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Bookmark Travelogue, Part I

by

Laine Farley

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Bookmarks are often cited as excellent travel souvenirs. Certainly they satisfy the criteria of one travel writer who says “The ideal travel souvenir is relatively inexpensive, evocative of its origin and (hopefully) useful in one’s daily life.” In addition, bookmarks are small, lightweight and easy to pack, an added bonus in today’s increasingly expensive and constrained travel environment. For me, finding bookmarks on my travels is a large part of the fun, but I admit to feeling frustrated in my bookmark quest on a recent trip to Ireland. As I reviewed my travel journal, I realized that focusing solely on the parts of the trip relating to bookmarks told its own story and even made new connections once I returned home. 

My first bookmark encounter occurred appropriately in the visitor center in Belfast where my travel companion and I killed time until we could check into our hotel. In our jet-lagged state, we weren’t up for anything more strenuous than browsing the books, maps, brochures and souvenirs. Almost immediately I spotted some touristy bookmarks with gaudy shamrocks and leprechauns that I quickly rejected. After venturing deeper into the aisles, I found some rather nice magnetic foldover bookmarks with watercolor illustrations of bucolic scenes. I decided to hold out for something more distinctive, however.  And I wasn’t sure how authentic these little scenes might be as reminders of the Irish countryside. A bookcase with several books on Irish names caught my eye. Family legend has it that my great-great grandfather came from Ireland but we have never been able to prove it. Research on the name suggests it may be English, Scottish or even Norman in origin. As I browsed through one little book (my name did not appear), a small bookmark floated to the floor. With illustrations of coats of arms and Irish names in a font evoking Celtic letters, it was a fine beginning to my bookmark acquisitions. 

  

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Later, we visited the Linen Hall Library, the oldest library in Belfast, founded in 1788. At the recent celebration of the 220th birthday of this subscription library, the librarian noted, “We should remember our modest beginnings as the Belfast Reading Society, and that these pioneers were the ordinary people of Belfast or, as one version has it, ‘intelligent artisans’.” The library has an impressive collection on Irish Studies and genealogy of the region. One of the most interesting documents is the 1796 Spinning Wheel Premium Entitlement Lists containing 60,000 names of individuals given free spinning wheels by the government to encourage the linen trade.

The other premier collection, the Northern Ireland Political Collection , was begun in 1968 by the librarian who began to collect all printed material related to “the troubles.” The collection description notes that “no other institution in a localised conflict has systematically collected material from all sides. Much less has it been done in the field, and often literally across the barricades.” The 250,000 items include “the most ephemeral—stickers, leaflets, posters and Christmas cards—to more substantial collections of books, pamphlets, manifestos, photographs and audio-visual items.” This collection is a wonderful example of how ephemera add to the historical value of more traditional materials such as newspapers and periodicals.

  
The comfortable library with its old bookshelves, cozy nooks, easy chairs and cafe was a welcome respite. Its gift shop did have a few bookmarks—a traditional leather one featuring the library’s logo, and some nice metal ones with Celtic knot designs. I almost bought one of these until I did the conversion, gulped and decided to wait for a less expensive option. As we were leaving, I spotted some freebies including one advertising the web site of Culture Northern Ireland, an organization listings arts events co-sponsored by the library and another advertising Independent Booksellers Week sponsored by the London Times which occurred just before we arrived. 

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A third one advertised Northern Ireland Publications Resource, which aims “to acquire and preserve every book, pamphlet, periodical and report published in Northern Ireland since January 2000 and create an accompanying bibliography.” It was created because Northern Ireland has no national library responsible for collecting all works published in the province. The Linen Hall Library and the Belfast Central Library are the lead partners and house the collection. This organization is yet another reminder of how Northern Ireland’s history has been profoundly affected by its relationship to England. Although I was very interested to learn what these bookmarks conveyed which couldn’t be found in guide books, I did wish that the Library would commission a nice bookmark on linen to commemorate the history of the industry in Belfast, or perhaps one with illustrations from their “Troubled Images” exhibition that featured 70 posters from the “troubles.” I wish I had known about this exhibit when it came to the Hoover Institution in 2004. Their web site still has information and images from the exhibit. 

Throughout our stay in Belfast and the rest of Ireland, the profound effects of the “troubles” would come up in almost every conversation. We took a tour of the neighborhoods where much of the violence had occurred. Now they are quiet, ordinary rows of brick houses, unremarkable except for the striking murals interspersed on walls of commercial and residential buildings, similar to many of the images in the exhibit. 

On another day, we visited Queensland University and of course had to inspect the library. The main library is in one of the oldest and most beautiful of the Tudor Revival buildings on campus, but strangely had been retrofitted with a sort of greenhouse structure in the middle of the reading room to add more space. I ran into two other U.S. librarians who were in Belfast for the same conference I attended, and we explored the library in shock at how the building had been violated with this monstrous addition. Fortunately, we learned that a new library is being built and hoped that the old building would regain its dignity. The only bookmark in evidence had a streamlined design featuring a truncated Q for the campus logo and proclaimed “Just Ask . . . The Library at Queen’s.” It was attached to discount coupons for the London Times, a commercial association that U.S. academic libraries would not normally embrace. The campus gift shop featured the ubiquitous leather bookmark, “gold foiled with Queen’s crest.”

To be continued next week…

Bookmark specifications: Harp Bookmark
Dimensions: 1 3/8" x 1 1/2"
Material: Metal
Manufacturer: Past Times, Oxford, England
Date: 1920s to 1995
Acquired: Gift

Bookmark specifications: Ireland
Dimensions: 1 1/4" x 2"
Material: Metal
Manufacturer: Shamrock Gift Co., Dublin, Ireland
Date: 199?
Acquired: Gift

Bookmark specifications: A Little Book of Irish Family Names
Dimensions: 1 7/8" x 5 3/8"
Material: Paper, laminated
Manufacturer: Appletree Press
Date: 1997
Acquired: Visitor Centre, Belfast, Northern Ireland

Bookmark specifications: Love Your Local Bookshop
Dimensions: 2" x 8 1/4"
Material: Paper
Manufacturer: Times, London
Date: 2008
Acquired: Linen Hall Library, Belfast, Northern Ireland 

Laine Farley is a digital librarian who misses being around the look, feel and smell of real books.  Her collection of over 3,000 bookmarks began with a serendipitous find while reviewing books donated to the library. Fortunately, her complementary collection of articles and books about bookmarks provides an excuse for her to get back to libraries and try her hand at writing about bookmarks. Farley’s web site is Collecting Bookmarks (Physical, not Virtual).  Contact Laine.  

 

 

 
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