The Collation

Research and Exploration at the Folger

Posts By: The Collation

“What manner o’ thing is your crocodile?”: December 2020

November 24, 2020 | By The Collation

Ack! Nearly December already? Wasn’t it just March? (Isn’t it still March?) Guess that means it’s time for another Crocodile Mystery. Take a look at the image below. It’s not pencil on paper. It’s not oil on canvas. What is it? As always, leave your thoughts in the comments and we’ll be back next week with more information.… Continue Reading

“What manner o’ thing is your crocodile?”: October 2020

September 29, 2020 | By The Collation

Welcome to another Crocodile Mystery! This month we ask you to look at the image below and tell us what you think might be going on? What sort of questions does this image generate? As always, leave your thoughts in the comments below, and we’ll be back next week with more information.… Continue Reading

“What manner o’ thing is your crocodile?”: September 2020

August 25, 2020 | By The Collation

Welcome back for another Crocodile post! As you face the new challenges Fall brings to us, take a few moments to breathe out, and take a look at this month’s mystery. What’s going on in this image? Where is it from, and what does it show? Leave your guesses in the comments below and we’ll be back next week with more info!… Continue Reading

“What manner o’ thing is your crocodile?”: August, 2020

July 28, 2020 | By The Collation

Some types of publication have fairly standard proportions. For example, you can be pretty sure this oblong volume isn’t a Bible or a play text: If I had to guess, I’d say it’s probably a Berlemont-style international phrase book or a penmanship manual. As it happens, I don’t have to guess: it’s a penmanship manual, namely, an edition of Martin Billingsley’s The pen’s excellencie (call number: Folger STC 3062.3).… Continue Reading

“What manner o’thing is your crocodile?”: July 2020

June 30, 2020 | By The Collation

Welcome back for another Crocodile Mystery! As you enjoy this first week of July (really? really? Who said the calendar could do that?), spare some thoughts for this mystery image. What’s going on in this image? What are those letters and what might be missing from this image?  As always, if you’re so inclined, leave your guesses here in the comments and we’ll be back next week with more information!… Continue Reading

“What manner o’thing is your crocodile?”: May 2020

April 28, 2020 | By The Collation

Welcome to the May Crocodile Mystery! Take a look at this image: This sheet has been used as endpaper in a book (the image has been rotated to make the text more legible) but can you guess to what it was intended to be part of and used for? Leave your guesses in the comments below, and we’ll be back next week with more information!… Continue Reading

Subscribing to the blog

April 10, 2020 | By The Collation

As some of you have noticed (and kindly reached out to us about!), we’re having a little bit of technical difficulties with the built-in blog subscription module. (You may have noticed that the lovely “subscribe here!” box that usually lives on the right-hand side of the page has vanished…) We’re working on getting that sorted out, but in the interim, we do have a backup solution.… Continue Reading