British Studies: Day 14

As I have mentioned several blogs earlier, we have attended the V&A.  While I did not get to attend the David Bowie exhibit, I did today get to see the Beatrix Potter archive at the Blythe House.  It is a storage facility of the Victoria and Albert and as such is quite old- it use to be a post office and savings bank.  By the 1970s it was computerized and taken for storage and increasingly they wanted to increase their reserves.  The V&A originally kicked off around 1837 when schools studied design and the subject became large, thus the British Archive formed with a collection valued around 52 pounds.  In 1851, there was a great exhibition and the public was allowed to attend.  In 1851, a South Kensington branch began and then the suite we were at today.  It really started because of ambitious curators who were acquiring a wider selection of material- sculpture, paintings- and by the 1860s-1870s they became "one capacious handbag."  Textiles, wood, metal, illustrations, and more.  The archive and registry holds records of management roles, staff records and documents, freedom info, data protection legislation, and in the old schools of archive they were taught records with management practice.  So IT, records, database, and collaboration.  Nowadays, they face challenges such as print/electronic records, as was decreed the thing to do and thus more print has ensued, and the cataloging of the archive online.  Record retention is something archives has in their veins and the online catalog allowed the public to see what is available even before it is properly cataloged.  We were show a few books, including a 19th Century registrar with a request from Queen Victoria for a stain glass repair, as well as correspondence of William Morris's tapestries.

Peter Rabbit Illustration.

Alexia , an archivist of arts and design, talked to us about the importance of design to the collection.  They were set up in 1978 and with a lack of records of design and new design courses being offered with people needing research, they began collecting British-based artists & designs, making sure not to step on other cultures designs.  So they have clothing, furniture, textile, and other styles handy.  the collection does not, however, include fine art or architecture.  They aim for 5-15 items a year to collect, with 2 staff members to do so, and mainly do this from donation or gifts.  There are 400 individual archives, which can be seen in print and the online catalog- interestingly enough they are in a consortium.  Alexia showed us an interesting fashion designer of the 1920s named Lucile, the prints were lovely, and another example of fashion from the 1950s where they predicted 1980s trends, which included knitwear.

Francis talked to us about Beatrix Potter, as she is a specialist of children's literature and has her MLIS.  There are 100,000 Potter items.  The 1920s man collection came from a husband and wife team, Enid and Leslie Linder(of whom Andrew Whiltshire talked extensively about his family's connection and the importance of these two to the Beatrix Potter codex, a written piece that Leslie translated and crafted the history of the famous author) and how the collection changed houses a few times before settling.  Since the Linder's play a large part in the collection, there are a few of their books and personal effects here as well.  Parts of the collection are on long term loan, such as the Peter Rabbit Letters(from the states).  The most impressive was a 1901 copy of Peter Rabbit.  Growing up with the stories, it was great to listen to an in-depth history of their finding.  There was also an interesting Alice in Wonderland adaptation/reimagining and over 2000 botanical studies, such as butterflies beneath microscopes.  Andrew Whiltshire was able to shed light on the interest of the Linders on Beatrix Potter, often draw by the wife and the overall works being purchased quickly(they had plenty of money to do it), and thus his theory was that their work on the gathering of the collection and the codex inspired works such as The Tale of Beatrix potter by Margaret Lane, Letter to Children from Beatrix Potter by Judy Taylor, Tales of Beatrix Potter ballet, and Miss Potter starring Ewan McGreggor.


Then this evening I spoke on behalf of the class.  I hope to post my speech soon, but as it is almost 11:20, I will need some sleep before Cardiff tomorrow.

British Studies: Day 13

Today's post will be a brief but studious one.  In the morning, we ventured to Middle Temple Library(which isn't far away from a DaVinci Code scene) and met Ms. Slattery.  This library is known as one of four Inns of Court.  There is Middle, Inner, Lincoln, and Gray, all of which work together to accomplish their needs and collections.  Each have their own special subject- Middle focuses on Law with a specialization for American law.  In 1641 they received a donation of books that started the library from a Robert Ashley, whom the building is named after.  We received a small history of how law libraries of the Inns began, around the 19th century there was a surge in law publishing and by 1861 the library was built, however nearby ones went through bombs but thanks to a Sir Edward(the last name I missed) their concrete was reinforced for protection.  They have a displays of arms, a display of armor, a display of the Molyneux globes, and several royal rooms- including the smoking room or Prince's room, and the Queen's room.  The Queen's room and Princes room are both elegant in their own fashion, the first brighter than the second but the second with comfier chairs.  The library doesn't throw books out unless they are not under their jurisdiction, in which case they are deselected and offered/sold elsewhere.  On the 3rd floor there was a US law collection, here no food or drink is allowed(unlike the first floor) and it holds an association with the Carnegies.  I am getting the idea that this guy liked libraries and had a lot of money.  Either way, his son studied at Middle and eventually took his learning home.  On this floor one would find classrooms, American textbooks, West Law US subscriptions, and financial records.  The classrooms are called advocacy suites and hold pros and cons- pro, more people, and con, people cannot always access their materials since the suites are lined inside and out with the books.  Thus being shut inside for a period of time. 

Dozens upon dozens of law-related books!

There is no classification system here, most of the items are, however, in subject booklets that are readily available.  There is an online catalog for online objects only, though it cannot collect online, and an ILL can be done through any of the four Inns to another.  Slattery began as a rare books librarian at Middle and is now the senior librarian, though she began as a librarian of the Canadian Government.  There were all sorts of fun British law terms, like a bencher, and it held many fascinating   items and locals- such as the Judgement of Soloman painting which was collected due to an argument of law, and Middle Temple Hall which had double banner beam roof, oak structures, a head table with planks floated down the Thames, and all sorts of activities are done there.  Speaking of events, the first performance of Twelfth Night was done there(see masks, plays, balls, and revels) as well as the 3rd Harry Potter release and in the Princes room a scene from Bridget Jones Diary(see Colin Firth) and other shows.

For lunch, we attended the Old Bank of England, where Sweeney Todd was pointed out to be a real man that operated around there.  Somehow, I ate a meat pie, but really tentatively and not much.  My classmates and I played some witty games and had a real get together.  Just before this, it was decided that I was to speak on behalf of our class at the Symposium tomorrow.  So while I met my personal goal(to speak there with an awesome idea) I am going to spend the hours travel crafting an outline for a five minute chat so I don't sound daft.  By afternoon, I went to the Westminster Reference Library where I saw their collection, asked a few details about it, and gathered some information of further places to contact and further my research, such as the University of Minnesota and the Portsmouth Library.

Tonight, I am headed to Camden once more, with LH, K, & AG.  Something about Macbeth and funny dressed men.  Oh nightlife of England, how strange you are!

British Studies: Day 12

Being in London forces one to learn their directions quickly.  Also, undergrounds at 8:30-9am are nuts.  This morning JD and I, my Scotland travel mate for the mini holiday, needed to purchase our unlimited passes.  In doing so, we left at 8:30 promptly, purchased them at Waterloo, bought coffee/bagel, and were waiting at our respective crosswalk(the one facing the station) and began waiting by 8:50 for our group.  Now, as I said before, there was tons of foot traffic and we were watching down the sidewalk, where we have always crossed at, for fifteen specific women.  By 9:15, these women did not come.  Beginning to grow frantic(it has been days since we went towards the British library so we didn't exactly remember how to get there) we doubled back to the courtyard to make sure no one was waiting for us.  They were, in fact, gone.  Luckily, JD has a data plan and can Google Maps like no tomorrow.  We figured that we had to connect from Waterloo(walking there once more) and to Euston, then a brief walk.  We did that, no problem and a few minutes before ten.  When we got to the area for the British Conservation Library(the behind the scenes of the British Library) no one was there either.  At this point I checked my phone, it has had shoddy reception/receiving abilities the whole trip(until seemingly this week) and I had a missed call from a classmate, telling me we had missed them in Waterloo.  This evening, we discovered, they had crossed to Waterloo several crosswalks up, thereby blending into the foot traffic we had been ignoring on the far side.  Like I said, quick moving.

Either way, we had made it and while people had no idea where were were suppose to meet our group, this was solved when we met them in the front entrance of the British Conversation Library.  Here our tour guide was Robert Brodie, the leader of the team.  He began by pointing out the architecture of the facility, north facing with much natural light, and no pipes.  They have a display here with many type face tools of which are impressive to have since they originally were headed for America on the Titanic.  Their photo center has a special water system that allows pure water- calcium and CO2 or something- and can hold many items at a time.  To work on a piece, one must enter a bidding and estimating process, this allows 66% of the collection, and items won in bidding might contain a 350 hour project.  There are teams used for this time, as they figure how long(estimate) and is sent to the head of the department where they give options that dictate the outcome of their proposals.  There are minimum interventions, high profile phases, frequent requests, and digitization that affect these proposals.  Typically they work in pairs.  Robert over sees some people himself.  Having taken a history of books and printing course, this was all fascinating to see up close.  They have special boxes for different items, office records and geneological items make up the bulk of the collection, and then we saw examples.  One such example was an office record with a decorative and practical look.  It had a spring back, marble pages, and if you rip out a page it leaves an opening.  Quite noticeable.  Another example was of a leather bound book that was rebound but used the original leather pieces.  Life the leather, reline the book, add new leather, put in the old, and set it.  Here they left the original innards, some manuscript notes that were in both front and back covers, and the work was from 1649.  If a work needed sewing, there are many different types of Japanese paper, including shusi and kuzu-shi.  

A nice entrance.

Our second guide was Chris of the PACCAR finishing department.  It takes years to learn this skill, of which much patience is involved and much knowledge of heating elements, leather/cloth reaction, and type face mishaps.  Their job is no freehand, but rather comes with specific instructions for typefact and gold from the others.  They use a stone to heat the type and a souffle looking item to cool it, so that the type doesn't punch through the leather.  Gold foil melts easiest but the spine must be washed first and then clamped down.  Gold leaf is used for leather and gold foil for cloth, which is interesting.  It has to be cut to size, the gold is cut on a cushion, and then pasted with an eggwhite glue to the area of the book.  The tools used vary by style and as Chris has worked at more decorative places before, he is quite good here.  Francis, a conservator, was very nice as well.  I asked if the Illuminated Manuscripts with gold gilded pages come here and indeed they do.  I am not sure what the process involves, but I imagine it is more time taking then other areas, however they told me that the works pretty much keep them selves up.  

That's gold foil.  On K's finger.

And don't worry, I am doing research in here.  I tried to see a document from the British Library(featured in their display Crime Fiction A-Z) today, but the readers card process was a little more technical then I anticipated.  Turns out, my drivers license does not have my current house address and I need to return later this week if I am to learn nothing about the display.  On the upside, I have an appointment scheduled with the Westminster Reference Library for tomorrow to discuss their huge Sherlock Holme s collection.  I am very happy about this.

In the evening, I hopped on a tube to Euston, a train to Watford Junction, and a "knight" bus to the Warned Brothers Harry Potter J&K stages.  Let me tell you, I haven't been able to afford going to Harry Potter World, but I know this was ten times better.  I can't wait to upload photos, as there are at least a thousand, but it was fantastic.  I went with a great bunch- thank you, you know who you are- and had the experience of a lifetime.  I was able to sit in/on Hagrid's motorcycle, walk acrros the bridge of Lupin(my favourite character) and Harry in that touching scene,, pose with chess pices that were larger than me, see the special effects of the cratures(oh yes, Aragog too), and drink Butterbeert with a souvenir cup to boot!  I think I will be reliving moments of this for a long time.  If you can g, do so.  Spend the money, it is highly worth it.  Make sure to have some time, bring some friends and just take it all in.  I did and it is the best night of the trip, I think this is safe to say.  And, as you have read by now, I have done quite a bit.  

LH & I, stealing a ride in Hagrid's motorcycle!

British Studies: Scotland Day 2

Scotland: Day 2

Edinburgh Central Library is located not far from the Frankenstein or the Elephant Cafe, of which I went to both yesterday.  It is a rather large 'public' library, complete with a local flavour(artist works) and a sense of humour(see photo The Mad Dalek Tea Party).  Our first speaker was Sarah Fortieth, Fiona Myles, and Robin Brown.  In a shared discussion, they told us that their library uses multi/dual management systems.  This offers both different flavor as well as consistency.  The best I can relate this is to the branches of a public library, say Cranston where I am interning this fall, of which has several Rhode Island locations.  In 2012, they were awarded a UK award of The Bookseller Industry Awards Winner for Best library Service.  After telling us of all the programs and services, this is not surprising.  Some of their pillars for progress include change, community, and creativity.  They base their goals on "operational"(next generation strategy, performance workshops, extended Saturdays, standards for review, revenur/capital, etc.) "social"(improving range for reach of readers, "Get up and Go" 4th ed., increased number of staff trained to deliver Bookbug, increase in Chatterbooks reading groups, niche reading- read, learn, sing, get involved!) and the "physical"(craig millar, new library of Drumbrae: 2 multi-zoned library facilities with co-located neighborhood hubs, innovative and alternative funding solutions, etc.)  

A Very Mad Dalek Tea Patry.

There was a brief section on Edinburgh's Digital Public Library, of which I missed Allison's opening because there was a que for the restrooms and, seeing as it was a disabled toilet, we let several people in before us.  From what I did catch, they have a fantastic site called Our Town Stories, which is storytelling meets history in an interactive manner.  From what we saw, it is a site I want to explore in my off time on my iPad- the source of all my assignments.  They also had Your Edinburgh, E-Magazine work(71 titles), and Your Library.  In this new generation of learners, their aim is to 1)engage, 2) keep up with the technology 3) online displays/upkeep, and 4) discover how they want to learn.  The library is a community hub that seeks to be flexible, open and connected, meet people.  The main concern is to keep the public in the know.  They then told us about a Dyslexic project revolving around Maggie Moon which is a venue that extends, uses ambassadors at events, and gets them involved.  You can see their projects on YouTube and their social media projects are so advanced, but this is possible when these areas have someone working on them.

In the afternoon, we went to the New College of the University of Edinburgh.  Sheila Dunn and Eleanor were our speakers.  Before New College, an academic library that meets the needs of the Divinity school, it was a church.  You can see the windows inside, stained glass with scenes of various religious tales.  In 1936, the library began; the pews were recycled as shelves, in 2005 outlets and wifi were added, and there are three stacks of storage.  They have a budget of about 52000 pounds a year, most going towards online purchases such as electronic journals, and a seasonable donation from the Church of Scotland as well.  The way Sheila puts it, they are well provided for.  For 50 pounds a year, you can be a member and have access to their items as well as one level of books.  Their oldest item seems to be a 15th Century Medieval Manuscript, but their most prized is a first edition King James Bible.  They keep ledgers, an online catalog, make most purchases from staff recommendations, hold an annual book sale(this helps weeding and is allowed by the larger library), and they hold exhibitions as well as allow visitors in.  They aren't necessarily on a consortium, though they are part of The Union of Theological and Philosophical Scheme.  Also, oddly enough, they use the Library of Congress classification system.

In the evening, I played pool and darts with some library classmates and a few locals.  Of darts, we taught them a new way to play and they found it, maybe not better but certainly, more fun than their normal game.  It was a good last night out  in Dalkeith, as I will be spending the last few nights in Edinburgh and beginning my mini break.  Dalkeith, of which I have wandered the ground to see the old structures and the animals, is a fantastic place to stay.  

British Studies: Scotland Day 1

Scotland: Day one

We began today's tour at the Scotland Museum, here they had an exhibit on pride & prejudice, Livingstone's travel in South Africa, and a small room that had outfits, interactive panels, and Conan Doyle displays.  while I have to examine my notes more on the Doyle displays, I think it may give me a boost for my research paper.

Eventually we approached the national archives of Scotland.  after a bit of a bus ride and a wander down the old streets, we entered Scotland's largest family history centre.  The building was designed by a Robert Adam, an architect of his time.  According to our tour guide, the library is at a point of transition but keeps their focus on public accessibility.  they have three facilities total, and have a person designated both "keeper of the records" & "registration general."  [insert taftan guide info]

The archive is home to registration, statistics, and NRS services online.  they have census, births/deaths, marriages, Scottish wills, tartan registrar, and more.  there are even course taught there.  their oldest piece comes from the 12th century, a brieve from King David I(1120s).  It was from a charter to build Edinburgh Castle and is apparently quite small.  Their library is home to researchers, genealogical seekers, and hold virtual volumes as well as an online catalog to aide them.  there are strict rules, no food or drink allowed, noise, mobile phones, etc.  

We were given both a tour of physical items they host as well as the staff areas.  the staff consisted of catalogers, digitization managers, and more.  the digitization process was the coolest part- the machinery consists of high-tech cameras, a cradle for the item, and compressor for the glass cover, a computer screen, and more.  they have records for nearly everything- Glasgow games, golf records, colorado letters, pennsylvania newspapers, crime and church records, and more.  our second tour guide, jenny cotus, has been at the library in various positions for 13 years.  Leslie was our other tour guide when it can to digitization.  she informed us that the photos must be recorded, converted to JPEGs, put in volumes, have negatives released, and that the process starts either via request or something else.  Overall, the behind the scenes was my favourite part o the visit.

In the evening, AG & LH and myself went in some stores, including the Edinburgh Hard Rock Cafe, but kept our purchases light.  Wandering the cobblestones, I discovered very quickly that it was an easy place to navigate, visually speaking.  I am loving the accents and have plenty of idea for tomorrow, since Wednesday is not an early morning.  By afternoon, we went to a quaint Italian restaurant, which was thrifty and we had a great waitress.  This evening we went on an Underground Ghost Tour.  for 8 pounds, we wandered beneath the south bridge, listening to stories of olden Scottish times and the people who lived down there, in one form or another.  we were told scary stories of past tours.  one in particular will stand out for awhile- in our second vault, somehow our group was at the back.  I discovered this when I felt like there was someone behind us, turned to look, and discovered that there wasn't.  turning, I listened to my tour guide and again, felt like there was a person staring.  once more, no one was there.  eventually she told us about "the watcher", a man who is always just out of sight, well-mannered, but attentive- hence his name.  my friends didn't feel anyone watching, but the sensation did not occur in any other room.  it was a relief to exit into twilight, to shake it off before we went home.  and somehow we want to do the graveyard one tomorrow.  am I asking for trouble?  probably, but the stories will be worth it!

Our tourguide, she was a toughie!

British Studies: Day 12 & 13 part 1

This morning I walked as the queen might when she enters Parliament.  The tour was just over an hour and gave us the inside scoop on the processions of the Houses of Parliament.  The insides are gorgeous and tell the complete history of the old royal families.  There is even half a hallway dedicated to Henry VIII, his six wives, and four children.  We sat in the "no" wing, learning about the local houses that have bells that toll when the eight minute vote begins.  Our tour guide, Victoria, was very invested and it was pleasant.

In the early afternoon, My group of five visited another Trafalgar Square event- Get Reading.  Hre, there was a stage and different local celebrities would visit the stage and read to the crowd of kids, family members, and wanderers by.  In the list was Hugh Grant and Russel Tovey, who we did not get to see.  It had a pretty large turnout, despite the heat wave that hit London.  I look forward to Edinburgh and will be disappointed if the humidity follows.

By afternoon, myself, GOP, and AG visited 221b.  We waited an hour in line, but it was worth it to say we had been.  Not to mention we had company- the nice line greeters with Sherlockian ties.  The house was actually four stories tall, with an attic and bathroom at the top.  The wax museum bit was rather creepy and claustrophobic- ever time I turned my back on one wax man ther was another behind it!  I took a few photos anyways, proof I suppose, and used many areas in the house as prop locations.  Baker Street was quiet besides. Although the London Beatles Shop drew quite a crowd.

Tonight I prepare for Edinburgh, likely over packed but hey, I have no idea what to expect weather-wise for the week.  I brought warm clothes as well as cooler ones, and the suitcase should still be liftable.  I brought it for the wheels.  To keep low key, I intend to visit the Thames tonight with LH & A.  Then it is time for bed and a long day's worth of bus riding.  I do hope my iPod is charged, though secretly- or maybe not so much so- I look forward to having time to read Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman, which I bought the day we visited Stratford.  It was the last copy there and the first as had seen all trip.  

British Studies: Day 11

Today was another adventurous day.  Having still been jazzed up from meeting Daniel Radcliffe and sipping cider at The World's End yesterday, we today traveled to the Tottenham Road stop for a tour of the library at the British Museum.  Like many of the tours this month, we saw a behind the scenes element that normal tours cannot.  Our tourguide was Stephanie Clark, an energetic speaker and rather impressive figure.  The archive collection here is massive, taking up the whole space of the museum below and Stephanie keeps track of it all herself.  For 7 years she has worked here with no catalogue when she arrived and having no official one at present.  There are all sorts of archives here- finance, staff, trustee, building, and reading room.  There are 8 collecting departments but only the one archivist.  

The majority of her records of are trustee records with minutes from meetings.  These, she says, provide a sense of the era and are therefore important to keep in their bound volumes- for easy storage and finding.  Stephanie's department receives a total of some 30-40 emails a week that may come from legal services, those interested in family history, or anotehr special interest.  Of the trustee minutes, she tells us that there are dates of importance as well as page numbers, giving the item its own organization.  Some volumes have been tossed (due to the lack of use or concern for space) by previous directors.  The volumes include letters from the meetings, subject points most likely, as well as letter books that accompany them.  Today there are no staff records to be kept due to confidentiality laws.  

Of the building plans, she shows us an example from the 1830-1920 collection.  A trasncription from Aaron Hayes' previous work.  These include sketches of a sheep and a man.  In 1920 there were some records not kept.  There are some 1500 photos in the collection that relate to archives.  These are delivers to their respective departments, which aides the finding of materials requested.  She then showed us a (bomb)shell from 1941 and its related photos of their destruction.  In 1854, the museum highered its first photographer, Roger Fenton, in a time of pre-electricity.  The photos she showed were purchased at auction in 1980.  In 1881 they had a zoology/botany section, later moved to the Natural History Museum, which included an Irish Deer.  We viewed the images from a viewing device which made the 8 see the image in a 3D prespective as well as o see details of the previous version of the museum.  These were very cool.  Rather than focus on preservation of materisl, they have microfilm copies of all written works and building records.  They also have some impressive drafts from Smirke's architecture of the museum's outside.  Their round reading room is often take for special displays, so we did not get ot see it.  What I did get to see downstairs was far more special- a signature and reqiuest form from one Bram Stoker.  THE Bram Stoker.  Rumour has it that his Dracula and the British Museum are connected, though Stephanie was unsure how.

In the end, Stephanie has a job for life.  She took a task that had no organization and made a system that requires inquires through her.  There is no browsing done prior to the completed request, so she must retrieve it amongst some areas that seem to have no classificatin.  The index downstiars is aphabetical, with ticket numbers, and mostly grey boxes.  There does not seem to be a devised plan for digitalization because, due to the content f the collection, many photos are taken with poor quality so that they are not published elsewhere.  The items cannot, therefore, be used for digitalization.  Stephanie has a major in history with a masters in archive and management.  She says the realm can be tough and there have been a lot of changes in the last ten years(post-graduation) but there are still tradiational channels and she had the qualification over experience when highered.  She said to do her job one needs to have cataloguing, records, conservation, and preservation experience.  

In the afternoon, I finally made it to London's Hard Rock Cafe.  I am a bit obsessed at this point.  I hae a background as a classic rock/college dj.  The Hard Rock gives me an opportunity to see some iconicperformance  pieces.  Queen and The Beatles were there, amongst a vault of items, so I was not dissappointed.  Tonight, I must pack and book tickets for travel during mini break.  Tomorrow I am viewing the Houses of Parliament and venturing on Baker Street for research.  Wish me luck at a Benedict Cumbebatch sighting ;)

British Studies: Day 10

We had another sunny morning today.  I am not complaining, in fact I am laughing because Maine has all the rain at the moment.  I bought sunscreen last week and have been okay since.  It makes iced coffee, cider, and fresh fruit all the more enjoyable.

The Royal Geological Society is to be considered one of the highlights of the trip.  While our discussion took place in one room(their main library), the gentleman who talked to us today was so knowledgeable it was unreal.  He brought us on a travel expedition from South America to the Antarctic as he went around the table to the objects and pictures placed there.  Expeditions, until the 19th century, were mainly about traveling.  In the early days of their foundation, the Royal Geo. Society created a journal that contained much of the discoveries made.  Founded in 1830, their collections hold some 2 million items- 1 million of which is comprised of maps, some part are picture collections.  They are considered to be the largest in Europe of British history exploration and have an atlas as old as 1490.  They also have lantern slides from lectures.  Of their book library, there are 25,000 items; 150,000 are books and 100,000 "other".  They have an archives section(100,000) with "meters of boxes" covering the history of society.   Their Everest Collection, which contains trip plans and various papers, is from a 1904 expedition.  Their collection of objects total some 1500 items, and periodical collections with 1500 items digitized from requests fulfilled.  They have 2000 item for India alone.  Our tour guide is their principal librarian, whom is in charge of duties such as cataloging, artifact care, artifact loans, giving talks, and reading room aspects.  As far as loans go, the items are chipped and when loans to museums or library exhibits there are discussions had about how to treat the items.  For example, Edinburgh just borrowed an item that they wanted to freeze to kill pests but the RGS decided that would damage their item and it was not to be done.  Climate control and storage are just as important here as previous visits.  The collection comes from donations and the founders of the RGS.  Other parts of the collection come from great grandchildren and family members of those on expedition for the RGS.  Nowadays, the RGS is short on shelf space.  They maximize their space, organizing not by classification scheme but shelf number.  Their concern is storage, preservation, and accessibility.  They use MARC21 and the catalogue is readily available online.  Technically they use two, with one more detailed in another location.  They have a team of 8, one head director, one library manager, and the 6 of the reading room.

  The second half of our visit, our tour guide gave us an awesome story-by-story encounter of the items on the table.  I have many of them jotted in notes, but it is one of those "you have to be there " talks, but my favourite story was a combination of the voyages sent out and the hat/hood of Ed. Shakleton that was gifted to a close friend and later came back to the society.  That and the nifty mini sextant that was not only or a pocket but also had ivory toggles so your skin wouldn't stick to it.

By after noon, K, LH, K2, & myself went to Camden town.  My goal here was to see The World's End pub and have a pint.  This was easy to do since it was right at the subway resurface.  I also bought a tank-top- or what they called a vest.  It's a little punkier than I am use to but its wonderful.  I had Chinese food and walked through the "stables", eying many a shop and seeing all sorts of sights. It's a spunky town and I wouldn't be opposed to returning if there is time in the final week(next week is Scotland).

UPDATE:  I finally met Daniel Radcliffe tonight and had the opportunity to tell him he is building a great body of work(as an actor).  As well as to laugh about his height- some people out back said they were short and he said he knew what it was like, to never apologize for it.  He is a sweet heart really.  I also have photo proof with JL, whom was my crowd-attendee!


 Anyways, it's off to bed for this one!  While tomorrow might be slower, I have to carefully pack for a week's long voyage and pack things to be left behind.  Wish me luck!

British Studies: Day 8 & 9

Yesterday was spent wandering the same streets that Shakespeare did- Stafford-on-Avon. 
            By morning, I purchased a few souvenirs for family and friends.  By early afternoon, I had  some great ice cream.  By late afternoon, LH & A and myself went to a building called The Enchanted Manor where we were mystified by all of the Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Pirates, Doctor Who, and else they fit into one building.  We paid 4 pounds to go through the two upstairs floor where we had a dragon egg challenge to do and work study(14 year olds) to meet.  Of the eggs, there were 35 and a pirate riddle involving Treasure on the HMS Vampyrica, of the 14 year olds they wanted to work in various aspects of film.  I was impressed by the detail such as the LeMarchand Box- and the slight name changes to avoid copyright.  We won the dragon challenge: I became a broomstick flyer expert, A became a cackling witch, and LH the green witch understudy.  We have certificates to prove it!

MaTiLDA.  Oh, I know what you're thinking, but they gave theirs a different name!

By evening, we watched a performance of As You Like It performed at the Royal Shakespeare Company.  As I have processed the show, I have liked more elements of it.  It was in traditional theatre in the round, making all seats good seats.  The stage used simple elements to give us a change of scene and great costuming choices to place us from the palace to the forest, a much more freeing world.  The acting was good- though their Rosalind was almost too eccentric- and the technical effects(such as lighting) were stunning.

Today, we had a behind the scenes tour of the Victoria & Albert, or V&A.  There are several section, composed of desks and researchers, computers and printers, shelving upon shelving, and more.  The library, we were told, is 150 years old.  It holds many arts related items, including fashion magazines such as Vogue, and focuses on al aspects of art and design.  It sees about 30,000 visitors(truthful as we saw today) and the collection has attentive cataloging so that it can be found online, as some of the materials are untouchable.  The hours are reasonable as well, Tuesday through Saturday 10-5:30.  At the moment, they have a camera available but would like to go over to safer scanners that don't harm the spines.  They passed us a packet today telling us how their training for handling books goes- something done very 18 months.  Many of the rooms do not have air conditioning because they keep an eye on their economic climate.  Of the storage facilities, they too are monitored because pests and vermin are just as common here.  Checked quarterly, using traps to prevent them, as is the OCEAN system for testing humidity.  At present, there are 11,000 periodicals and 1,000 are current.  Nowadays they are not bound together.  All items are arranged by size- I am sensing a trend here- and in a house classification system.  Objects storage containers change depending on the year, here you can see grey folders or red boxes with a metal pull.  After a few more rooms, one of which contained the majority of staff(cataloging) we were given the real treat- old books we could view up close.  My favourite was the Leonardo DaVinci Codex because of its coded language and small illustrations.  A fascinating man, the book is small and pocket sized.  It was purchased from Italy in 1992 and made around 1493-1505.  The ink within changed between black and red- this might be due to age- and makes me very curious.  Other items in this viewing included a book of Parrots(the first of its kind), a Picasso illustration set, and a Book of Hours.  

Tonight, I am joining GOP & AG to head over to Leicester Square for the premier of The World's End, a new Simon Pegg film.  While we won't be getting in til next week, we will get to stand on the carpet and get autographs of the actors.  For the event, I purchased a canvas and permanent marker- best artwork ever.  I do hope I can get their signature!  What a splendid month this is turning out to be!  And we haven't even gotten to Scotland yet!

UPDATE:

After posting this, I decided to go with two friends to The World's End premier, as I mentioned.  Soon there will be a picture to accompany this, but I managed to get most of the cast, the director, and cameos to sign my canvas.  There is actually a photo tagged(on my friend's facebook) of my canvas being signed by Simon Pegg.  THe first to sign it was actually Simon Pegg's brother, Mike Beckingshire, and Simon signed below.  Bill Bailey, Edgar Wright, and others are all on there.  Martin Freeman was not there as he is in New Zealand filming for The Hobbit, but that's acceptable terms.  Overall, the experience was wonderful and we had perfect standing spots to see, sign, and watch the large screen with sneak peeks and intervewees.  After having gone to this event, it dawned on me that if anyone asks the illusive "what was your favourite part of the trip?"  I am going to have a very difficult time answering.  I have been so fortunate, thus far, in my academic and social time that I do not know what the best part is.  Just that I am still singing with triumph about my uber cool canvas.  

British Studies: Day 7

Today's morning begun in the most fabulous way- almost smashing into none other than Kenneth Branagh.  On my way out of Waterloo station, having just solo bought an Oyster ticket, I was weaving in and out of people to return to the courtyard.  Since I couldn't shout out or anyhting, I did several double takes and am 90% certain it was him.  So there's that.

By afternoon, our group went to the Guinness World Book of Record's largest archive library, the "Pompeii of the North"- the Museum of London's Library.  Here, a fellow named Dan Nesbitt(of LARC) gave us a tour around and sneak peek into many historical lives.  Constantly growing, this site began ten years ago, placed in a steel tubing facility.  With 120 staff members and 40 volunteers, there are guidelines to follow, cataloging to be done, and public accessibility is a priority.  This facility has won not only a world record but various volunteer awards that have inspired similar volunteer programs.  Their primary work concerns are leadership, learning, curating, and research.  In the facility, there are people in charge of organizing the materials(section by section), washing and drying items(there are even drying racks) as well as the most important bit- identification.  A large part of their collection began because of a man named Mortimer Wheeler, a famous archaeologist whom later created a show (so says Dan) called Animal, Vegetable, Mineral.  We were a privileged bunch today, seeing their facility behind the scenes with some of 99% in donated items.  They have roller racks, controlled environments, and many many kinds of items.  A Buckingham Palace telephone(used as a background for the creator of Skype), a Royal Opera House urinal, leather from Shakespeare's time, a "Psycho"(a magician's circle item that can be seen in Big with Tom Hanks, used for "fortune telling.") and much more.  They have an x-ray machine and store their metal items separate from their cloth and tile as well as these grouped parts.  Shelves are organized according to 3 letters(street) and 2 number code(year).  Some have a context number which makes more meaning in context.  The pr-historic flints are their oldest item, but Adam(another staff person) showed us some awesome animal bones that the year was undecided.  It had soil samples, pollen seeds, dietary information, printed records of site digs, and even rules for human skeletons collections.  Graham showed us the drying room and some other items, shears & a Tudor spoon at the highlight.  The cannon ball of Shakespeare's Globe was perhaps the neatest item- the guess is that it was used(they have five from his theatres) as a behind the stage prop for making thunder when needed.  Shakespeare himself may have been a cannon roller!  The storage boxes are standardized and the bags inside are clear for viewing, labeled, and padded accordingly.  There is some small interaction with radiation and a small chance of a squashing hazard- there are many people using the roller racks at a time, so be careful!  The archive even has a catastrophe plan.  The point of this place is that everything is kept because people a) like to see it and b) archaeologists desire totality, or that with an unknown future it might be nice to have.  To whether or not to  keep the archive is something that doesn't need deciding now.  In the end, I asked two questions.  1) No they do not have any dinosaur remains, those belong to paleontologists.  2) There were rubber rucks in the last room(with vases and such) and those are not an inside joke but rather a challenge for sweets for the kids' groups. 

Not sure if I am suppose to show this, but there is the pink duck I found!!

Then the highlight of the evening- JD, LH, C, & A and myself scored 27 pounds tickets for five balcony seats to see The Cripple Innishman.  It was 2 1/2 hours of amazing.  West End has yet to let me down.  It was a dark comedy set in Ireland and had many more characters than Daniel Radcliffe.  Yes, he was in it.  The syke was beautifully used, painting watercolour skies over different scenes.  The stage was "in the round"- picture a t-bone that curves at each angle.  It used several scenes: a store, two bedrooms(at two times), an outdoor park, and a boatdock.  The music and acting were also good, but(like when I saw Evita here 7 years ago) the things the do with the stage are amazing.  And yes Daniel Radcliffe is handsome in person and yes he is small in person, but he played a strong character in a play of 9 people.  I bought a programme for 4 pounds and and looking forward to reading the article he has in it, talking about his work with the stage.  I don't think I will be forgetting the stone sets or jokes about cows anytime soon! 

I adore thee!

Off to Stratford tomorrow, ta!

British Studies: Paris

Paris Weekend Explore:

The trip to Paris was the most bizarre by far. At almost midnight we headed on a coach bus past the Dover cliffs and onto a ferry. After a cold hour long voyage, we drove four hours and one hour forward in time to St. Christopher Inn.  After dropping our bags in storage we began our tour.  Some euros, a yummy espresso, and a metro ticket later, we were bathing in the small city streets.  

Notre Dame was one of the first sites we frequented.  the line was long but luckily the church was large enough to make it move.  here I lit a candle for my family.  it was a grand church.  From this location we wandered over to another famous location- the louvre.  To add to my day, I saw Mona Lisa, the Venus, and much much more.  Later in the first day we ate at ....a small restaurant with a cellar and a Mousketeer theme.  Salad, red wine, duck, and apple crumble made up my courses.  From there we attempted to go on a boat cruise, but missed our time.  

I discovered this weekend that while my pronunciation is off by a lot, I remember far more French than I knew.  I played liaison for translating much of this weekend.  Signs, people, directions, the metro.  C'est tres bien!  It came in handy Saturday.  As it turns out, there are many "Dufour"s in France.  On Saturday morning when we went to Versailles, the home of Madam Du Pompador and Marie Antonette, I searched for my wing.  Knowing it was there on the ticket, it was sadly under renovation.  This I learned by asking.  It was impressive nonetheless and makes me curious about my roots.  Their coat of arms in almost exact to mine, which my cousins and I recently conferred.  

That afternoon we took a long and crowded metro to the catacombs, but unfortunately slightly missed it.  From there we made plans to go to the Paris Hard Rock Cafe.  While expensive, the music was grand and they had items of Jimi Hendrix, Scorpions, and The Clash.  Here I decided to buy a patch from Hard Rock and iron it onto the sleeve of my London letterman I purchased in Greenwich.  From this location, we wandered along the sienna, spotted the Arc de Triumph, and got on the evening boat tour.  The Eiffel Tour at night is gorgeous.  The tour was hard to hear, but looked wonderful.  Our group is curious as to why the Eiffel glitters at 11pm, but it's tres jollie.  

After a short night's sleep, we packed and headed out for more espresso from the same cafe(2 euros!) and then to the metro for a morning peek at Moulin Rouge.  Here I purchased a red fan for a wall decoration.  We poked around inside but it costs over 180 euro to go any further(a show and dinner).  By noon, we boarded the coach and here we sit for a long journey home.  I don't know if we will be back by midnight or eleven, but it was a crazy fast weekend.  Sadly no Daft Punk was run into, but I miss London in a good way.  

Notre Dame in all its tall glory.

 I don't recall why I was so surprised...

The best photo of the Eiffel Tower that I took.

 T

British studies: Day 6

Today was a day filled with magical wonder.  We entered King's Cross today.  I have been waiting to see Platform 9 3/4 for 7 years.  No big deal, right?  Well today I adorned my Harry Potter/Game of Thrones hybrid shirt and my hufflepuff hat and threw a trolley at a wall(okay so it wasn't quite like that, it was actually part of a trolley already in the wall, but still!)  The little shop was amazing!  I bought a souvenir magnet, I am saving a larger purchase for Warner Brothers.

I forgot my luggage!

By afternoon, we went to the British Library and had a guided tour by Kevin Mehmet, an Independence Day and American enthusiast.  Turns out there are those who are just as fascinated with how the other half lives!  He was quite funny and the British Library was quite impressive.  I want to spent more time with their displays, which contain Beowulf and a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, and also see what they could offer me on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

The library has around 1700 staff members and collected all published works that are put out within one month of their publishing.  To prove this, we not only saw a scale model(which showed us the library is "built like a ship") but also saw the large glass encasement that runs from the ceiling through the underground.  It is in a cooled, controlled environment, and even has several evacuation procedures.  They are interested in research and digitization, offering patrons hands-on opportunities with rare books only if they have an academic reference.  If not, the work is digitally sent.  Their librarians ask for one hour and ten minutes for retrieval.  Digitization is still unknown to some and unagreed upon at the national bibliography.  They have a 65 million pixel camera.  In 1961 the preservation of the book was ideal and in 1998 the library opened to the public.  It has four founding fathers(Banks, Cotton, Glenville, and Sloane) of which Sloane was the curator for most of the collection.  The British Library has a collection of 35 million and 60% holds.  There are 200 million items in the city linked to them and they personally have 8 miles of shelving with 8000 copies a week received.  To register as a reader, you need an address and a few pieces of ID.  Fun fact, you can request something from ILL here and retrieve it in the states.  The process to send these book around looks simple(add two tags to the book for marking and placement, bar-code the basket, and push the basket it) but there is a more complex working inside.  It is about a mile long.  They even have 1962 Vogue bound.  The books here are as St. Paul's and the Bod, organized by size first to maximize space, and all are cataloged.  There is a huge foreign language section, with each their own language assistant.  Their largest book is the Klencke Atlas but the Australians just acquired a book 6 inches larger, just bumping their record.  It is a restricted item that was given to them by a wealthy donor and made in the 1660s.  It has its original binding.  It requires 6 handlers and is 6'1".  In the spree of Independence enthusiasm, we learned that they have a copy of the Magna Carta that they allowed to be let in D.C in 1976 for the 200 year commemoration.  It was placed in the library(in DC) next to the Bill of Rights.  It was a wonderful tour.

From there, after a small bus mishap of having a malfunctioning Oyster card, I found myself going up Black Friars stop to The Globe.  For  £5, I stood as a groundling would and saw the best Shakespeare I will ever see.  Today the Globe played a comedy called The Tempest with Colin Morgan as Ariel.  The use of the stage was amazing.  Nor only were the costumes epic and the acting greater than great, but they use parts of the stage I would have never thought of.  The spirits, Ariel included, were climbing on and out of parts of the stage- over the exit doors, into the exit arches, on the pillars that hold the roof, and throughout the audience.  There were to be no pictures taken and none of this online, but there is a scene in which the men have a sea feast before them and as they are about to dig in it burst into flames!  I was five bodies away and could feel the heat- but just as soon as it came, it burnt and flipped over and was burnt and then quickly flew into the floor below so that Colin Morgan could emerge as Ariel 2.0.  This Ariel had a scalier body, a dinosaur-like head/helmet that was long, and walked on these sort of stilts with t-rex toes&feet at the end.  Behind him were two other spirits who controlled the motion of his wings- which were unattached- and enfolded around him or expanded for emphasis or turned as he haunted the gluttonous men.  It was stunning.  This showing was the last until August, so I am super stoked I got to go.  Today was the highlight of a lifetime and I surely won't forget it.  

Exuent Globe.

British Studies : Day 5

The Bodleian, located in Oxford, was once created for the School of Divinity.  It's style of perpendicular Gothic with high ceilings and sandstone via quarry holds dates of 15 Century, 17th Century, and 18th Century.  The detail was created with hammer and chisel over time.  It has crests in the ceilings as well as pictures of Jesus, Veronica, the Virgin, and others.  There is a door that leads to the theatre, where some degrees are accepted(such as Bill Clinton's due to security issues) built in the 17th Century by none other than Christopher Wren.  In the 18th Century he added the chair of astronomy and created the route for which degrees would be confirmed.  The second room we entered was known for lectures and oral dissertations, complete with debating pulpits.  School was no longer conducted here in the 19th Century.  In the convocation house- a business place for community meetings- John Selden decided there needed to be a wing for books, that storing them underground they were subject to floods and rats.  Books are and were considered to be precious items.  The wood of the room is of the Jacobean style, it is polished every 20 years, and happened to be completed by a local of Oxford.  In it there is also the Vice Chancelor's Throne were councils use to be held weekly for 100 or more people.  The chancelor's election, which was attended by any graduates(and is now moving  online), was held in formal robes at the end of the chancellor's career- also known as life in this case.  Beside this room was the court/case room where one belonging to Oxford could hold a trial without delays, recess, etc.  You wouldn't go to the gallows, but you could be sent to the Tower of London for treason.  

The library here  is worldly re-known.  It is known in size(11 million items of 1 copy each) and age(700 years old).  In the early days, it has seen contributions from New York's Rockefellers.  By 2015 then intend to make an addition, offering a restaurant and tea.  We were not allowed cameras here, for obvious reasons, and were told that the collection contained items such as 67 of 100 Hebrew Incunables, the Macgreggle Gospels, Playboy, the NY Times, and trashy novels.  I think those last three might have been joke items.  Thomas Bodely, whom long ago gave away a First Folio that has now been returned after much fundraising, was important to the library.  Duke Humphrey of Gloucester was as well- giving all of his personal manuscripts to the library project, believing that if he wasn't around to read them someone else should.  It was therefore named after him.  There is an old and a new library here.  The Duke Humphrey library can bet be described as the library from the Harry Potter films- there are restricted sections, studying benches and tables, and chained books as well as tall multi-level shelves.  In early days, the library saw no artificial lighting or heating, being afraid to catch aflame, and the hours of the library were given daily by the librarian.  In 1598 it was empty and by 1602 Bodley restored it.  The ceilings of these rooms contain Hamerbean ceilings, painted wood, and code of arms- such as "the lord is my light" and Thomas Bodely's coat of arms.  The Duke Humphrey library saw to house several royals, such as Charles I and James I(whom both have commemorative statues) and even the librarian was an aristocrat.  The organization here is similar, if not the same, as that of St. Paul's.  The book chains were removed in 19th Century and they library now receives one copy of each book weekly- resulting in two vans full.  

In or around 1610, a man by the name of Dr. John Radcliffe wanted to see a science library built.  This is now a popular reading room.  It's ambulatory is gorgeous, complete with ivory and sea green painting.  Once upon a time, Napoleon ate there and was received at a royal dinner.  Since that time, there has been a similar dinner but the only royal in attendance was Prince Charles(1990).  This was a dinner of donors.  In 1909 the underground was set at a capacity of 80%.  This room has no windows but plenty of book stacks and one area for water or meetings..  It is quite modernized The tunnel connector at the end is magical as well- we ended up in the original building we had walked out of!

Their Magical Books display was amazing.  While we couldn't take photos, I won't easily forget the First Folio Pages of Macbeth, the Tolkien images of Smaug or the Runes, nor the work of Beatrice Potter and JK Rowling in their first editions.  The art/ illustrations spanned 12th Century to 20th Century, Tolkien being of their school as well as CS Lewis.

This made dinner lunch at the Eagle and Child special.

At Christ church I learned much about Lewis Carroll, aka Charles Dodgson, and saw "THE" Great Hall used in the films.  In sum, Alice was based on the Dean of Carroll's time, Dina(her cat)  owuld get lost in a tree that people would have to etch(this became the Cheshire cat.)  The mad Hatter was based on a fabric/fitter shop attendant whom wore a top hat with the receipts of customers ticking out.  And the white rabbit was based on the dean(Alice's father) whom would enter the dinners very late exclaimed, "I'm late, I'm late, sorry I'm late!"  Eventually it all sunk in with him.  Tweedle dee and dum, as well, whom were two chefs boys in the kitchen.  Fun fact: Lewis Carroll was first a mathematician.  Also there is a magic" garden door in the garden.  The last story we were told is of Alice grown up: at one point, Prince Leopold came to visit.  He stayed in a private suite, but dined with Alice's family,  It is thought they fell much in love, but Alice was common and thus went away for a time to smolder the flames.  When she married Hargreaves, she named their son Leopold and when the Prince married he named his daughter Alice.  How mad indeed.

And King's Cross is tomorrow!  I am quite excited about this!