Author Description

In A World Obsessed With The Virtual, Tangible Things Are Once Again Making History. Tangible Things Invites Readers To Look Closely At The Things Around Them, Ordinary Things Like The Food On Their Plate And Extraordinary Things Like The Transit Of Planets Across The Sky. It Argues That Almost Any Material Thing, When Examined Closely, Can Be A Link Between Present And Past. The Authors Of This Book Pulled An Astonishing Array Of Materials Out Of Storage--from A Pencil Manufactured By Henry David Thoreau To A Bracelet Made From Iridescent Beetles--in A Wide Range Of Harvard University Collecti. Cover; Tangible Things; Copyright; Dedication; Contents; About The Companion Website; Preface And Acknowledgments; Introduction: Thinking With Things; 1 Things In Place; Natural History An Orchid: Say It With Flowers; Anthropology And Archaeology A Glass Jar: A Surface Find In The Semitic Museum; Books And Manuscripts A Papyrus Fragment: Plato From The Sharp-nosed Trash; Art A Limestone Mold: Set In Stone; Science And Medicine A Collection Of Powders: Political Chemistry; History A Field-hockey Dress: Fit For A Knockabout Sport; 2 Things Unplaced. A Gift From The Ladies Of Llangollen: Memorandums Of A Cottagea Galapagos Tortoiseshell: Ship Abigail; A Carved Spoon: Pointing A Finger; A Mexican Tortilla: From Exotic To Ordinary; A Beetle Ornament: Iridescent Opulence; A Board Game: Tracking Blondie; 3 Things Out Of Place; An Artist's Palette: The Psychology Of Vision; A Tin Bluebird: Calling For The Vote; A Hand Plow: Plowshares And Swords; A Carved Bird Skull: Nature Or Culture?; 4 Things In Stories-stories In Things; Objects As Portals; A Nostalgic Painting: The Message; Transits Of Venus; Changing Stories About American Indians. Photo Essay Unexpected Discoveries: The Joy Of Object Photographyappendix Harvard Collections That Contributed To Tangible Things; Notes; About The Authors; Picture Credits; Index. Laurel Thatcher Ulrich, Ivan Gaskell, Sara J. Schechner, Sarah Anne Carter With Photographs By Samantha S. B. Van Gerbig.