We have highlighted book Christmas trees here before, but a friend recently sent me this photo of a book display found currently at the Grand Rapids (MI) Public Library.
Our second feature on this Friday is another Atlas Obscura item (these folks feature a lot of great book and archive items!). This week (Dec.15, 2017) they did an article on the digitizing of various archive materials in 2017, which included valuable items added to the National Archives, the Library of Congress, the New York Public Library, and the New Bedford Whaling Museum.
Here’s the introduction and the link to the post, as well as the coolest picture they included, in my estimation. I love those medieval illuminated books (and this is a medical manual) – real works of art!
What do a 1,275-foot painting, a 1958 photograph of Carrie Fisher joining a Brownie troop, and an illuminated manuscript by a famed medieval surgeon all have in common? As of this year, all are newly and freely accessible online (provided that continues to mean anything)—via the New Bedford Whaling Museum, Los Angeles Public Library, and New York Academy of Medicine, respectively.
These efforts are just a drop in the digital ocean: In 2017 alone, the National Archives added 17.1 million digital files (texts, images, sound recordings, and films) to its online catalog. When Atlas Obscura asked Miriam Kleinman, their Program Director for Public Affairs, for a highlight from the year, the digitization team was spoiled for choice. “Having to pick one,” they reported, “is like picking your favorite child.”
From these archives and others, Atlas Obscura has a selection of items that made their digital debuts this year.
The Three R's Blog 