Three books from Alexander Pope’s library

While checking the special collections provenance file, three books owned by Alexander Pope were identified in our collections, in addition to the presentation copies of his collected letters that he inscribed to William Oliver.  The Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s provenance file provides a wealth of information about notable former owners of the books in […]

Hans Christian Andersen Presentation Copy from the Library of Carl Sandburg (839.83 An2Eb)

While checking the recently-cataloged Hans Christian Andersen book inscribed to Mary Bruun against the special collections provenance file, a second book inscribed by Hans Christian Andersen was identified.  This copy of The Sand-hills of Jutland has just as interesting a provenance as the last book. As soon as you open the book, a University of […]

Hans Christian Andersen’s Presentation Copy to a Young Neighbor (IUA15161)

The Danish author Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875) gained international fame for his fairy tales.  In fact, at the time of this blog posting, Edward Erikson’s famed statue of the Little Mermaid, which is permanently located in Copenhagen Harbor, is on display in Shanghai, China for EXPO 2010.  It is timely that the Rare Book & […]

Alexander Pope Presentation Copies

While cataloging the Nickell Collection of 18th-century English Literature, a presentation copy from Alexander Pope to William Oliver has been discovered.  Alexander Pope (1688-1744) is best known for his poems, which include The Rape of the Lock (1712) and An Essay on Man (1733-4).  But Pope was also a prolific letter writer due to a […]