Elisabeth B
@decorporis.bsky.social
Rare book librarian in the Midwest, tea and fountain pen enthusiast, cat lover.
I can go months without a single call to my work number, but whenever I am out for longer than two days, I will return to a barrage of voice messages.
December 8, 2025 at 8:42 PM
I can go months without a single call to my work number, but whenever I am out for longer than two days, I will return to a barrage of voice messages.
Okay, so what program will let me live in Basel for a year so I can write the Paracelsus historical fiction novel?
December 7, 2025 at 2:53 AM
Okay, so what program will let me live in Basel for a year so I can write the Paracelsus historical fiction novel?
All the fiction I write ends up being set in Alsace.
December 6, 2025 at 6:58 AM
All the fiction I write ends up being set in Alsace.
The Isenheim altarpiece is truly a masterpiece.
December 4, 2025 at 12:50 PM
The Isenheim altarpiece is truly a masterpiece.
This bible printed by Johann Mentelin in 1466 in Strasbourg is stunning. A gorgeous example of manuscript and print artistry coming together.
It’s part of the Dominican Library in Colmar, France - the Christmas Markets aren’t the only magical thing to see there!
It’s part of the Dominican Library in Colmar, France - the Christmas Markets aren’t the only magical thing to see there!
December 2, 2025 at 9:53 AM
This bible printed by Johann Mentelin in 1466 in Strasbourg is stunning. A gorgeous example of manuscript and print artistry coming together.
It’s part of the Dominican Library in Colmar, France - the Christmas Markets aren’t the only magical thing to see there!
It’s part of the Dominican Library in Colmar, France - the Christmas Markets aren’t the only magical thing to see there!
800 year old architectural drawings for the Strasbourg Cathedral held at the Museum of Notre Dame in Strasbourg. None of our electronic records will ever last this long.
November 30, 2025 at 8:25 PM
800 year old architectural drawings for the Strasbourg Cathedral held at the Museum of Notre Dame in Strasbourg. None of our electronic records will ever last this long.
Spotted two printer’s marks in Basel: Holbein’s painting of the Froben mark in the Kunstmuseum, and a woodblock of Oporinus’s mark in the paper museum (sadly the mark used in the 1555 Fabrica, which is ugly compared to the one in the 1543 edition).
November 28, 2025 at 4:32 PM
Spotted two printer’s marks in Basel: Holbein’s painting of the Froben mark in the Kunstmuseum, and a woodblock of Oporinus’s mark in the paper museum (sadly the mark used in the 1555 Fabrica, which is ugly compared to the one in the 1543 edition).
Basel is getting into the Christmas spirit with nativity scenes.
November 27, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Basel is getting into the Christmas spirit with nativity scenes.
Found the Paracelsus birthplace.
November 25, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Found the Paracelsus birthplace.
@drkarrschmidt.bsky.social caught the ivory anatomical mannikin in the new Frankenstein, and there are more shoutouts for fans of #medhist! I was delighted that the wooden anatomy tables Harlander shows Frankenstein are clearly based on the Evelyn tables:
SurgiCat |
Details |
Evelyn Tables
Evelyn Tables; Anatomical table No. 1, showing the spinal cord and nerves of the trunk and extremities of the human body, dissected and laid onto a wooden board.
One of a set of four tables prepare...
surgicat.rcseng.ac.uk
November 15, 2025 at 4:10 AM
@drkarrschmidt.bsky.social caught the ivory anatomical mannikin in the new Frankenstein, and there are more shoutouts for fans of #medhist! I was delighted that the wooden anatomy tables Harlander shows Frankenstein are clearly based on the Evelyn tables:
Today was our last tea practice with our teacher until spring, as she always spends the winter in Japan. We used the kotodana shelf, always a fun procedure.
November 13, 2025 at 2:09 AM
Today was our last tea practice with our teacher until spring, as she always spends the winter in Japan. We used the kotodana shelf, always a fun procedure.
Reposted by Elisabeth B
Fun discovery @theulspeccoll.bsky.social today: wonderful 1820s imagery depicting the 11th-century samurai warrior Minamoto no Yoshiie, changing into his armour. CUL FJ.973.50.
November 10, 2025 at 10:06 PM
Fun discovery @theulspeccoll.bsky.social today: wonderful 1820s imagery depicting the 11th-century samurai warrior Minamoto no Yoshiie, changing into his armour. CUL FJ.973.50.
Reposted by Elisabeth B
A 400-Year-Old Ring that Unfolds to Track the Movements of the Heavens www.openculture.com/2025/11/a-40...
A 400-Year-Old Ring that Unfolds to Track the Movements of the Heavens
Rings with a discreet dual purpose have been in use since before the common era, when Hannibal, facing extradition, allegedly ingested the poison he kept secreted behind a gemstone on his finger.
www.openculture.com
November 6, 2025 at 1:24 PM
A 400-Year-Old Ring that Unfolds to Track the Movements of the Heavens www.openculture.com/2025/11/a-40...
Academic press catalogs are my Achilles Heel; I browse through them and end up buying a bunch of books for personal reference that then join my personal book forest.
November 3, 2025 at 3:20 PM
Academic press catalogs are my Achilles Heel; I browse through them and end up buying a bunch of books for personal reference that then join my personal book forest.
Today was my tea group’s last time using the Nagano-an tea house for the year. It’s always so nice to drink tea there - a nice quiet oasis.
November 2, 2025 at 1:49 AM
Today was my tea group’s last time using the Nagano-an tea house for the year. It’s always so nice to drink tea there - a nice quiet oasis.
In honor of Josh Hawley’s op-ed in the NYT today:
Christian Faith An Important Part Of Who Senator Pretends To Be
WASHINGTON—Stressing that the facade informs nearly every aspect of his daily life, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) told reporters Thursday that his Christian faith is an important part of who he pretends to ...
theonion.com
October 28, 2025 at 7:11 PM
In honor of Josh Hawley’s op-ed in the NYT today:
I suppose it turned out all right (our other Rare Book Librarian has awesome design skills).
October 27, 2025 at 9:14 PM
I suppose it turned out all right (our other Rare Book Librarian has awesome design skills).
This is coming from a place of deep frustration, so I am aware that this is a massive generalization and not universally applicable, but right now:
I Hate Faculty.
I Hate Faculty.
October 27, 2025 at 12:09 AM
This is coming from a place of deep frustration, so I am aware that this is a massive generalization and not universally applicable, but right now:
I Hate Faculty.
I Hate Faculty.
The Becker Arcana is almost ready to send out into the universe.
October 23, 2025 at 2:33 PM
The Becker Arcana is almost ready to send out into the universe.
The Lyric Opera signage is always top tier.
October 20, 2025 at 11:49 PM
The Lyric Opera signage is always top tier.
Reposted by Elisabeth B
Shoutout to whoever was like the news sucks, let’s spice it up by doing a jewel heist at the Louvre
October 19, 2025 at 9:49 PM
Shoutout to whoever was like the news sucks, let’s spice it up by doing a jewel heist at the Louvre
I’m at that point in trying to crank out my exhibit labels that all my brain can come up with is “The book is pretty.”
October 17, 2025 at 4:24 PM
I’m at that point in trying to crank out my exhibit labels that all my brain can come up with is “The book is pretty.”
The department of transportation has signs up telling drivers to leave room for snow plows. It is 80 degrees out.
October 15, 2025 at 6:54 PM
The department of transportation has signs up telling drivers to leave room for snow plows. It is 80 degrees out.