Features items from Pequot Library's Special Collections. The exhibition will run from June 4 - August 8, 2016. It is open during normal library hours, admission is free.
Opening Reception: June 4, 2016, 5pm - 7pm
Features speaker, Nelson North, Executive Director of The Connecticut Audubon Society, a tour of the materials, and a viewing of John James Audubon's, The Birds of America (The Bien Edition), 1858-60.
This exhibition promotes conversation about the significant role that birds and bees play in the pollination process and the importance of preserving their natural environment. Corresponding programs will engage the audience and promote dialogue.
Birds and bees are essential pollinators of gardens. On display are historical rare books on bees and birds from the 1700s to present day, including our double elephant Audubon book (40 in x 27 in), which documents North American birds and was printed in a limited edition of 70.
The exhibition chronicles the history of bee-keeping in America and examines its important historic figures and bee-keeping techniques.
Visitors may contribute family recipes that contain honey (these recipes will be scanned and available online). In addition, a limited edition (250 copies) will be printed and made available.
Keys, John. The Practical Bee-Master, 1780.
Audubon, John James. The Birds of America (The Bien Edition), 1858-60.
Gould, John. A monograph of the Trochilidae, or family of humming-birds. 1849-1861.
King, N.H. The Bee-Keeper’s Text-Book. 1872.
Cooper, James Fenimore. The Oak Opening, Or, The Bee-Hunter, 1883.
Quinby, Moses. Quinby’s New Bee-Keeping. 1884
Nehrling, Henry. Our Native Birds. 1893
Lubbock, John. Ants, Bees, and Wasps. 1895.
Wright, Mabel Osgood. Birdcraft, 1895; Citizen Bird, 1897; A Year with the Birds, 1906.
Maeterlinck, Maurice. The Life of the Bee. 1912.
Birds and bees play an important role in the pollination of our fruits, vegetables, flowers, plants, and trees. Their impact has been illustrated through books and poetry by canonical poets, including Longfellow and Dickinson. From the Flight of the Bumblebee to music inspired by birdsongs, the significance of birds and bees can be seen in music and art throughout history.
Location : Exhibit Cases in Reading Room and The Perkin Gallery
Contact : (203) 259-0346 ext. 15