Adopted Books
Displaying 1 - 10 of 657 adopted books..
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Hunting Lost Mines by HelicopterBy Erle Stanley Gardner. New York: W. Morrow, [1965].Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: National Air and Space Museum Library One of a series of travel guides written by Perry Mason author Earle Stanley Gardner, this book documents a fun-filled search for the “Lost Dutchman” and “Lost Nummel” mines in Arizona in 1965. The team utilized helicopters, jeeps, desert buggies, and mules in its search, which is captured in many photographs. The book also includes biographies of the search team members. It documents a bygone era of exploration and a form of adventure with wide appeal. |
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ParadiesfibelBy Joseph Koch. Essen: Fredebeul & Koenen, [between 1900 and 1970]:Adoption Type: Preserve for the Future Library: Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Library A rare 19th Century illustrated German nursery rhyme children’s book, Paradisefibel features colored illustrations by Richard Seewald (1889-1976), a German visual artist. With highly stylized illustrations, this fairy tale includes humorous animals in human situations, such as singing frogs and playing monkeys. Written by husband and wife Joseph and Maria Koch, the rhythmic flow of the text works in conjunction with Koch’s development of the “finger-reading” method of sign language. This text was used to teach children sign language and stands as a treasure for children’s book... |
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The Tucson ShowBy Robert W. Jones. Tucson, Ariz: Mineralogical Record, 2004.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: National Museum of Natural History Library “It just seemed like a natural and harmless thing to do at the time” states author Bob Jones regarding the formation of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Society in 1946. The ‘rockhounds’ who formed the group could not have anticipated that their organization would go on to create the world’s largest and most renowned gem and mineral show, frequented by scientists and scholars, dealers and vendors, artists and jewelers, and students and families alike. This detailed look at the Tuscon Gem and Mineral Show captures the people and events that helped to make the Show what it is today, providing a... |
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Beautiful SwimmersBy William W. Warner. New York: Back Bay Books, 1994.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Library In lively prose, with helpful and lovely illustrations, William Warner describes the blue crab, its Chesapeake Bay environment, and the industry and people who interact with it. Beautiful Swimmers won the Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction in 1977. The book delves into the fascinating details of the blue crab, Callinectus sapiduthe (translated as “beautiful swimmer”) – its biology, habitat, behavior, and, of course, deliciousness. It describes the lives of the watermen, the people who work the crab boats - their history and traditions, the details of their difficult jobs,... |
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The Snake-Dance of the Moquis of ArizonaBy John Gregory Bourke. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1884.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: Dibner Library of the History of Science and Technology John Gregory Bourke (1846-1896) served as a captain in the U.S. Army in the New Mexico and Arizona Territories during the 1870s and ‘80s. A devoted, if amateur, ethnographer, he used the opportunity to document the cultures of various Native American peoples and in August 1883 was possibly the first outsider to witness the Moqui Indians’ famous snake dance, a sacred ceremony relating to water and the maturation of crops, that lasted from one to two weeks. The Moquis (or Mokis) – a sub-group of the Hopi, or “peaceful people” – lived in seven villages at this period; Bourke observed the dance... |
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California GoldBy Kenneth J. Kutz. Darien, CT: Gold Fever Pub, c1994.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: National Postal Museum Library This book is a compilation of prints of covers (or envelopes) and postcards from the California Gold Rush, featuring detailed information about each illustration. It portrays the adventure involved in prospecting for gold. Mining expert Kenneth Kutz begins his story with the discovery of gold in California and explores the connection between the gold rush and philately. Then he discusses mining law. Finally, he presents the reader with 20 years of correspondence to and from people working in the gold fields, beginning with the initial discovery of gold in 1848. The letters are typed out, and... |
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Max Ernst, Fragments of Capricorn and Other SculptureBy Max Ernst. New York, N.Y.: Arnold Herstand and Company, 1984.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden Library Max Ernst was one of the most prolific and original artists of the 20th century. After marrying American artist Dorothea Tanning in 1946, the couple moved to Sedona, Arizona, where they lived until 1953. It was in Sedona that Ernst completed his monumental masterpiece Capricorn. Originally constructed in cement from castings of milk bottles, automobile springs, and other cast offs, the free-standing sculpture was situated opposite the house Ernst built by hand on Brewer Road. (The sculpture was reworked in 1964 and cast in bronze, now in the collection of the National Gallery of Art,... |
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Amethyst UruguayBy Reinhard Balzer. Munchen: Christian Weise Verlag, 2008.Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: National Museum of Natural History Library This full-color, beautifully illustrated book focuses on the amethysts of Catalan country in Uruguay. In both English and German, Amethyst Uruguay details the past 200 years of the mining of these precious purple stones, and of the people and cultures involved in those operations. It also includes fascinating analysis of the geology and mineralogy of the amethyst. The highlight, of course, is a generous series of richly colored photographs of these beautiful gems. Author Reinhard Balzer collects and studies gems and minerals, with a particular interest in amethysts. |
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Rings for the FingerBy George Frederick Kunz. New York: Dover Publications, 1973 [c1917].Adoption Type: Build the Collection Library: National Museum of Natural History Library The subtitle of “Rings for the Finger” summarizes the content of this comprehensive book: “from the earliest known times to the present, with full descriptions of the origin, early making, materials, the archaeology, history, for affection, for love, for engagement, for wedding, commemorative, mourning, etc.” Using a fascinating collection of black-and-white photos and drawings, the author shares his love of gems and jewelry by focusing on rings – their history, meaning, and design. Author George Frederick Kunz, an avid mineralogist and mineral collector, was a prolific writer of books and... |
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Dark CompanionBy Bradley Robinson. New York: K. M. McBride, 1947.Adoption Type: Preserve for the Future Library: Smithsonian Libraries Research Annex Dark Companion chronicles the polar expedition of African American explorer, Matthew Henson. Born in 1866, four years after the Emancipation Proclamation was issued, Henson went on to triumph as one of the first men to “stand on top of the world." On April 6, 1909 Henson, along with Robert Peary, co-discovered the North Pole. Hundreds had previously attempted, and failed, to reach the elusive polar ice cap. Peary declared that the success of their expedition would not have been possible without the expertise and intelligence of his companion, the man the Eskimos fondly referred to as... |
