Abstract Alexandre Dumas, born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (1802 – 5 December 1870), also known as Alexandre Dumas, père, was a French writer. Many of his historical novels of high adventure were originally published as serials, including The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers. Alexandre Dumas, fils (1824-1895) was a French writer and dramatist, best known for Camille (a.k.a. The Lady of the...

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Prosper Mérimée (1803-1870) was a French dramatist, historian, archaeologist, and short story writer, perhaps best known for his novella Carmen. This item is a handwritten letter by Mérimée to Auguste Romieu, dated May 26, 1852, Paris. The letter spans one page and a half, in addition to two blank pages.

Abstract Montalto delle Marche is a municipality in the Province of Ascoli Piceno in the Italian region Le Marche, located about 43 miles south of Ancona and about 9 miles north of Ascoli Piceno. The Venetian printer Giovanni Giubari was active at Montalto between 1586 and 1590 and also worked at Fabriano, Fermo and Ascoli Piceno. This item is the official document, issued by the heads of the city council of Montalto delle Marche, conferring lifelong citizenship to Marcolino Monsignano, governor of...

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The Société des Amis d’Isidore Isou, or the Friends of Isidore Isou, was organized in 1970s France to assist and support Isidore Isou (1925-2007), founder of Lettrism, an art and literary movement which owed inspiration to Dada and Surrealism. This collection primarily includes the society's earliest correspondence, which documents requests for financial contributions to the newly-formed group, spanning 1970 to 1972.

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An artificially assembled collection of four lottery advertisements, publicizing what was possibly the largest lottery in Britain in 1816. The items span from approximately 1815 to 1816. The slips were likely printed in 1815, but mass distributed in 1816.

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An indenture is a legal contract that reflects a debt or purchase obligation. This collection includes four 19th century English indentures, regarding the settlement of their husbands' wills by their widows. The indentures include the names of the husbands and wives, and the names of witnesses who attest to the existence of the marriages. The contracts are dated from 1866 to 1867.

Abstract Edward "Ted" Athelstan Marshall was born Edward Howard Marshall on May 8, 1920 in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended Johns Hopkins University from 1939 to 1943, where he majored in English Literature. Upon commencement, Marshall joined the U.S. Army infantry the same year. He was killed in combat in Europe on November 10, 1944. This bound volume, commissioned by his family, contains circa 2008 reproductions (high-quality scans) and transcriptions of letters from Edward Marshall to his family...

Abstract Charles I (1500-1558), of the Spanish Empire from 1516, and as Charles V was ruler of the Holy Roman Empire from 1519 until his voluntary abdication in favor of his younger brother Ferdinand I as Holy Roman Emperor and his son Philip II as King of Spain in 1556. The Royal Council was a ruling body and key part of the domestic government of the Crown of Castile, second only to the monarch himself. It was established under Queen Isabella I in 1480 as the chief body dealing with administrative...

Abstract This diary was started by Canby A. Alexander in January 1883, when he was 10 years old and living in Cecil County, Maryland. At 10, Alexander was no longer enrolled in school but instead was occupied with the family farm and the comings and goings of his extended family, neighbors and friends. The Alexanders may have been descendants of Robert Alexander, once a delegate to the Continental Congress, who later defected to the Royal Navy. His estate became the town of Elkton, Maryland. Canby...

Abstract Dussehra (also known as Desara or Dasara) is the most famous event of the Chhattisgarh State, historically known as the Bastar region. It is a major Hindu festival celebrating the victory of good over evil in the worship of the goddess Durga, also known as Vijayadashami. This item is a 24-sheet cloth-covered sketchbook of drawings depicting participants in the Bastar Dussehra festival and includes 19 sketches in colored chalks and watercolor, while 9 are in pencil--many with descriptive...

Abstract A horoscope is an astrological chart or diagram representing the positions of the Sun, Moon, planets, astrological aspects, and sensitive angles at the time of an event, such as the moment of a person's birth. It is used as a method of divination regarding events relating to the point in time it represents, and it forms the basis of the horoscopic traditions of astrology. The item is a detailed manuscript horoscope for an unnamed male subject. The birth chart and the descriptive...

Abstract Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for its visual artworks and writings. Surrealist works feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur; however, many Surrealist artists and writers regard their work as an expression of the philosophical movement first and foremost, with the works being an artifact. Leader André Breton was explicit in his assertion that Surrealism was, above all, a revolutionary movement....

Abstract Estelle Anna Blanche Robinson Lewis (1824-1880) was an American poet and dramatist. Lewis was born near Baltimore, Maryland, the daughter of John Robinson, a wealthy planter from Cuba of English and Spanish descent. Her best dramatic work was Sappho of Lesbos, a tragedy (London, 1868). She permanently moved to England in 1865, where her last work was a series of sonnets in defence of Edgar Allan Poe. She died in London, England. The item is a 4-page letter (folded...

Abstract Following the Spanish and Portuguese expulsions at the end of the 15th century, the resulting influx of Jews from the Iberian Peninsula often resulted in strained relationships between the new arrivals and the members of native Jewish communities in which they relocated. A folio such as this is an early 17th century copy of documents concerning this historical episode. This item is an informational document, detailing issues of litigation between affluent, longer established Jews and...