Reading material histories with rare books object based learning

In many human cultures, the written word has been the most reliable way to share information across time and space for thousands of years. Within these intellectual traditions, the idea of the book as a container for knowledge is commonplace. Books are, however, more than the words on their pages. They also carry important information encoded in their materiality.

In this workshop, participants will handle rare books on a range of topics from the ANU Library’s rare book collection. By considering the books as objects, participants will learn to identify and interpret signs of ownership and use that can shed light on individuals’ experiences, the transfer of knowledge within and across societies, and the history of ideas.

The workshop will be divided into three parts, including a demonstration of object analysis and how to separate the acts of observation and interpretation to understand each process more clearly, group-based guided observation and information sharing, and finally, time spent one-on-one with a rare book discovering its individual story.

Participants are invited to read the resources listed in the learning material as preparation.

1. Be able to identify the difference between observation and interpretation and begin to be able to perform each activity independently
2. Develop deep observation skills to support capacity for evidence-based problem solving and critical thinking
3. Practice evidence-based argumentation and communication skills, both written and verbal, in collaborative and individual contexts
4. Learn about the history of books and begin to understand how the book’s form can shape our ways of thinking and engaging with ideas

• ‘Material and digital traces in patterns of nature: early modern botany books and seventeenth-century needlework’ (2022) by Mary Learner in Intermediate Horizons: book history and digital humanities edited by Mark Vareschi and Heather Macha, 61 - 87: https://anu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/61ANU_INST/1csbe8o/cdi_jstor_books_j_ctv2rh2cnh_8
• ‘Introduction’ (pages 13 – 29) in Boxes and books in Early Modern England: materiality, metaphor, containment (2021) by Lucy Razzall: https://anu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/61ANU_INST/1csbe8o/cdi_globaltitleindex_catalog_331023231
• ‘Do women have a book history?’ (2014) by Michelle Levy in Studies in romanticism, Vol 53 (3), 297 – 317: https://anu.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/permalink/61ANU_INST/1csbe8o/cdi_crossref_citationtrail_10_1353_srm_2014_0001
• ‘What is the history of books’ (1982) by Robert Darnton in Daedalus, 111 (3), 65 – 83: https://dash.harvard.edu/bitstreams/7312037c-82c8-6bd4-e053-0100007fdf3b/download

In-class presentation (developed and delivered in the workshop), and a 200–300 word reflective piece after the workshop