In this inscribed gift copy to Harvard College, Fisher Howe offers a detailed account of his 1850 journey throughout the Middle East. “I am waiting, not without some impatience, for the forthcoming “ Oriental and Sacred Scenes, ” by our esteemed friend, Fisher Howe, Esq. Mr. Howe is a matter-of-fact man, and has the faculty…
Category: Interesting Item
Alexander Russell Webb and the American Muslim Propagation Movement
Alexander Russell Webb (1846-1916; journalist, publisher, and U.S. ambassador) is noted as the first American to have converted to Islam. Raised as a Presbyterian, Webb eventually abandoned his Christian upbringing to investigate other faiths, ultimately converting to Islam in 1888. Ironically, while he declared himself a Muslim, Webb had not even met a single Muslim. Soon afterwards,…
It’s Never Too Early to Teach the Kids ….
Walter Crane (1845–1915), mostly known for his children’s book illustrations, was also a strong supporter of the socialist cause throughout his life . In this 1907 publication, Crane began to blend his political views with his artistry to produce a rather interesting take on the standard children’s book reader. The child’s socialist reader Giant Monopoly…
The Nubian Pyramids
Frédéric Cailliaud’s travel accounts and drawings were pivotal contributions to the development of Egyptology in the 19th century. Cailliaud, born in 1787, became a prominent French naturalist, mineralogist, and conchologist. From 1815 to 1827, he travelled extensively throughout Egypt, Nubia, and Ethiopia, collecting minerals and making observations. He rediscovered the ancient emerald mines of Mount Zubarah and long…