Francis Frith in exotic Middle Eastern dress

Extract from ‘True portraiture: David Roberts’ The Holy Land and Francis Frith’s Photographic prints of Egyptian antiquities’

June 27, 2019

Our stories, Painting, Photography:

Europe went crazy for all things Egyptian in the early 19th century, which helps explain why the Library’s collection includes rare works by two famous Egyptologists: painter David Roberts and photographer Francis Frith.

Bookings open for National Family History Month!

Bookings open for National Family History Month!

June 18, 2019

Family history events, Family matters, Training:

We’re participating in National Family History Month 2019! August is National Family History Month and State Library Victoria has a great program of free events both onsite and online. You… Read More ›

The Chief Librarian and the soap thieves

The Chief Librarian and the soap thieves

June 6, 2019

Our stories, People & professions:

In 1887, someone was stealing the State Library soap- or was it ‘someones’?

From celebrity to the streets, the power of photojournalism

From celebrity to the streets, the power of photojournalism

June 5, 2019

Our stories, People & professions:

Over the course of his 50-year career, news photographer Bruce Postle captured images of the rich, the famous and the powerful. But on many occasions, his work also involved the most humble and vulnerable people in the community.

‘Dear Walt’: Whitman in Victoria

‘Dear Walt’: Whitman in Victoria

May 31, 2019

Our stories:

Victorian school teacher Bernard O’Dowd entered a brief but remarkably intense and intimate correspondence with American poet and iconoclast Walt Whitman.

Library Board of Victoria welcomes four new board members

Library Board of Victoria welcomes four new board members

May 29, 2019

Announcements, News:

President of the Library Board of Victoria, John Wylie AM, today announced four new members will join the Library Board. Karen Wood, Hugh Williams, Donata Carrazza and Cheri Ong will commence their new appointments today, each for a three-year period.

Our new-look catalogue: Browse and Related items

Our new-look catalogue: Browse and Related items

May 21, 2019

Tips and tricks:

Read about the new browsing feature of our redesigned online catalogue and learn how to discover related material in the collection.

The Spare Corner Club

The Spare Corner Club

May 17, 2019

People & professions, Social life & customs, Such was life:

It was a cool summer’s day in 1940 when around fifty members of the Spare Corner Club met in the Fitzroy Gardens for lunch…

Our new-look catalogue: Resource recommender

Our new-look catalogue: Resource recommender

May 14, 2019

Tips and tricks:

Our online catalogue has had a major redesign. Learn how to use the handy new feature: the Resource recommender.

Our new-look catalogue: An introduction

Our new-look catalogue: An introduction

May 7, 2019

Tips and tricks:

In August 2018, we launched a major redesign of our online catalogue. Learn how to make the most out of its improved, user-friendly design and enhanced functionality with this series of blog posts.

Such was life

Mary Fortune: pioneer of Australian detective stories

Mary Fortune: pioneer of Australian detective stories

October 15, 2024 2 comments

Mary Fortune was the author of the longest running 19th-century crime fiction series published in a periodical and one of the earliest female crime writers in the world.

Arts

Portrait of Ken Pound for the Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants oral history project, 2010. Photo by Gwenda Davey. This work is in copyright. National Library of Australia; nla.obj-228944556

‘It really belongs to you people anyway…’: The story of Ken Pound

August 19, 2024 6 comments

To celebrate the Children’s Book Council of Australia Week, we pay tribute to the life of children’s literature collector, Ken Pound, and the collection he has left for us all.