Tessera

Digital Humanities Lab, Exeter

@dhlabexeter.bsky.social

We support digital approaches in research, teaching and outreach at the University of Exeter and beyond. https://www.exeter.ac.uk/research/digitalhumanities/

289 Posts516 Follower 348 Folgt

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2d ago

Did you know our archives contain thousands of letters, just waiting to be read? 💌 Why not get started now by visiting our online PenPals exhibit, which explores correspondence between South-West writers! ➡️ specialcollectionsarchive.exeter.ac.uk/exhibits/sho... #WorldPostDay #PostDay #Archives

Cropped image from an exhibition board relating to Charles Causley. It shows a black and white photograph of Causley as a young man sitting at a writing desk, with a siamese cat sitting on top of the desk. The photograph has been fashioned into a stamp. Above the photograph is typed: 'EUL MS 50a/PERS/2/2/2/10 Photographer: R.L. Knight Ltd'. And below the photograph is typed 'Causley at his writing desk with pet cat'.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 3d ago

Good morning to everyone but especially to all the octopuses, for today is their special day! To celebrate World Octopus Day, here's an illustration of an octopus from the book 'The World of the Sea' by Moquin Tandon, published in 1869. 📷 Reserve 591.92 TAN #WorldOctopusDay #OctopusDay #RareBooks

Cropped image showing an engraving of an octopus

Full-page engraving from a book. It shows an octopus lying on the seabed, with a squid and a cuttlefish coming towards. The cuttlefish is making a cloud. The engraving is captioned: 'Plate XI. A Poulpe. A Cuttle-Fish Making His Cloud. A Calmar'.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 4d ago

On 07 October 1889, the (New) Theatre Royal opened in Exeter. It was demolished in 1962. Our collections include many items relating to the Theatre Royal, including 2,383 playbills! #OnThisDay #TheatreHistory #TheatreArchives #Archives #Exeter #ExeterHistory @uniofexeterdrama.bsky.social

Colourised postcard showing the last Theatre Royal on the corner of Longbrook Street and New North Road.

Five Theatre Royal (Exeter) playbills dating from 1891 to 1932

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 5d ago

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the badgers, for today is their special day! To celebrate National Badger Day, here is an illustration of a badger from the book 'Animated Nature' (1828) by Georges-Louis Leclerc. 📷 Reserve 590 BUF #NationalBadgerDay #BadgerDay #RareBooks

Cropped image from a book, showing a colour illustration of a badger standing on a patch of grass, painted in shades of black, white and green.

The Bill Douglas Cinema Museum @bdcmuseum.bsky.social · 6d ago

🕵️‍♂️Happy James Bond Day to those who celebrate! Today marks the anniversary of the London premier of Dr No in 1962🔫 Speculation is rife about who will be the next James Bond - who would you choose? #filmsky #jamesbondday #007 #drno

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 6d ago

This map by Benjamin Donn was produced as part of a 12-sheet map of Devon in 1765. Donn was awarded £100 from the Royal Society for the Arts for the best 1 inch to a mile survey of an English county. 📷 Townsend Maps T8; digitised by @dhlabexeter.bsky.social #MapMonday #MondayMaps #MappingOurExeter

Black-and-white engraved county map of Devon. The map shows towns, villages, roads, rivers and coastal features throughout Devon, with Lundy Island depicted off the north-west coast. Includes an ornate title cartouche, compass rose, scale bar and graticule border. Printed on laid paper with visible fold marks and age-related discolouration.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · last wk.

Believe it or nut - it's already October! 🍂 We hope you all have a lovely weekend. 📷 Illustration of oak, hazelnut & hornbeam from ‘The Flowering Plants of Great Britain’ (1855) by Anne Pratt [Baring-Gould Library 0691] #FridayFlowers #FlowersOnFriday #RareBooks

Photograph of an opened book featuring a full-page colour illustration of leaves, flowers and fruit of the Common British Oak, the Hazelnut tree and the Hornbeam tree.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · last wk.

It's #NationalPoetryDay today 📝 We hold over 40 collections relating to South West writers, this includes the papers of the Cornish poet & writer Jack Clemo. Clemo's work was often inspired by the Cornish landscape and wildlife, as shown in this poem 'Gulls Nesting Inland'🪶 📷: EUL MS 68/Lit/3/6

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · last wk.

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the raccoons, for today is their special day! This woodcut of a raccoon was printed in 1635 in 'Historia Naturae, Maxime Peregrinae' by Juan Eusebio Nieremberg. 📷 Baring-Gould Library 0689 Folio #InternationalRaccoonAppreciationDay #RareBooks

Cropped image of a page in an opened book. In the centre of the page is a large woodcut illustration of a raccoon. The title in Latin above it reads 'Mapach'.

Digital Humanities Lab, Exeter @dhlabexeter.bsky.social · last wk.

Happy National Poetry Day! Here at the University of Exeter Digital Humanities Lab we are celebrating by looking back on our collaboration with Professor Hugh Roberts and his work on Ukrainian wartime poetry! He kindly provided this write up about how the Lab and intern team helped his project:

Exeter Cathedral @exetercathedral.bsky.social · 2w ago

Announcement: A selection of The Exeter Book’s famous riddles are now on display for the first time since the opening of the Treasures Exhibition in 2025. The Exeter Book is a treasured item listed on the UK UNESCO Memory of the World Register, preserving nearly all surviving Anglo-Saxon riddles.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Today is National Sporting Heritage Day! Did you know our University Archive contains items relating to university sports going back more than a century, including reports, photographs, sportswear, balls, and even trophies? Here's a small selection! 📷 EUL UA #NSHD2026 #SportingHeritage #Archives

Sports column's relating to men and women's hockey from an early issues of St Luke's College Student's Magazine

Black and white photograph of men and women wearing tennis attire and holding tennis racquets

Flattened rugby ball, on which is printed 'Middlesex Seven-A-Side St Luke's (18pts) vs. Ldn Welsh (5pts) Twickenham 1952'. The ball is also signed with several signatures, presumably of players on the rugby team.

Inter College Athletic Contests tropy of the University College of the South West

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Today is World Heart Day, which raises awareness of the risks of cardiovascular disease. This heart-shaped box is from our archives and once belonged to the poet Jack Clemo. It contains two conkers that inspired one of his poems. 📷 EUL MS 68/PERS/11/1 #WorldHeartDay #Archives #LiteraryArchives

Opened heart-shaped box. Inside the box are two conkers and some folded pieces of paper.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Did you know you can access our collections for research, interest or just for enjoyment? You can find out more about our collections and how you can access them in our online guides! ⬇️

LibGuides: Archives and Special Collections: Home

libguides.exeter.ac.uk

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Today is the International Day for Universal Access to Information. There are many reasons why we preserve archives and rare books, but the most important reason is to give *everyone* the opportunity to access the information within them, now and in the future. #AccessToInfoDay #Archives

Collage of 32 images from archives and rare books held in Special Collections

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Happy World Dream Day! 💭 What did you last dream about? These dream interpretations can be found in the book 'Nummits and Crummits: Devonshire Customs, Characteristics, and Folk-lore' by Sarah Hewett (1900). 📷 Baring-Gould Library 0454 #WorldDreamDay #Devon #Folklore #RareBooks

Opened book lying on a book cushion, held open by a snake weight. The opened pages list interpretations for dreams about angels, babies, bells, bees, carriages, cats, cards, dancing, the dead, ducks, eggs, empty vessels, eating, fish, fire, flowers, garden, glass, gold, hares, horses, ivy, inns, and jackdaws.

Digital Humanities Lab, Exeter @dhlabexeter.bsky.social · 2w ago

Job Vacancy! For this role the candidate should have expertise in 3D modelling, photogrammetry, immersive design and visualisation in cultural heritage and humanities contexts. This post is available from 2 November 2026 on a fixed-term basis until 31/10/2027. careers.exeter.ac.uk/vacancies/12...

Digital Humanities Lab, Exeter @dhlabexeter.bsky.social · 2w ago

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

For International Caravan Day, we’re sharing a favourite from the archives! This delightful childhood notebook by folklorist Theo Brown captures a caravan holiday on Dartmoor in the 1920s through a series of charming stories and illustrations. 📷 EUL MS 388/94 #InternationalCaravanDay #Archives

Illustration of a caravan being being pulled up a steep hill by a van, with two people pushing the caravan from behind. The title above reads 'The Joys of Caravanin' and the text under the illustration reads: 'The Long Pull up a hill on Dartmoor. (Note the 'shovers' behind!)'.

Illustration of a person standing on the steps of a caravan holding a brush. The text next to the illustration reads 'Then, of course, there are lots of dormestic [sic] jobs to be done be-fore one settles for the night - for instance, the can needs a sweep after the journey -'.

Illustration of sleeping arrangements in the caravan, with one person sleeping above, and two people sleeping below. One person below is comforting a dog who is barking. The person above is saying 'Dry up' and the person below is saying 'Shut up'. The text next to the illustration reads: 'After a long day's journey, we feel we have earned some sleep, but if we have earned it, we don't get it. This is Mrs Brown trying to console the dog, who has just awakened the camp by its savage barks because it thinks it has heard a sound without.'

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 2w ago

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the gorillas, for today is their special day! To celebrate World Gorilla Day, here is an engraving of a gorilla from the book 'The Illustrated Natural History' (1863) by J. G. Wood. 📷 Reserve 590.2/WOO #WorldGorillaDay #GorillaDay #RareBooks

Cropped image from a book showing an engraving of gorilla moving along a branch or fallen tree trunk. The gorilla has a muscular, stocky build, and powerful arms that are longer than its legs.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 3w ago

Astronomical autumn began this morning with the autumn equinox! 🍂 In anticipation of the trees developing their autumn colours, here is a poem about a maple tree written and illustrated by the writer, poet and librettist, Ronald Duncan. 📷 EUL MS 397/2/2/2 #AutumnEquinox #Autumn #Archives

Painting of a tree with a grey trunk and leaves of green, red, purple and orange. Next to the tree is a poem: 'Pheasants feathers of amethyst, Magenta, crimson, burnt sienna & brown, Leaf the maple's branches with a mauve mantle, As it stands sentinel to the undying Fall.' Ronald Duncan's signature and the date '9 Sept - 77' are noted in the bottom right hand corner.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 3w ago

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the rhinos, for today is their special day! To celebrate World Rhino Day, here is an illustration of a rhinoceros from the book 'Animated Nature' (1828) by Georges-Louis Leclerc. 📷 Reserve 590 BUF #WorldRhinoDay #RhinoDay #RareBooks

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 3w ago

This 'Plan of the City & Suburbs of Exeter', dating back to 1792, was surveyed by Charles Tozer and engraved by Thomas Yeakell. Which landmarks can you identify that still exist today? And what has changed? 📷 Townsend Maps T16f #MapMonday #MappingOurExeter #Maps #Exeter

Plan of Exeter, extending as far as St Thomas in the south and to the top of Sidwell Street in the north. It includes a legend to the churches in Exeter in the upper right corner and a dedication statement to the Mayor, Recorder, Sheriff, Aldermen and commonalty of Exeter in the upper left corner. It also features a drawing of a woman (goddess?), seated under a tree, holding a shield and wearing a blue dress, and indicating with her left hand towards the title and Rougemont Castle in the background. Near her left foot is a pile of books, including one marked 'Hist[or]y of Devon'. The plan is mostly shaded in greys and browns, with some accents in blue and yellow.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 4w ago

We are delighted to announce a new exhibition inviting you to travel back in time to the 1920s to explore life at St Luke's 100 years ago! This exhibition is free to visit on the ground floor of St Luke's Library on the University of Exeter's St Luke's Campus. #Archives #Exhibitions #Exeter

Dark green box in which is written on the left in white text 'New Special Collections Exhibition at St Luke’s Library! Back to the 1920s:
Exploring life at St Luke’s 100 years ago through the University Archive. This exhibition is available to visit on the ground floor of the Library on the University of Exeter’s St Luke’s Campus.' On the right is a photograph with a light green border. The photograph shows a display case with four shelves, on which a range of photographs, documents and objects are displayed.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 3w ago

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the foxes, for today is their special day! To celebrate National Fox Day, here is an illustration of a fox from the book 'Animated Nature' (1828) by Georges-Louis Leclerc. 📷 Reserve 590 BUF #NationalFoxDay #FoxDay #RareBooks

The Bill Douglas Cinema Museum @bdcmuseum.bsky.social · 4w ago

What a wonderful evening launching our Bloomberg Connects guide for #HeritageOpenDays! We also celebrated our Marilyn art competition winners & becoming an @artscouncilengland.bsky.social designated collection 🎉 Our special #Everydayhistories display remains open throughout Heritage Open Days!

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 4w ago

Agatha Christie was born #OnThisDay 136 years ago! Did you know we have two connections to the Queen of Crime? We care for an archive of business letters from Christie's literary agent (EUL MS 99), and she received an honourary degree from the University of Exeter in 1961! 📷 EUL UA/P/5i

Black and white photograph showing the Chancellor of the University of Exeter (centre) - Mary Cavendish, the Duchess of Devonshire - with two honorary graduates on either side of her. A small boy also stands to her left. The honorary graduates - Agatha Christie (far left), Theodor Heuss, William Hodge and Bernard Leach - are wearing velvet bonnets.

Information box containing a cropped image of a letter signed by Agatha Christie on the right hand side, and on the left hand side, the following text: "This collection is from the offices of Hughes Massie and Co. Ltd. relating to Agatha Christie's literary estate. Throughout her career her agent was Edmund Cork, and these files were created by him to reflect his dealings with publishers, film-makers and other professional persons with an interest in the Christie estate, including Agatha Christie herself, and her husband, Sir Max Mallowan. Each file of correspondence relates to a particular year, and may include correspondence between Agatha Christie and Edmund Cork, correspondence between Cork and American literary agent, Harold Ober, and other interested parties. There are between 5,000-6,000 letters in the collection. Further information is available on the archive catalogue."

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · 4w ago

We are seeking volunteers for our new IndEXEd: Student Periodicals Indexing & Discovery project! Our volunteering opportunities are open to students, staff & members of the public. Find out more & apply at ➡️ libguides.exeter.ac.uk/archives/placements/volunteering #Exeter #Volunteering #Archives

Poster with a turquoise border and a textured cream background recruiting for volunteers for the IndEXEd project at the University of Exeter Special Collections. The text reads 'Breaking News: Volunteers Wanted', 'Join the IndEXEd: Student Periodicals Indexing & Discovery project to help index and uncover stories from Exeter's historic student periodicals in the University of Exeter Library’s Special Collections!', 'For more information and to apply, visit: https://libguides.exeter.ac.uk/archives/placements/volunteering or scan the QR code', and 'Apply by 27 September 2026'. Along the bottom of the poster is a collage of historic Exeter student periodicals.

University of Exeter Special Collections @exeterunispeccoll.bsky.social · last mo.

Good morning to everyone, but especially to all the manatees, for today is their special day! This illustration of a manatee comes from 'Animated Nature' (1828) by Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon. 📷 Reserve 590 BUF #InternationalManateeDay #ManateeDay #RareBooks

Cropped image from a book, showing a colour illustration of a manatee, lying on its side on sandy-coloured ground, next to a body of water. It looks exhausted and bit fed up!