Research and discovery

Reference Associate Erika Giddens, who manages the Folger’s Ask a Librarian service, takes us behind the scenes to share some of the most asked questions about Shakespeare and how she answers them.

We’re sharing some of the Shakespeare stories in the news in December 2025 and January 2026, from Hamnet to Bridgerton, The Beatles and King Lear, imagining Richard III’s voice, and remembering theater legend Tina Packer.

Porras, a Folger Artist Fellow, shares what inspired him, from the Folger collection to Indigenous futurism, in the creation of his new media work, de Bry’s Slipstream.

Why does Samuel Pepys’s diary still matter today, 200 years after its publication? Historian Kate Loveman shares how Pepys’s candid entries illuminate life in Restoration England and how his diary has been edited over the centuries.

What did people eat in Shakespeare’s England? In Much Ado About Cooking, food historian Sam Bilton uncovers the surprising world of early modern cuisine, a delicious world shaped by global trade, humoral medicine, and delight in spectacle.

Shakespeare stories in the news this fall, from the Hamnet film to a new discovery in Shakespeare Quarterly about Shakespeare’s father. Plus a surprising connection between the middle school phrase “6-7” and Richard II.

Shakespeare’s era was abuzz with mathematical progress. Rob Eastaway uncovers the many surprising ways math shaped Shakespeare’s plays―and his world―in an excerpt from his book, Much Ado About Numbers.

Folger Artist Fellow Missy Dunaway shares what she’s learning while working on The Birds of Shakespeare, her project to paint the 65 birds mentioned in Shakespeare’s works.

Imprisoned for nearly 20 years by her cousin Queen Elizabeth I, Mary, Queen of Scots, fought her battles between the lines of her correspondence. 57 recently decoded letters show the human and political costs of Mary’s captivity.

Looking for inspiration for your holiday table? Look no further than the Folger’s adaptations of recipes in our collection—from early modern stuffing to sweet potato pudding to pumpkin pie, even mini-turkey pies!

What do we know about the historical reality of Aqua Tofana and other stories of women wielding poisons? The truth is very little. But like most historical parables, the myths are just as telling as the reality.

Before Shakespeare became a household name, there was Richard Burbage, the first actor to play Hamlet, Macbeth, Richard III, and King Lear. Scholar Siobhan Keenan examines his remarkable career and lasting impact on early modern theater.