Manuscript Digest –November 2018– This complimentary e-digest, launched in 2012, covers significant acquisitions and sales, manuscripts lost and found, rare books and ephemera, document conservation, and more.

In the News

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WKAR, October 23, 2018
The Museum of the Bible just had five of its 16 Dead Sea scroll fragments tested. The results: all fake. What the fake news means for the MOB and its Hobby Lobby founders.

Under the Hammer
HuffPost, October 27, 2018
A man with a hammer tried to smash-and-grab the Salisbury Cathedral’s copy of Magna Carta. In broad daylight, Is the document OK? And did police read him his rights?

A Brush With History
Washington Post, October 22, 2018
Tiny ships on the Potomac. Tiny cows on the Mall. With a tiny brush, and a commission from Albert Small, a painter has captured L’Enfant’s Washington, from the original manuscript.

Bully!
Mental Floss, October 18, 2018
Teddy Roosevelt spoke softly (not) and carried a big archive. But he struck a deal with the Library of Congress: no public release during his lifetime. Well, time’s up…

Fighting Words
Smithsonian.com, October 9, 2018
Texas has a big history, with larger-than-life figures. Even a squabble over where to place its archives turned into a big deal. How big? We’re talking about a shooting war.

Blood Lines
Time, October 2, 2018
Dracula is pure fiction. Right? You wish. An obscure first edition tells a different story. How Jack the Ripper cut the heart out of Bram Stoker’s gothic chiller.

Whale of a Tale
Baltimore Sun, October 17, 2018
Captain Ahab found his great white whale. But the original manuscript for Moby-Dick is more elusive. Now a scholar thinks he’s sighted Melville’s ur-document. Ahoy!

Rail Head
Daily Mail, October 4, 2018
In 1822 the world’s first railway was just a gleam in George Stephenson’s eye. Wouldn’t it be great if he’d kept a notebook? Funny you should ask. Funnier still where it turned up.

Dark Ages? Lighten Up!
The Telegraph, October 17, 2018
Between the fall of Rome and the Norman Conquest, Britain was in the dumps. Or was it? A British Library exhibition sees the Dark Ages in a different light.

Going Postal
New York Times, October 8, 2018
Is snail mail dead? Tell that to Oprah Winfrey, George H. W. Bush, David Sedaris, and Taylor Swift. They all send handwritten notes. So keep those cards and letters coming.

Replevin
Rhode Island judge rules in colonial records case
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Revilio!
Harry Potter comes to NYC for his big 2-0 show
> What’s on