Historic Places

Newport Wrap-Up

If you've read all my posts in this series, you've officially been introduced to every Newport mansion I visited. (But not every Newport mansion, since unfortunately I didn't get to visit two of them.) But my Newport adventure wasn't entirely mansion tours. There's lots else to see and do in town. The Redwood Library and Athenaeum is… Continue reading Newport Wrap-Up

Gargoyle of the Day

Gargoyle of the Day: City College of New York

I freely admit that I haven't been great about posting gargoyles over the past few months, but I recently found a reader grotesque that I hadn't seen before, and it seems to have snapped me back into action. This scholarly fellow attends the City College of New York. I believe that he resides on the… Continue reading Gargoyle of the Day: City College of New York

Gargoyle of the Day

Gargoyle of the Day: William Rainey Harper Memorial Library, Chicago

I have recently become obsessed with gargoyles and grotesques who are reading. (Possibly I feel kinship to them.) While doing research on collegiate gargoyles and grotesques a few months ago, I realized how many colleges and universities have at least one sculpture of someone reading a book. Both people and animals are shown in this studious pursuit, and they are… Continue reading Gargoyle of the Day: William Rainey Harper Memorial Library, Chicago

Gargoyle of the Day

Gargoyle of the Day: Tokyo University of the Arts

Onigawara (from the Japanese word oni, meaning "ogre") are monster heads sometimes found on the roofs of Japanese buildings. They are similar to what we typically call "grotesques" - decorative creatures with symbolic, religious, or ideological rather than practical function. The onigawara I've seen are generally closer to relief-carvings than other types of grotesque, and accordingly, I haven't found… Continue reading Gargoyle of the Day: Tokyo University of the Arts

Gargoyle of the Day

Gargoyle of the Day: University of Chicago

I've talked about the University of Chicago's gargoyles before, in a post about collegiate gargoyles. However, I really had no idea at the time how prominent a role these gargoyles play in the school's culture. Not only is the university's IT system nicknamed "gargoyle", but the University of Chicago gargoyle also has his own blog, and the… Continue reading Gargoyle of the Day: University of Chicago

31 Days of Medieval Manuscripts

Medieval University Students’ Textbooks – Day Eight of Medieval Manuscripts

Priscian, Cicero, and Pseudo-Cicero, Boethius, Aristotle, Euclid, Adelard of Bath, Ptolemy, translated by Gerard of Cremona. France, Central (Paris, c. 1309-1316. Attributed to the Meliacin Master. British Library. (BL. Ms. Burney 275 f. 336). It's day eight, and I think it's also high time that I start discussing some non-religious manuscripts. Books of hours, psalters,… Continue reading Medieval University Students’ Textbooks – Day Eight of Medieval Manuscripts