Current and Permanent Exhibits
Bestsellers: Popular Fiction in America | Sound in Early America | Flowerdew Hundred | Declaring Independence
Bestsellers: Popular Fiction in America
Entry Floor, Main Gallery
What do Americans read, and how have our reading tastes changed over the years?
"Bestsellers" explores American reading habits from the earliest works of popular fiction in the late 18th century to today's blockbusters. Chronicling the top-selling books reveals much about American culture over time-its preferences, preoccupations, and mores. The exhibition also considers the dramatic shifts in the way people buy, read, and own books in an increasingly digital world.
"Bestsellers" features rare and beautiful first editions from the University Library's Lillian Gary Taylor Collection of Popular American Fiction. Mrs. Taylor compiled a significant collection of bestselling novels and painstakingly recorded details of each book in her collecting journals. Mrs. Taylor's notebooks, authors' manuscript materials, early bestseller lists, scripts and photos from film adaptations, and modern bestsellers complement the books from the Taylor Collection.
Visit the Bestsellers exhibition website:
www.lib.virginia.edu/exhibits/bestsellers
Sound in Early America
First Floor, Exhibit Gallery
Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library
March 20, 2012 – August 20, 2012
Using manuscripts, rare books, and artifacts, this exhibit traces the rhythms and pitches that reverberate through the collections at the Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections Library.
"Sound in Early America" is a collaboration between The Jefferson Trust, the McIntire Department of Music, U.Va. Music Library, and the Small Special Collections Library in conjunction with the Soundscapes of Jefferson's America Symposium.
The exhibit opens on Tuesday, March 20, 2012 and runs through August 20, 2012. There will be a reception on Monday, March 26, 2012 at 5PM in first floor exhibit gallery of the Small Library.
Image credit: The star spangled banner (M1628.3 .C6 1861 no.1). University of Virginia Library.
Flowerdew Hundred: Unearthing Virginia's History
Main Floor, Permanent Exhibit Gallery
Featuring archaeological artifacts from the University of Virginia's Flowerdew Hundred Collection, this exhibit presents material evidence of Virginia's early inhabitants: Native American pottery sherds; arms and armor used to defend the new colony; refined, imported wares from Europe; and American-made goods, including items manufactured by African Americans. The materials from U.Va.'s Special Collections also on display—images from sixteenth- and seventeenth-century maps and books—illustrate the importance of the historical record in the study of material culture.
Declaring Independence: Creating and Re-creating America's Document
First Floor, Permanent Exhibit Gallery
This exhibit offers highlights of the most comprehensive collection of letters, documents, and early printings of the Declaration of Independence. The exhibition sheds light on not only the writing and signing of the Declaration, but also on its first printing, distribution across the colonies, and future impact on American history. An accompanying documentary film is available for viewing in the gallery.
Visit the Declaring Independence exhibit website.
