@themorganlibrary

This Thursday, 4PM EST, we uncover the myths of medieval manuscripts!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Dei Jackson, Assistant Curator of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts, joins Daria Rose Foner, Research Associate to the Director, to discuss common myths and misconceptions about medieval manuscripts. Tune in on the Morgan's Facebook page: link in bio.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ "Huntsmen making snares and feeding dogs" from Gaston III Phoebus, Livre de la chasse (Book of the Hunt), in French and Latin, France, Paris, ca. 1406. Illuminated for Louis d’Orléans possibly by the Bedford Master, MS M.1044, fol. 45r (detail), Bequest of Clara S. Peck, 1983.

The exciting young instrumentalists of Nevermind, Anna Besson, flute, Louis Creac’h, violin, Robin Pharo, viola da gamba, and Jean Rondeau, harpsichord, join us from the chapel of a converted monastery in the heart of the Belgian countryside, with a delightful program of chamber music by Marias, Telemann, and J. S. Bach, including selections from The Art of Fugue. Hailed as a “breath of fresh air in the field of early music” (Wales Arts Review), these four friends met while studying in Paris and recognized their shared passions and vibrant musicianship.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Join this FREE broadcast on Friday, October 16, 8 PM EST: link in bio.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Nevermind. Photography by Rita Cuggia.

This October, inspired by the Morgan’s vast collection of literary and historic manuscripts, we’re celebrating on social media the art of letter-writing.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ You might know him as Mathlete/rap artist Kevin G. from "Mean Girls," but actor @rajivsurendra is also an accomplished hand-letterist and self-proclaimed letter-writing enthusiast!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Watch Rajiv on the Morgan's YouTube channel (link in bio) as he helps us celebrate with this 2-part YouTube video series "Letter-writing is not dead!" ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Rajiv guides us through the art of writing a letter and maintaining a handwritten correspondence. Using the Morgan's collection of letters as inspiration, he explores the charm and power of the epistolary enterprise.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Special thanks to Bernardo García Elguézabal. @bysomebodyelse_

What do bees have to do with this medieval manuscript? 🐝 . Doctoral candidate Emily O’Brock is writing her dissertation on the symbolic significance of the honeybee in medieval literature in France. Swipe to see the particular illumination she is examining (along with the accompanying text) for her chapter on bees in liturgies to bless the Paschal Candle. . A Paschal Candle is a large, white, primarily beeswax candle that is blessed and lit every year at Easter and is used in liturgies throughout the Paschal season. The term Paschal comes from the Latin word Pascha, which came from the Hebrew word Pesach, or Passover. . Abrégé des histoires divines, MS M.751, fol. 55r, France (possibly Amiens), 1300-1310. . 🐝

The British textile and fashion designer Celia Birtwell has been a close friend and confidante of David Hockney since the 1960s. Sharing northern roots and a similar sense of humor, the two found they had much in common from their first meeting and together they were at the heart of bohemian London. Hockney has always been fascinated by the changing nature of Celia’s face and she remains, to this day, one of his favorite models. . On View // David Hockney: Drawing from Life . . . David Hockney "Celia, Carennac, August 1971" 1971 Colored pencil on paper 17 x 14" The David Hockney Foundation © David Hockney Photo Credit: Richard Schmidt An exhibition organized by the National Portrait Gallery, London, in collaboration with the artist and the Morgan Library & Museum. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ David Hockney: Drawing from Life is made possible by Mr. and Mrs. Robert King Steel and Katharine J. Rayner. Additional support is provided by the Rita Markus Fund for Exhibitions, with assistance from Dian Woodner and David and Tanya Wells.

The New Yorker writer and founder Rachel Syme discusses the value of pen pals with Sal Robinson, Assistant Curator, Literary and Historic Manuscripts. Join in the letter-writing fun: twitter.com/rachsyme

Jane Austen had her sister Cassandra. Do you have a pen pal? .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ founder and The New Yorker writer Rachel Syme (@rachsyme) joined Sal Robinson, Assistant Curator, Literary and Historical Manuscripts, right here on Instagram Live to discuss the Morgan's collection of historic correspondence and the international pen pal project. Watch it on IGTV now. . Explore the Morgan's expansive collection of historic manuscripts: link in bio. . Need a pen pal? Visit Rachel on Twitter (twitter.com/rachsyme) to join in the fun! .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Jane Austen (1775-1817), Letter to Cassandra Austen, 1808 June 20 and 22. Purchased by J.P. Morgan, Jr. in 1920. MA 977.16.

We’re judging these books by their covers... ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Young, handsome, and highborn, Claude III de Laubespine lived in luxury after marrying an heiress and obtaining the favor of King Charles IX. His brilliant career at court was cut short in 1570, when he died at the age of 25. He left behind a splendid library, which was dispersed, and only recently have his books been identified and properly appreciated for their superb quality and fine bindings. Laubespine now ranks among the great collectors of the French Renaissance. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ For the first time in more than 400 years, “ Poetry and Patronage: The Laubespine-Villeroy Library Rediscovered,” opening Oct. 16, brings together some of the most spectacular bindings in that collection, exquisite examples of Renaissance ornamental design. They will be shown along with related artwork and literary memorials of Laubespine. He left his books to his sister, a patron of the poet Pierre de Ronsard, who praised her country estate, the library, and its perfumed bindings, which, he said, “smells as good as your orange trees.” This exhibition will evoke the sensual pleasure and literary connoisseurship implicit in a noble library of that era. . . . Binding commissioned by Claude de Laubespine for Vignola, Regola delli cinque ordini d'architettura (Rome, ca. 1564). Morgan Library & Museum; Purchased as the gift of the Fellows, 1960. . Poetry and Patronage: The Laubespine-Villeroy Library Rediscovered is made possible by T. Kimball Brooker, with assistance from Roland and Mary Ann Folter; Jamie Kleinberg Kamph, Stonehouse Bindery; Jonathan and Megumi Hill; Martha J. Fleischman; and Professor and Mrs. Eugene S. Flamm.

Curator Rachel Federman takes a look at “Betye Saar: Call and Response,” on view through January 31, 2021.

A blockbook is a genre of late-medieval book produced entirely from woodcuts, where the text and image are carved together into a wooden block and printed. .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ There are about ten different editions of the Apocalypse blockbook, which were produced in the Netherlands in the 1450s–1460s and Germany in the 1460s–1480s.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Take a look at the Morgan’s collection: link in bio. .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ .⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Apocalypsis Sancti Johannis⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Germany⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ca. 1460–1465⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Purchased by J.P. Morgan, Jr., 1922⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ PML 21786

The original ideas for many of Beatrix Potter's stories can be found in the manuscript picture letters she wrote to children of friends and family members. Perhaps the most famous example is “The Tale of Peter Rabbit,” which began as an eight-page letter to Noel Moore, the five-year-old son of her former governess, Annie Moore. . Follow the link in our bio to see 12 picture letters in the Morgan's collection. 11 were addressed to Noel Moore, one to his younger sister Marjorie. Here one can see the earliest known picture letter along with later examples containing fanciful illustrations, comical vignettes, and narrative experiments that prefigure Peter Rabbit and other masterpieces of children's literature. . Beatrix Potter 1866–1943 Autograph letter signed, Falmouth, to Noel Moore, March 11, 1892 March 11, 1892 Gift of Colonel David McC. McKell, 1959 MA 2009.1

Betye Saar’s “Sanctuary Awaits” is informed by the African Kongo tradition of bottle trees, which are garlanded with bottles, vessels, and other objects to protect a household. Black people in the Caribbean took up this tradition as early as the 1790s; it continues today in the southern United States, where many still believe that bottle trees ward off evil. Saar made this sculpture as one of a three-part piece exhibited in conjunction with the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. . On View // Betye Saar: Call and Response . . . Betye Saar Sanctuary Awaits, 1996 Wood, glass bottles, metal wire, palm fronds, compass, sheet tin, screws, and nails Courtesy of the artist and Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, California. © Betye Saar. photo © Museum Associates/LACMA . Betye Saar: Call and Response is organized by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The exhibition is made possible with lead corporate support from @morgan.stanley and lead support from the Ford Foundation. Additional support is provided by Agnes Gund; Louisa Stude Sarofim; The Lunder Foundation – Peter and Paula Lunder family; Francis H. Williams and Keris Salmon; the Terra Foundation for American Art; and Roberts Projects, Los Angeles, California.