Science in Print : Understanding book production from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries

New

Understanding how the book is made is vital to the study of its contents, helping to locate its economic and social context, its audience, and ultimately its historical significance. Using examples from the Whipple Library’s rare book collections and the University Library’s Historical Printing Collection, this workshop series will explore some bibliographical techniques to identify and describe the structure and production of printed material from the handpress (C16-C18) and mechanized (C19) periods, and consider the uses and abuses of online derivatives. Although the focus will be on scientific texts and illustrations, these sessions will be of interest to book historians in all disciplines, and all are welcome.

Session one - 'Survey of the handpress period' Session two - 'Book production in the handpress period and bibliographical analysis' Session three - ' The technology of book production in the handpress period' Session four - The production and analysis of images in handpress period books' Session five - 'Book production in the 19th century'

All members of the University (graduate and undergraduate) are welcome

Number of sessions: 5

Workshop, presentations, demonstrations

Please report to the Whipple Library front desk on arrival for session 1, 2, 4 and 5. Small laptops/tablets are welcome in the Whipple Old Library for note taking (though surface space will be limited), but pencil must be used for all annotations by hand. Pens and ink will not be permitted. For session 3 on 18 November, please gather in the University Library Entrance Hall at 10.55am.

Five 90 minute workshops (attendance at all sessions is not mandatory)

once per year