Manuscript Digest: March – April 2025 – This complimentary e-digest, now published bi-monthly, covers significant acquisitions and sales, manuscripts lost and found, rare books and ephemera, document conservation, and more news in this digest.
In the News
Declaration Copy Surfaces …
The Times, February 27, 2025
… and sells for $2.5 million. Where was it? Tucked in a book at a library sale. And that’s just one tale from the wild and wonderful world of collecting historical documents.
When Colonists Took a Revolutionary Stand
Smithsonian Magazine, February 26, 2025
The American Revolution started on April 19, 1775. Or did it? An earlier standoff in Massachusetts ended with a British retreat. But there was no going back.
• Washington inaugural broadside is number one
Lost Lincoln Film Makes a Comeback
Dan’s Papers, February 5, 2025
An intern was sifting through film reels when he saw something that seemed special. He’d found The Heart of Lincoln, a 1915 silent by director John Ford’s brother Francis.
• See a clip on YouTube
How a Gutenberg Got Its Leaf Back
Artnet News, March 17, 2025
The Huntington’s copy of the Gutenberg Bible was missing something: three inserted prints removed in 1825. Now one of them is back. The story behind the happy return.
• A journalist uncovers a family secret: Gutenberg-breaking
What Was on Jane Austen’s Bookshelf?
Lit Hub, February 19, 2025
Rebecca Romney remembers spotting the words “pride and prejudice” — in a book by Frances Burney. What other women did Jane Austen read? So the quest began.
• Medieval manuscripts were women’s work too
The Search Is on for ‘Hidden Figures’
Smithsonian Blog, February 24, 2025
How did NASA’s “hidden figures” stay hidden so long? Few records about these women “computers” have been digitized. But look up church programs, yearbooks …
The Little Ice Age Cast a Big Chill
The Debrief, February 12, 2025
Think climate change is something new? Think back to the Little Ice Age. Diaries from 16th‑century Transylvania recount the toll of brutal cold.
JFK Files Highlight CIA Clash
NBC News, March 19, 2025
Newly released files reveal more of the infamous Schlesinger Memo. Will the new details end the chatter about JFK and the CIA? And what’s still out there?
‘Mangled Manuscript’ Has a Moment
Stanford Magazine, Spring 2025
The student didn’t fit the mold of a Stanford scholar. And the manuscript he donated didn’t fit the image of a rare book. But it’s a curator’s delight. Find out why.
• Two vanished tales of Camelot reappear (as book covers)
• What an MIT prof finds in a medieval manuscript (hint: math)
Home Break-in Cracks Open Rare Books Thefts
Tampa Bay Times, March 12, 2025
The trail started with surveillance video of a home burglary. It led police to a string of thefts cross-country. Thefts of rare books. Thefts of maps. Thefts of tortoises?
Additional Items of Interest
Manuscript Mondays – Inside the Lisa Unger Baskin collection > View
Armchair Tour – 10 lovely libraries for book lovers to see > Visit
