Ephemera
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ephemera refers to written and printed matter published with a short intended lifetime. In the world of collectors common types of ephemera include letters, advertising trade cards, cigarette cards, airsickness bags, posters, postcards, baseball cards, tickets, greeting cards, stock certificates, photographs and zines. Decks of the most-wanted Iraqi playing cards are recent example of ephemera because they will probably lose their original purpose and interest in a relatively short time. The word derives from the Greek meaning of things lasting no more than a day.
In the field of Library and information science the term ephemera is also used to describe the class of published single-sheet or single page documents which are meant to be thrown away after one use. This classification then excludes simple letters and photographs with no printing on them, which are considered as manuscripts or typescripts. It includes: postcards, event-oriented posters, transportation and show tickets, baggage stickers, stock certificates, motor vehicle licensing forms, business cards, printed wedding invitations, trade cards, and other similar printed materials.
An academic or a national library often has a rare book department tasked, in part, with the acquisition and organisation of such ephemera, in order to preserve them as witnesses of local or national history. In some places museums are given this responsibility, or decide to assume it. Libraries must carefully develop criteria to decide what ephemera to acquire and save.
[edit] References
- The Encyclopedia of Ephemera: A Guide to the Fragmentary Documents of Everyday Life for the Collector, Curator, and Historian by Maurice Rickards et alia. London: The British Library; New York: Routledge, 2000.
- Fragments of the Everyday: A Book of Australian Ephemera /Richard Stone (2005, ISBN 0-642-27601-3)
[edit] External links
- National Library of Australia: National Library of Australia's Ephemera homepage; catalogue records for general printed ephemera in the National Library of Australia.
- Ephemera Society of America
- Evonian Collection of Ephemera at the British Library Collection of 5,000 items relating to Victorian entertainment, especially conjuring, in the UK including posters, catalogues, trade cards etc.
- Western Australian Ephemera in the State Library of Western Australia
- Ephemera: theory & politics in organization an open access journal dedicated to the discussion of all aspects of organization
- Hugh D. Auchincloss Middle East Book Collection at Pell Center of International Relations and Public Policy at the McKillop Library at Salve Regina University [1]
- The John Grossman Collection of Antique Images - A popular collection of printed ephemera of visual culture from 1820-1920.
