Click image for large view
|
|
Click image for large view |
March 31, 2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Edward FitzGerald's birth, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his translation of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam into English verse. The Rubaiyat is a collection of poems written in verses of four lines, quatrains. The word rubaiyat is derived from the Arabic root verb raba`a, meaning "to quadruple."
To commemorate these events, the Special Collections Department has on display some of the illustrated editions of this famous book of poetry, written in the 12th century by the Persian mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher, Omar Khayyam. In 1859, Edward FitzGerald, a Victorian man of letters, a dilettante, and an amateur translator, rendered 75 of these verses into English, and published them privately.
The Cleveland Public Library owns more than 1100 editions of the Rubaiyat thanks to John G. White, a former Library Board President and major benefactor of the Library. While tracing the literature that discussed the origin and history of chess, he became interested in examining chess references in classical and medieval works. He collected the Rubaiyat because of the chess connection.
‘Tis all a Chequer-board of Nights and Days
While Distiny with Men for Pieces plays :
Hither and thither moves, and mates, and slays,
And one by one back in the Closet lays.
To view other commemorative exhibits and events, click here.
Visit the John G. White Reading Room of the Special Collections Department to see the baby mammoth jaw first displayed at the Cleveland Public Library in 1909. On May 9th, 1909 The Cleveland Plain Dealer published an article entitled In the Days of the Cleveland Elephant; it described a baby mammoth jaw that was discovered in March of that year. The jaw was found during the construction of a sewer at E. 40th and Euclid Avenue adjacent to the residence of Mr. Sylvester Everett, whose palatial home was built by architect Charles Schweinfurth. This area was at that time considered to be one of the most prestigious streets in the nation.
 |
|
Click on image for large view
|
As another school year comes to a close so comes the publication of high school yearbooks which most students will order. High school yearbooks are not only collections of shared memories by students and faculty, they also act as a historic record on local sports, education, and fashion. These yearbooks are sought-after reminders for many who long to view their past, are interested in searching for long-lost friends, or are conducting genealogy research.
The Cleveland Public Library has collected many Cleveland high school yearbooks over the years. If you are interested in viewing these yearbooks please contact the Social Sciences Department for help in locating these reference items. It may take a day or longer to retrieve yearbooks from storage, so please call in advance of your visit. Also the Ohio Genealogical Society owns various Ohio high school yearbooks. A list of yearbooks they carry are available on their site. The Social Sciences Department gladly accepts donations of yearbooks for public, private and parochial schools located within the city of Cleveland. Here is a PDF file presenting a list of yearbooks the library currently owns.
The John G. White and Special Collections Department is currently displaying items on travelers, travel, exploration, and adventure, which includes items on gypsies or Romani, referred to as Travelers in some cultures. These nomadic wanderers carried their history and culture in carriage and caravan. Also on display are photograph albums of trips to the Western United States by John G. White and several fellow adventurers who are clearly caught up in the natural beauty of the vast resources of the American West. Featured are various images and narratives by men and women who followed a calling and set out to see new sights and experience cultures previously unknown to the West, as well as a collection of souvenir booklets from various locations in the United States and abroad. I was Tortured in the Pasadena Jailhouse! by Bobby Fischer. This is a very rare booklet self-published by Fischer concerning his treatment after he was mistakenly arrested on suspicion of bank robbery. Bobby Fischer: Complete Games of the American World Chess Champion compiled and edited by Lou Hays. This is a personalized copy by Fischer to Laszlo Szabo. Chesnutt will be honored by the United States Postal Service with an issuance of a commemorative Black Heritage Series stamp. The First Day Stamp Issuance Ceremony will be held at the Cleveland Public Library on Thursday, January 31, 2008 at 11:00 a.m. in the Main Library, Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium. The program is free and open to the public. During the month of February, an exhibit featuring manuscripts, photos, and books from Cleveland Public Library will be available for viewing in the Special Collections Department. Chess and checkers researchers from around the world use this material - either visiting the library in person or using email and digital scans - to document, analyze and write about the history of these complex and challenging games. Recently, three members of the Ken Whyld Association spent a day at the library looking at and photographing primary source material from the great chess player Emanuel Lasker. With the month of Ramadan coming to a close Cleveland Public Library would like to remind patrons of the Islamic texts housed within Special Collections’ John G. White “Orientalia” collection. CPL Special Collections maintains a well-rounded collection of Quranic commentary, Hadith, works on Islamic jurisprudence, and Sufi literature. The Quran pictured here is approximately 200-300 years old and written in the Arabic Naskh script. The first and last pages of this manuscript are fully illuminated and all pages have double ornamental boarders in gold and blue. The dimensions of this Quran are 16 x 10 cm.
The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeing new landscapes, but in having new eyes, in seeing the universe with the eyes of another, of hundreds of others, in seeing the hundreds of universes that each of them sees. - Marcel Proust
Last week, on January 17th, 2008, chess genius Robert "Bobby" Fischer died in Iceland of kidney failure. The Cleveland Public Library's Special Collections Department has several items relating to this prominent figure in the world of chess. Interested patrons may come view these unique items during the library's regular business hours.
Charles W. Chesnutt was an author, civil rights activist and legal professional from Cleveland, Ohio who lived from 1858-1932. Chesnutt was a pioneering author of books and articles depicting the African-American experience. He worked with both Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois to improve the social, political and economic standing of African Americans.
One of the highlights of the reference collection at Cleveland Public Library is the chess and checkers material amassed by John G. White who was President of the Board of Trustees in the early part of the 20th century. He donated his impressive collection to the library at the time of his death along with an endowment to continue adding to it. 