The professional experience project (LIBR 596) began in September 2014, and had two major components: researching our existing medieval collection to improve catalogue records, and promoting that collection through an exhibition once the research was completed. While much of the intellectual work was my responsibility, a large number of people have been involved in bringing the exhibit to light, so a major part of my work has involved liaising between various groups and individuals, including Rare Books and Special Collections, the UBC conservator, the History department, and Library Communications. I worked especially closely with Richard Pollard, a medievalist in the History department, who was my co-curator; we shared responsibility for writing item descriptions and other materials more or less equally.
The exhibit particularly concerns the papal bull of July 20, 1245, which was acquired last year at Dr. Pollard’s urging; but during my research we have found a number of other interesting items. They include a collection of wind charts used by Mediterranean sailors in the fifteenth century; a theology textbook used c. 1300 at the University of Paris; a land charter from 1331 concerning the ancestors of Vancouver residents; and a leaf from the Catholicon, a Latin dictionary published in 1460 that was the very first printed secular book. You can imagine that much more extensive catalogue records are necessary for these kinds of items, so each item required several hours of research before the records could be updated. Purchasing the papal bull was part of a larger concerted effort to raise the profile of the medieval collection at Rare Books and Special Collections, so now that we know more about them, the collection contains information previously unreleased to the public.
But since exhibits usually run only a matter of weeks, we wanted to create a more permanent home for the exhibition; and to that end, I have worked with Anne Darby, another student in the MLIS program, to create a persistent digital version as well. This digital exhibition should be released around the same time as the ‘analog’ one, and should help garner attention for our collections beyond Vancouver. It has been an intensely rewarding and humbling experience to work with so many talented researchers and librarians for this project, and made me excited for similar collaborations in my future career.
By Robert Makinson
Follow this link to read more about the exhibit: http://about.library.ubc.ca/2015/04/30/papal-bull-exhibit-on-display/
