The Collation

At the Folger, we are proud to sponsor research inquiry within a vibrant and intellectually generous community. Periodically, as that research is published, we circle back to talk with recent authors to showcase the role of collections-based inquiry on their…

For this month’s crocodile mystery, please examine these words from different manuscript recipe books from our collections, and tell us what they have in common. We’ll be back next week with the answer.      

The Folger Institute is pleased to introduce Dr. Ashley Buchanan, our new Associate Director for Fellowships. Dr. Buchanan received her Ph.D. in early modern history in 2018 from the University of South Florida and comes to the Folger with experience…

This image sets the stage for this month’s theatrical Crocodile Mystery. What type of stage mechanics is represented in these designs? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and come back next year for the big reveal!

For our final Crocodile Mystery of the year, here’s a paleographical challenge. What’s going on here, and why might the Crocodile find it interesting? (Disclaimer: This is not a Folger manuscript). Leave your thoughts, guesses, and attempts at transcriptions in…

What is going on in this image? Does something look a little odd to you? Is it all Gr— well now, that would be giving it away. Leave your thoughts in the comments and we’ll be back next week with…

We’re back with another Crocodile Mystery! Please take a look at this partial image, and give us your best guess as to what this item might be? We’ll be back next week with the answer!

For folks on an academic calendar, we’d like to extend our best wishes and support for a safe, happy, and/or productive new year. For those who aren’t quite ready to come to grips with the fact that tomorrow is September…

Happy Anniversary to us! This blog was started on August 18, 2011, making it ten years old. That’s pretty old in dog years and absolutely ancient in internet years. For this, our 661st post, we would like to take you…

This month’s Crocodile post brings to mind the classic board game Guess Who? (19th century edition!). Does your person have a giant mustache? Yes. Are they wearing a crown? Yes… Do they look annoyed? YES! For those of who you might struggle with this one, here’s a clue:…

This month’s Crocodile Mystery comes from a 17th-century publication: What’s going on in this photo? Please speculate, elucidate, and/or procrastinate in the “Comments” section. Also, in case you, like I, had misremembered the source of the catchphrase we use for…

In 2015, The Folger Shakespeare Library and the University of Pennsylvania Press established a cooperative agreement to publish volumes emerging from work substantially shaped by engagement with the Folger collections, often under the aegis of Folger Institute funding. Authors published…