If you can navigate through the labyrinthine — though beautiful — halls of the Boston Public Library's central branch at Copley Square to one of the many main lobbies, you'll come upon the most recent installation of "Cool + Collected: Treasures of the Boston Public Library." It is a year-long exhibit that features some of the more unusual and rare pieces in the library's collection. This particular set of objects will be displayed until February 2010, when the last of three installments will be set up.
The objects themselves are extremely varied, ranging from an oil painting by Francis Davis Millet entitled "Kate Field" (1881), to a poster commemorating the infamous trail of Thomas Sims — a slave whose recapture in Boston after an escaping a plantation in Georgia became a rallying point for the Boston abolitionist movement. Most of the pieces are in some way tied to Boston and demonstrate the library's prominent role in area history.
The exhibit is fun, and the wide range of objects embodies the broad array of knowledge contained in the library itself. Scattered around the foyer, the objects themselves do not form a progression, but are an interesting sampling of the library's diverse collection. The show also provides an interesting look into the life of the Boston Public Library since its founding in 1848 as "the first large free municipal library in the United States," according to its Web site.
One of the most thought-provoking pieces in the show is a whaling chart from 1851. A naval officer and oceanographer named Matthew Fontaine Maury compiled the map, which shows the distribution of two species of whales — sperm and right — during different seasons. At first glance, it is hard to identify what area of the globe the map is depicting, because it is centered on the Pacific Ocean — logical, considering that the Pacific was the center of the whaling industry in the 19th century.
This simple, practical explanation results in a map with a very different perspective than viewers are used to. It reveals both our attachment to a Western-centric perspective and also demonstrates how subjective and arbitrary that Western view is. The map itself is part of the Boston Public Library's Norman B. Leventhal Map Center collection.
Another interesting object from the show is a scrapbook about Harry Houdini compiled by one of his closest friends, Quincy Kilby. Kilby was a Boston-area resident who recorded over twenty years of Houdini's life as a performer and magician — from 1904 to 1926. The book includes personal letters between Kilby and Houdini, newspaper clippings about Houdini and even a prop list that Houdini sent to all venues at which he performed.
The scrapbook is an interesting peek into the life of a colorful man whose entire livelihood was based on secrecy while he simultaneously existed in the public eye. There is even an amusing letter addressed to Houdini from James Henley Brewing Company in 1915 which challenges the magician to escape from a sealed cask filled with beer. Houdini wrote a note in response to the letter at the bottom of the page that says, "I accepted & escaped, (…and I do not drink)."
"Cool + Collected" displays a wide variety of treasures and interesting objects from the Boston Public Library. It is a fun tribute to the history of the institution. In displaying these acquisitions gathered over the course of its lifetime, the library illustrates its ongoing part in the history of Boston and America. Above all, the exhibit is a way to spark interest in a variety of topics — about which more information can be conveniently found in the vast collection of books also housed in the library.
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Cool + Collected: Treasures of the BPL
In the Johnson Lobby through June 6, 2010
Boston Public Library
700 Boylston Street
Copley Square
617-536-5400
