The Collation

Research and Exploration at the Folger

The itemized life: John Kay’s notebook

April 19, 2018 | By Guest Author

Folger X.d.446, the notebook of John Kay, combines accounts and verses. Short-term fellow Laura Kolb argues that Kay’s book is noteworthy not because it combines these things, but because it does so with both care and a kind of inventiveness, even playfulness. Learn more in this post.

Sonnets by Shakespeare…’s spirit?

April 17, 2018 | By Sarah Hovde

As the common saying goes, only death and taxes are certain. However, consider the uncertainties that can accompany any tax season: missing W-2s, e-file services incompatible with your browser, shifting standards, mathematical errors…… Continue Reading

Discovering Early Modern Digital Resources

April 10, 2018 | By Meaghan J. Brown

This post was written with the invaluable contribution of Sophie Byvik. Ever been puzzled by a date in one of our manuscripts? Want to know how much a manipulus is in your early modern recipe? How much did that early modern bar tab scrawled in the back of a book set the reader back? Where is Pissing Alley in London? (Not a trick question, I swear.) This link roundup offers a sampling of easy-to-use, open-access digital tools that help folks understand the early modern period: everything linked to here is free.… Continue Reading

Drawing for photographic reproduction

April 3, 2018 | By Erin Blake

This month’s crocodile mystery asked what’s going on with the odd-looking painting technique in an original work of art, shown in a detail. Here’s a view of the whole thing:… Continue Reading

Imagining an 18th century Jane Doe

March 21, 2018 | By Heather Wolfe

A fake woman with fake initials and a fake seal? What is going on with these early 18th century affidavits? Curator of Manuscripts Heather Wolfe explores burials, bureaucracy, and "ritualized compliance" in this post about two recent acquisitions.
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