The Collation
Research and Exploration at the Folger
The Collation is a gathering of useful information and observations from Folger staff and researchers. Read more about this blog
Q & A: Ashley Buchanan, Associate Director for Fellowships, Folger Institute
The Folger Institute is pleased to introduce Dr. Ashley Buchanan, our new Associate Director for Fellowships. Dr. Buchanan received her Ph.D. in early modern history in 2018 from the University of South Florida and comes to the Folger with experience…
George Goodwin, neo-Latin poet, identified as George Goodwin, rector of Moreton, Essex
Today’s Collation post is short and sweet, and courtesy of Heather Wolfe, the Folger’s Curator of Manuscripts. Heather is currently on sabbatical in the UK, having been awarded the 2021–22 Munby Fellowship at Cambridge University Library, but she still occasionally…
Trappings of the stage
Thanks to those who registered your guesses on our most recent Crocodile Mystery. All of the guesses gazed upward, when the answer actually lay underfoot. While these strange designs resemble theatrical lighting effects, they are, in fact, designs for stage…
"What manner o’thing is your crocodile?”: January 2022
This image sets the stage for this month’s theatrical Crocodile Mystery. What type of stage mechanics is represented in these designs? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and come back next year for the big reveal!
Postcards in the (home) archive: 1939
a guest post by Stephen Grant Fig. 1. Folger Shakespeare Library from Northwest 1939 Author’s Collection, photo by Stephen Grant Printed on picture side: THE FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY, WASHINGTON, D. C. 39686 Printed on address side: Published by B. S.…
Recipe Books, Plague Cures and the Circulation of Information
a guest post by Yann Ryan As well as its terrible consequences for health and mortality, plague in early modern England had a major impact on the communication and circulation of information. Movement was restricted, towns with suspected cases were…
The book thief
Response of James Tabor, public notary, July 10, 1604, in Henry Cotton vs. William Windle. Cambridge University Archives, Comm.Ct.II.11, fol. 57v. Today’s post is about a woman, Margaret Cotton, who allegedly stole a book in 1602. The book might have…
“What manner o’thing is your crocodile?”: December 2021
For our final Crocodile Mystery of the year, here’s a paleographical challenge. What’s going on here, and why might the Crocodile find it interesting? (Disclaimer: This is not a Folger manuscript). Leave your thoughts, guesses, and attempts at transcriptions in…
A Glimpse into the Cultural History of Fragaria
a guest post by Jennie Youssef When the term of my Folger fellowship began, I had made some headway in my research for a dissertation chapter on the foodway of strawberries. The strawberry’s symbolic significance in medieval art and early…
The mystery of Humphrey Walcot’s grocery bill and early-modern popular numeracy
a guest post by Ray Schrire It is time for an unofficial Crocodile Mystery. Humphrey Walcot’s grocery bill. Folger, L.f.196 These are a few of my favorite items from the merchant Humphrey Walcot’s shopping list of May 8, 1601 (a…
What's in a playbill?
The Folger collection includes approximately 250,000 playbills, the single-sheet precursors of today’s multi-page theater programs.Many theater programs in the United States have a striking yellow banner with PLAYBILL in black letters on the front cover. These aren’t playbills, they’re free…
Postcards in the (home) archive: 1938
a guest post by Stephen Grant Fig. 1. Folger Shakespeare Library from Northwest 1938Author’s Collection, photo by Stephen Grant Printed on picture side: FOLGER SHAKESPEARE LIBRARY, WASHINGTON, D. C. 60063 Printed on address side: THE WASHINGTON NEWS COMPANY FOLGER SHAKESPEARE…