Smithsonian Libraries

Edgar Allen Poe, Master of the...Mollusk?

In 1839 Haswell Barrington And Haswell of Philadelphia published The conchologist's first book: a system of testaceous malacology, arranged expressly for the use of schools, in which the animals, according to Cuvier, are given with the shells, a great number of new species added, and the whole brought up, as accurately as possible, to the present condition of the science. by E. A. Poe.  Was Edgar Allen Poe really an amateur naturalist and mollusk enthusiast, or merely an impoverished novelist willing to do anything (even plagiarism!) for a buck? 

In fact, Poe was hired to write the preface and introduction, and to translate from the French Georges Cuvier's descriptions of the animals, but it was Thomas Wyatt who originally wrote the textbook on conchology. In later years, Poe was accused of plagiarism (by his biographer and literary executor R. W. Griswold) but it seems that attributing the authorship to Poe was likely done to increase interest in the title and to avoid copyright issues with Wyatt's original publisher, Harper & Brothers.

To confuse the issue of authorship further, Wyatt's book was largely based on that of Scottish naturalist Thomas Brown, who published his The Conchologist's Textbook... in Glasgow in 1833. 

2009 is the 200th anniversary of the birth of Edgar Allen Poe.  The conchologist's first book... is the only volume "by" Poe that went to a second edition in his lifetime. The Biodiversity Heritage Library has select editions of all the titles above available in full-text if you'd like to compare for yourself!

For more information on Poe's work on conchology (the study of mollusks) Cornell University has an online exhibition Nevermore: the Edgar Allen Poe colleciton of Susan Jaffe Tane which includes images from Poe's own copy of the first edition; and The Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore has bibliographic notes on the work and much more.—Keri Thompson

Chauncey Bradley Ives carte-de-visite - AA/PG Library

recto: Chauncey B. Ives (born Hamden, CT, 1810; died Rome, Italy,1894)
verso: Carte-de-visite photography studio: Ferrando Photographic Studio, Rome, Italy

Chauncey Ives was one of the most popular American sculptors in the last half of the 19th century who worked in the neoclassical style (a style based on the classical works of ancient Greece and Rome). Ives began his career by first sculpting portrait busts and by age thirty he moved to Boston where he was a notable portrait sculptor. After moving to New York where he exhibited at the National Academy of Design, he fell ill and traveled to Florence, Italy for his health. There he met other American sculptors such as Horatio Greenough and Hiram Powers, arguably the most famous American neoclassical sculptor. Exposure to Florence's art treasures encouraged Ives to experiment with classical subjects while continuing to produce portraits. In 1851, Ives moved to Rome where the classical influences of the city were reflected in the idealism of his sculpture.  His works continued to be popular in the United States and often he would make several copies of the same work. For instance, Undine, a work held in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, was one of his more popular works and over ten copies were made. 

Later in his career, Ives was commissioned by Connecticut for two of the state's submissions to the United States Capitol National Statuary Hall Collection: Jonathan Trumbull and Roger Sherman.  Through the latter part of his career his studio continued to create replicas while he sculpted portrait busts. He died in Rome in 1894. 

Although no longer as famous as some of his peers, Ives's works can be found in many art museums, the U.S. Capitol, parks, and college campuses.—Doug Litts

New notable additions to AA/PG library in April

Moran, Michael F.  Striking Change: The Great Artistic Collaboration of Theodore Roosevelt and Augustus Saint-Gaudens.  Atlanta: Whitman, 2008.  432 p. 

N40.1.S13 M67 2008

Instrumental in creation of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, President Theodore Roosevelt was also a strong supporter of American artists.  This interest in art was also key in his decision to redesign all United States coins in 1905 after meeting with the great American sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens.  Saint-Gaudens’s commission resulted in some of the most collectible coins from the United States: the $10 Miss Liberty in an Indian headdress and the $20 gold double eagle. This book provides new look at the life of Saint-Gaudens and the partnership he created with Theodore Roosevelt to reinvigorate the coinage of the United States.

Cozzolino, Robert, Marshall N. Price, and M. Melissa Wolfe.  George Tooker.  London: Merrell, 2008.  191 p.

N40.1.T669 N38 2008

The works of George Tooker (born 1920) are both beautiful and haunting. Associated with the American Magic Realism style which bucked the increasing popularity of abstraction in the mid-twentieth century, Tooker works in egg tempera, a medium that requires meticulous application.  Drawing on Surrealism, Tooker examines modern life with still images that have an unsettling air.  His works are mysterious, complex and often full of tension, suggesting far more than what is simply depicted on the canvas. This catalog coincides with the first major retrospective of Tooker’s work in 30 years.

 Eliasoph, Philip.  Robert Vickrey: The Magic of Realism.  New York: Hudson Hills, 2008.  227 p.

N40.1.V64 E4r 2008

Includes foreword by SAAM Senior Curator Virginia Mecklenburg.

Another artist that works in the exacting medium of tempera, Robert Vickrey also emerged in the American art scene when abstract expressionism was rising to predominance.  Although a realist, Vickrey incorporates surrealist elements into his work, often creating a sense of mystery. This is especially true in his depictions of nuns. Additionally, beginning in 1957, TIME magazine commissioned Vickrey to paint portraits for many of its covers (many of which are now part of the National Portrait Gallery’s collection). This book covers the entire career of the artist reproducing many of his works in full color.—Doug Litts

Heralds of Science

The Libraries would like to showcase a few images from its Heralds of Science collection today. Many of the titles can be found in this online show or by searching through Galaxy of Images.

Jan van der Straet, Nova reperta. Speculum diuersarum imaginum speculatiuarum., 1638

Stephen Hales, Vegetable Staticks: or, An Account of Some Statistical Experiments on the Sap in Vegetables, 1727