Kate So
@drsoandsoresearch.bsky.social
Above all, pluviophile 🌧️ 📙Freelance book detective 🕵️♀️Health and Heritage ♥️ 👩🏫Cataloguing enthusiast 📚Medical humanities nerd 💊Away with the faeries🧚♀️
Pinned
Reposted by Kate So
In the 17th Century #DarkNights at Bart's Hospital were brightened with candles, and they were needed in large amounts! This entry from 1672 notes the hospital buying nearly 2000 candles for the year 🕯️
#ArchiveAdventCalendar #Archives #LondonHistory #Candles
#ArchiveAdventCalendar #Archives #LondonHistory #Candles
December 11, 2025 at 3:37 PM
In the 17th Century #DarkNights at Bart's Hospital were brightened with candles, and they were needed in large amounts! This entry from 1672 notes the hospital buying nearly 2000 candles for the year 🕯️
#ArchiveAdventCalendar #Archives #LondonHistory #Candles
#ArchiveAdventCalendar #Archives #LondonHistory #Candles
Reposted by Kate So
The e-codices December 2025 update is live, with 31 manuscripts! Enjoy them all! www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/all/...
December 11, 2025 at 3:10 PM
The e-codices December 2025 update is live, with 31 manuscripts! Enjoy them all! www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/all/...
Reposted by Kate So
An exciting new postdoctoral position focusing on Old English epistolary materials
The ad for the second postdoctoral position on our @leverhulme.ac.uk Britain’s Early Medieval Letters project is now live. We’re looking for an Old English specialist (who also works with Latin). 32-month FT post. Deadline for apps is 16 Jan 🙂 jobs.kent.ac.uk/Vacancy.aspx...
Job Opportunity at the University of Kent: Postdoctoral Research Associate
Are you passionate about early medieval Britain? Do you have advanced knowledge of Old English and proficiency in Medieval Latin? If yes, then you may be interested in this fixed term full time post...
jobs.kent.ac.uk
December 11, 2025 at 2:52 PM
An exciting new postdoctoral position focusing on Old English epistolary materials
I got 'Professor Higgins'd at The London Archives by the nicest lady who spotted my accent. A lovely chat about libraries and archives, the North, accents and trains. I love @thelondonarchives.bsky.social 's Visitor Room so much. Affordable coffee, lots of tables, the potential for good chats!
December 11, 2025 at 3:09 PM
I got 'Professor Higgins'd at The London Archives by the nicest lady who spotted my accent. A lovely chat about libraries and archives, the North, accents and trains. I love @thelondonarchives.bsky.social 's Visitor Room so much. Affordable coffee, lots of tables, the potential for good chats!
Every year my husband and I buy a Christmas ornament to represent the year gone. I bought a sketchbook so we can draw them and write down our memories. I’ve just got to ‘The Great Pharaoh Ant Invasion of 2021’
December 10, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Every year my husband and I buy a Christmas ornament to represent the year gone. I bought a sketchbook so we can draw them and write down our memories. I’ve just got to ‘The Great Pharaoh Ant Invasion of 2021’
The phrase "Died without issue" is so funny to me. I know it means died without having any living descendants, but I can't help imagine someone who sees the Grim Reaper approaching and just shrugs and says "Oh well. I had a good innings. Let's go."
an elderly woman is sitting in a chair holding a cup and says oh well
ALT: an elderly woman is sitting in a chair holding a cup and says oh well
media.tenor.com
December 7, 2025 at 8:24 PM
The phrase "Died without issue" is so funny to me. I know it means died without having any living descendants, but I can't help imagine someone who sees the Grim Reaper approaching and just shrugs and says "Oh well. I had a good innings. Let's go."
Researching someone and wondering why there's an engagement announcement (to someone she never ended up married to) 3 years before she got actually married... then working out she had a fiancé who died in WW2 a week after their engagement was announced.
a black and white cat is crying and covering its face with its paws .
ALT: a black and white cat is crying and covering its face with its paws .
media.tenor.com
December 5, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Researching someone and wondering why there's an engagement announcement (to someone she never ended up married to) 3 years before she got actually married... then working out she had a fiancé who died in WW2 a week after their engagement was announced.
Reposted by Kate So
Historian of eugenics here. I don't normally like to retweet bad arguments, but this is such a fundamental misunderstanding of eugenics, I think it's important to point out. I don't have time to debunk all of the ways this is inaccurate, but I'll highlight a few things and then recommend some books🧵
December 4, 2025 at 12:44 PM
Historian of eugenics here. I don't normally like to retweet bad arguments, but this is such a fundamental misunderstanding of eugenics, I think it's important to point out. I don't have time to debunk all of the ways this is inaccurate, but I'll highlight a few things and then recommend some books🧵
As a former guide, who was lucky enough to represent UK girl guiding in Iceland when I was 16, I am so heartbroken by the organisation’s decision to exclude trans women and girls. Those 10 days abroad I secured through fundraising changed my life forever. All girls deserve those opportunities.
December 4, 2025 at 11:37 AM
As a former guide, who was lucky enough to represent UK girl guiding in Iceland when I was 16, I am so heartbroken by the organisation’s decision to exclude trans women and girls. Those 10 days abroad I secured through fundraising changed my life forever. All girls deserve those opportunities.
Reposted by Kate So
Hi, this is a slow-moving thread of library stamps being present in old books.
To celebrate the start of the #LibraryStampMadness series, let's enjoy this Bull's eye moment of a Vatican library stamp being stamped with full librarian joy into the empty space left over for a miniature. #skystorians
To celebrate the start of the #LibraryStampMadness series, let's enjoy this Bull's eye moment of a Vatican library stamp being stamped with full librarian joy into the empty space left over for a miniature. #skystorians
April 17, 2025 at 8:12 AM
Hi, this is a slow-moving thread of library stamps being present in old books.
To celebrate the start of the #LibraryStampMadness series, let's enjoy this Bull's eye moment of a Vatican library stamp being stamped with full librarian joy into the empty space left over for a miniature. #skystorians
To celebrate the start of the #LibraryStampMadness series, let's enjoy this Bull's eye moment of a Vatican library stamp being stamped with full librarian joy into the empty space left over for a miniature. #skystorians
Reposted by Kate So
December 2, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Reposted by Kate So
November 30, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Reposted by Kate So
I'm writing a textbook for the study of medieval manuscripts in the 21st century & am developing a framework that will be referenced throughout the book: ten touchpoints for medieval book history in Europe with six drivers of change. Here's how it will play out... (image: Codex Amiatinus) 🧵
November 30, 2025 at 5:46 PM
I'm writing a textbook for the study of medieval manuscripts in the 21st century & am developing a framework that will be referenced throughout the book: ten touchpoints for medieval book history in Europe with six drivers of change. Here's how it will play out... (image: Codex Amiatinus) 🧵
Reposted by Kate So
Gavin McCann visited @swminerslibrary.bsky.social to research his book on libraries, trade unions and education with the help of an SSLH bursary. Read his report and find out more about our research bursaries here 👇
sslh.org.uk/2025/11/28/g...
sslh.org.uk/2025/11/28/g...
Gavin McCann on the libraries of the South Wales miners
Gavin McCann is researching a book on libraries, trade unions and education. Here he writes about his visit to the South Wales Miners’ Library in search of a lost culture of socialist educati…
sslh.org.uk
November 28, 2025 at 9:23 AM
Gavin McCann visited @swminerslibrary.bsky.social to research his book on libraries, trade unions and education with the help of an SSLH bursary. Read his report and find out more about our research bursaries here 👇
sslh.org.uk/2025/11/28/g...
sslh.org.uk/2025/11/28/g...
Go on, say the term ‘Dark Ages’ in heritage interpretation one more time.
a group of people standing next to each other with a netflix logo on the bottom right
ALT: a group of people standing next to each other with a netflix logo on the bottom right
media.tenor.com
November 28, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Go on, say the term ‘Dark Ages’ in heritage interpretation one more time.
Reposted by Kate So
🏺 I look at this gorgeous piece of materiality and performance, and think that we don't consider eccentricity enough as a motivator for unique, beautiful things in prehistory...
One of the most beautiful bits of english eccentricity and glorious design is coming back to Sotheby’s and should be bought by a musuem (or me) for THE NATION. www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home...
Jewelled golden hare that sparked national treasure hunt set for auction
Artist and author Kit Williams hid a golden hare with clues to its precise location given in his 1979 book
www.independent.co.uk
November 27, 2025 at 9:49 AM
🏺 I look at this gorgeous piece of materiality and performance, and think that we don't consider eccentricity enough as a motivator for unique, beautiful things in prehistory...
Finding out a historical house I’m researching was saved from a fire by a cat alerting its owners to smouldering wires.
a man in a suit and tie is making a sad face in front of a window .
ALT: a man in a suit and tie is making a sad face in front of a window .
media.tenor.com
November 27, 2025 at 2:01 PM
Finding out a historical house I’m researching was saved from a fire by a cat alerting its owners to smouldering wires.
Reposted by Kate So
*small embarrassed voice*
A little plug for my article on Devon book sales c. 1700, which has gone online open access. tl;dr book auctions weren't just a London/Oxbridge thing: a flourishing second-hand book market centred on Exeter included auctions from the 1680s.
doi.org/10.1093/libr...
A little plug for my article on Devon book sales c. 1700, which has gone online open access. tl;dr book auctions weren't just a London/Oxbridge thing: a flourishing second-hand book market centred on Exeter included auctions from the 1680s.
doi.org/10.1093/libr...
A Provincial Market in Second-Hand Books: Book Sales in Devon, 1688–1725
Abstract. Comparatively little is known about England’s early book-auction trade outside of London and the university towns, with few catalogues surviving
doi.org
November 27, 2025 at 9:31 AM
*small embarrassed voice*
A little plug for my article on Devon book sales c. 1700, which has gone online open access. tl;dr book auctions weren't just a London/Oxbridge thing: a flourishing second-hand book market centred on Exeter included auctions from the 1680s.
doi.org/10.1093/libr...
A little plug for my article on Devon book sales c. 1700, which has gone online open access. tl;dr book auctions weren't just a London/Oxbridge thing: a flourishing second-hand book market centred on Exeter included auctions from the 1680s.
doi.org/10.1093/libr...
Reposted by Kate So
today on the book farm: Cree Syllabics (Stations of the Cross, 1856)
November 27, 2025 at 9:10 AM
today on the book farm: Cree Syllabics (Stations of the Cross, 1856)
You mean I actually have to re-read my thesis to prepare for my viva? A self-hate crime.
(my viva is in Jan so any nuggets of wisdom for prep...tell me!)
(my viva is in Jan so any nuggets of wisdom for prep...tell me!)
a close up of a dog 's face with its eyes closed and looking at the camera .
ALT: a close up of a dog 's face with its eyes closed and looking at the camera .
media.tenor.com
November 26, 2025 at 3:25 PM
You mean I actually have to re-read my thesis to prepare for my viva? A self-hate crime.
(my viva is in Jan so any nuggets of wisdom for prep...tell me!)
(my viva is in Jan so any nuggets of wisdom for prep...tell me!)
Reposted by Kate So
Is Santa Real? Many users feel they're getting presents from him. Scientists say it's time to consider whether they're onto something.
November 26, 2025 at 1:22 PM
Is Santa Real? Many users feel they're getting presents from him. Scientists say it's time to consider whether they're onto something.
Reposted by Kate So
A great blog from @ihr.bsky.social director, @clairelanghamer.bsky.social advocating 'History by Doing', bridging the gaps between the histories of people and places where we live, and work and those universities teach/research and delve into: they're all one. 🗃️
You want examples? A short 🧵
You want examples? A short 🧵
Advocating for History by Doing History - On History
This blog was written by Claire Langhamer, Director of the IHR Historians are very good at crafting arguments and in recent times very many people have advanced very many arguments about why history m...
blog.history.ac.uk
November 26, 2025 at 12:52 PM
A great blog from @ihr.bsky.social director, @clairelanghamer.bsky.social advocating 'History by Doing', bridging the gaps between the histories of people and places where we live, and work and those universities teach/research and delve into: they're all one. 🗃️
You want examples? A short 🧵
You want examples? A short 🧵
Very pleased to get my flu and Covid jabs this morning. I ❤️ Vaccines.
a sticker that says vaccines save lives on it
ALT: a sticker that says vaccines save lives on it
media.tenor.com
November 26, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Very pleased to get my flu and Covid jabs this morning. I ❤️ Vaccines.
Reposted by Kate So
Had great peek at the @rialibrary.bsky.social manuscript of the week! The O’Gara manuscript (RIA MS 23 F 16) is a 17th-century collection of Irish bardic poetry copied on the continent by Augustinian friar and scribe Feargal Dubh Ó Gadhra from now-lost medieval works. 📜✍️
November 25, 2025 at 11:50 AM
Had great peek at the @rialibrary.bsky.social manuscript of the week! The O’Gara manuscript (RIA MS 23 F 16) is a 17th-century collection of Irish bardic poetry copied on the continent by Augustinian friar and scribe Feargal Dubh Ó Gadhra from now-lost medieval works. 📜✍️
Inside me there are two wolves. One who is exceedingly glad census records are withheld from the public for a 100 years and the other who is doing a research project for which mid-20th century records would be so so helpful. The second wolf is currently howling real bloody loud.
two wolves standing next to each other in the snow with their mouths open
Alt: two wolves standing next to each other in the snow with their mouths open. the gif zooms in on the wolf on the left who looks shocked to be yelled by the other.
media.tenor.com
November 25, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Inside me there are two wolves. One who is exceedingly glad census records are withheld from the public for a 100 years and the other who is doing a research project for which mid-20th century records would be so so helpful. The second wolf is currently howling real bloody loud.