journal was photographed and student... [more]

The Journal of the Book Club of Washington published a talk that Santa Monica based ABAA member Ken Karmiole gave at the California Rare Book School last year, and it's quite an interesting read. Ken addresses the pertinent theme of 'Collecting the Physical Book in the Digital Age' from a rare book dealer's perspective, outlining how the rise of the Internet has affected the trade and offering som... [more]

I found a great post about Books of Hours on a French blog about medieval manuscripts, and it provided several videos on various Books of Hours. Below I have included a short informational video on the structure of a medieval manuscript, as well as the link to the blog. Enjoy! The Structure of a Medieval Manuscript Videos: Books of Hours [more]