#young collection

[stratharchives]

Colour Our Collections for Chinese New Year!

In the 17th century Jesuit missionaries travelled back to Europe over land through China collating information and knowledge on the history and culture of the East. On their return they shared their experiences with Athanasius Kircher, who compiled this information and amazing illustrations of a world very different to his own. He produced the fascinating tome China Illustrata which was originally published in Latin in 1667. The copy in Strathclyde’s collection is the Dutch translation Toonneel van China printed in 1668.

Illustrations from Kircher’s Toonneel van China, showing the principal deities of the Chinese, form the theme of our contribution to the international #ColorOurCollections week on social media 4th-8th February 2019 in honour of Chinese New Year that begins this week! We invite you to download and colour the images and share them on social media tagging us @StrathArchives and including the tag #ColorOurCollections.

[stratharchives]

Q: What is the oldest book in your collection?

A: A manuscript of the third book of Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine in Latin copied in 1447.

This unique beautifully crafted book bound in original oak boards and copied in 1447, is indeed the oldest book in the University of Strathclyde library. It is held in Archives and Special Collections and is part of the Young Collection of books and manuscripts on alchemy and early science dating from the 15th to the 19th century.

The Canon Medicinae or Canon of Medicine is an encyclopaedia of medicine in five books compiled by Persian philosopher Avicenna (Ibn Sina) and completed in 1025. It presents an overview of the contemporary medical knowledge, which had been largely influenced by Galen.  His medical books were translated into Latin in the 12th century and were the basis of medicine in Europe until the time of the English physician William Harvey (1578-1657).

This volume only contains book three of the Canon and covers diseases of the body from head to toe. The text features Latin handwritten manuscript with red rubricated passages and headings added for emphasis. Owners of manuscripts often commissioned an illustrator to illuminate the text with decorated initial letters or additional flourishes in the margins, and gaps can be clearly seen in the text for these to be added at a later date. This later printed copy of Avicenna’s Canon at the University of Aberdeen has some beautiful illuminated letters.

This manuscript is the theme of our contribution to the international #ColorOurCollections week on social media 5th-9th February 2018. We invite you to colour our images and illustrate our pages and share them on social media tagging us @StrathArchives and including the tag #ColorOurCollections.

Download our colouring book, become a medieval illustrator and illuminate our manuscript!

Explore more of this book on Avicenna’s Canon of Medicine album on Flickr.

The book will be on display until Friday 16th February on level 3 of the Andersonian Library.

[stratharchives]

Atalanta Fleeing

This Valentines day we take a look at the Greek myth of Atalanta, Hippomenes and the footrace as illustrated on the title page of the alchemical emblem book Atalanta Fugiens by Michael Maier.

Atalanta vows to only marry a man who can outrun her in a footrace; many men die in the attempt. Hippomenes, smitten with Atalanta, was not to be deterred. He prays to Venus for advice, and she gifts him three golden apples and instructs Hippomenes to drop them during the race.

Atalanta is unable to resist the beautiful golden apples. Hippomenes wins the race and the heart of Atalanta.

Overcome with passion Hippomenes and Atalanta take refuge in a sacred temple but are discovered by Cybele, the Great Mother.

Cybele curses them both by turning them into a lion and lioness for dishonouring the gods. 

Atalanta Fugiens by Michael Maier (Oppenheim, 1618) (reference: Maier, Young Collection)

[stratharchives]

Tscep vol Wonders, 1514

These images are featured in our Archives and Special Collections colouring book made for #ColorOurCollections a social media campaign celebrating illustrations in early printed books.

This book full of wonders contains many woodcut illustrations of the signs of the zodiac and scenes of myth, legend and religion. The book is printed in Dutch with initials and highlighted passages rubricated in red on black gothic printed text.

The bibliography of the Young Collection, the Bibliotheca Chemica (Glasgow, 1906) describes this volume as ‘a treatise on astrological physic, …[which] contains sections on the temperaments of man under the planets, the planets and their influences, diseases, and the preparation and properties of the quintessence’.

This item featured as our Item of the Month - July 2012.

[reference: Young Collection, Scep]

[stratharchives]

Owl motif from Khunrath’s Amphitheatre of Eternal Wisdom, 1609

The owl motif that we use as our avatar on social media is from Heinrich Khunrath’s The Amphitheatre of Eternal Wisdom, printed in 1609 in Hanau and located in the Young Collection. Khunrath was a physician and Hermetic alchemist. The Amphitheatre is a fascinating volume containing nine plates of incredibly detailed engravings, each one representing a different aspect or stage to Khunrath’s alchemical work. For detailed analysis of the engravings in this book see this webinar by Dr Peter Forshaw The Alchemy of the Amphitheatrum which forms part of the Infinite Fire series.

The owl engraving follows the nine plates and precedes the main text of the work. The motto ‘Was helffen fakeln, licht oder briln, So die levt nicht sehen wollen?’ translates to ‘What good are torches, light, or spectacles, to those who will not see?’

Amphitheatrum sapientiae aeternae solius verae Heinrich Khunrath (1560-1605) Hanau, 1609

[reference: Khunrath, Young Collection] 

[coolneeded-blog]

SPANISH DESING | TALES OF LOEWE

Loewe siempre sorprende con sus campañas publicitarias y después de Hands of Spain, nos presentan su colección más joven de la mano de una gran modelo, Alba Galocha. Además de un montón de eventos y de pop up stores, nos presenta un video lleno de psicodelia, colores y estampados de la nueva colección.

Una manera más que original de enseñarnos, que no solo las abuelas se ponen pañuelo de Loewe con mantilla para salir a tomar unas aguas al casino de la ciudad. ¡Con lo cómoda que debe de ser! Así que pasen, vean y elijan.

By Lucía Medín