The grandstand in Beech Forest
Ask a librarian, Our stories, Reference desk, Victorian history:
A grandstand made out of a tree stump? A racecourse in a forest? Join us as we ponder our question of the week.
Cigarette cards: preservation of a small, but unique collection
Collection Care, Our stories, Preservation, Social life & customs:
Collectible cards as we know them today have a very long tradition, dating back to the mid-late nineteenth century with the production of cigarette cards. A small, but unique collection of these wonderful items were recently rehoused by our Preservation team.
Joan Lindsay’s mysterious ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’
Ask a librarian, Victorian history:
‘Everyone agreed the day was just right for the picnic to Hanging Rock…’
Education in Colonial Victoria: a new collection for Trove
By Paul Dee, Senior Librarian Victorian and Australian Collections Trove is the National Library’s online portal to more than 6 billion artefacts, curiosities and stories from Australia’s cultural, community and research institutions.… Read More ›
Discovering Diener’s Ice Works: part two
Buildings & streets, People & professions, Research guides, Research tips & tricks, Social life & customs, Such was life, War:
The second and final part of a blog about flâneurs and research in the time of covid-19 As you can read in part one, this blog was inspired by daily… Read More ›
Time travelling with Sands & McDougall
Buildings & streets, People & professions, Such was life:
Bell hangers and nightmen, leech merchants and lightermen; these are just some of the nineteenth century characters you may find lurking within the pages of a Sands & McDougall directory.
Transcribing the diaries of Joseph Jenkins from home
Joseph Jenkins (1818–98) was a farmer and poet from Tregaron, Wales. From his early twenties until his death, he kept a diary, written in both Welsh (his mother tongue) and… Read More ›
Discovering Diener’s Ice Works: part one
Buildings & streets, People & professions, Research guides, Research tips & tricks, Social life & customs, Such was life, War:
This is the first of a two-part blog about flâneurs and research in the time of covid-19 A daily walk has become an essential part of many people’s routines in… Read More ›
The archive of a pioneer ‘slow’ food restaurant
Collection Care, People & professions, Preservation, Social life & customs, Such was life:
Coinciding with the reopening of many of Victoria’s restaurants after lockdown, we celebrate the story of Sunnybrae, a much-loved regional restaurant ‘in the middle of a paddock’, and the early innovations in food provenance and seasonal, sustainable produce that it became known for.
Collection Care from home
Collection Care, Conservation, Our stories, Preservation, Preventive conservation:
The majority of the work undertaken by Collection Care staff requires physical access to the collections. The recent Library closure as a result of COVID-19 has meant staff are unable to access studios and labs for the time being, prompting a re-imagining of how they normally approach their roles.
Such was life
Ailsa O’Connor: highlights of a life of socialist activism, feminism and art
Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980) was a political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher. Throughout her art career she was a member of the Communist Party and associated with the Socialist Realist Group.
Arts
Ailsa O’Connor: highlights of a life of socialist activism, feminism and art
Ailsa O’Connor (1921-1980) was a political activist, painter, sculptor, author and teacher. Throughout her art career she was a member of the Communist Party and associated with the Socialist Realist Group.
