On Monday, March 2nd, Special Collections held our second Rhinehart Rare Book Room Open House. While some have heard about the stately room lined with shelves of old and rare books, few have had the opportunity to see inside. Special Collections staff hopes to dispel the mystery and welcome more people into this space with an Open House each semester. If you missed it this time, come to our next event to examine the shelves, see a selection of notable volumes from the collection, ask a Librarian questions, and soak up the atmosphere.
The Rhinehart Collection contains over 1,000 volumes dating from the 16th through the early 20th century, and was donated to Appalachian State by Bill and Maureen Rhinehart. The collection focuses on British History, with particular strengths in royalty and nobility, art and design, Parliament and legal history, and biographies. It also showcases a variety of examples of historic bookmaking practices including binding, typography, printing, papermaking, and illustration. For this event, we displayed The History of the Most Renowned and Victorious Princess Elizabeth, Late Queen of England(1688), British Zoology (1768), and The Book of British Ballads(1842),as well as a facsimile edition of The Book of Kells from the general Rare Books & Manuscripts Collection.
Special thanks to our graduate assistants Grace Buckner and London Fowler for their help in planning, promoting, and staffing the open house. Learn more about the Rhinehart Collection by viewing the Research Guide, and keep an eye on the Belk Library calendar and the Special Collections Research Center social media for future events.