When French colonial forces pulled out of Guinea following its declaration of independence in 1958, they notoriously even took the lightbulbs.
British Library
Posted inIn Brief
Erased Nude Discovered in a Leonardo da Vinci Notebook
It seems like there’s always something new to discover in the thousands of pages of notes and drawings left behind by Leonardo da Vinci, whether it’s a sketch for an early refrigerator or an illustration of a viola organista fusing a piano with a stringed instrument.
Posted inBooks
The Humble Art of Decorated Paper
In April of 1789, a few months before the storming of the Bastille, the paper factory of Jean-Baptiste Réveillon in Paris was taken over by labor protestors, who commandeered the machines to print paper in red, white, and blue.
Posted inBooks
Unraveling the Gendered History of Hypnotism
Hypnosis straddles the line between science and entertainment, encompassing both the therapeutic practice of hypnotherapy and performative stage acts.
Posted inArt
Rescuing an Obscure Photographic Archive of Early 20th-Century Argentina
When German-born photographer Annemarie Heinrich opened her first studio in 1930, her adopted country of Argentina was experiencing a time of change from old cultural practices to industrialization.
Posted inNews
British Library Rejects Taliban Archive Donation
It isn’t every day that one of the world’s biggest cultural institutions refuses to host a massive digital archive of great historical significance.
Posted inBooks
Praise the Lord! The World’s Oldest Bible Goes on Display at the British Museum
For only its second time on loan, the earliest known Bible is going on view this October at the British Museum.
Posted inNews
Help the British Library Decipher an 800-Year-Old Sword Inscription
Could a mystery that’s stumped historians for nearly two centuries be solved by internet commenters?
Posted inArt
A Bestiary for the Magnificently Wrong Monsters of Medieval Times
Beyond the borders of maps, where the limits of exploration fell to imagination, medieval artists and authors created monsters.
Posted inArt
Four Million Images from the World’s Endangered Archives
Despite the vast and growing resources available online, much of the world’s knowledge and history remains ephemeral and under threat of disappearance.
Posted inIn Brief
A Family Reunion for Magna Carta Survivors on Their 800th Birthday
To celebrate the Magna Carta’s big year, put on your party hat and check out the four surviving copies of the original manuscript.
Posted inArt
British Library Says 6.5 Million Sounds Are in Jeopardy
Last week, the British Library launched a £40m ($60m) crowdfunding initiative to preserve its archive of over six million sound recordings.
