Today was a really interesting talk on “Swords & The Secret Lives of Books” in the Wangensteen Library and they had real historical swords that people were allowed to touch! There is always something wonderful about history coming alive by being able to touch and feel real objects. The swords dated from the 15th-18th century and were surprisingly light to hold.
Here is the blurb on the event: “From the battlefield to the operating theater and forests to the kitchen, knives and swords were part of everyday life in premodern Europe. Join the Wangensteen Library and the Oakeshott Institute to learn about how these instruments were made and used, their meaning in society, and how we continue to learn from them today…This pop-up exhibit hosted by the Wangensteen Historical Library and the Oakeshott Institute features short talks by scholars Alexander Greff & Amanda Taylor and the opportunity to handle 15th-18th-century swords from the collections of the Oakeshott Institute” (https://www.continuum.umn.edu/event/swords-the-secret-lives-of-books-pop-up-exhibit-and-talk/).
