On Sunday, February 23, the American Heritage Girls – Missouri 1118 troop met in Meyer Library to learn more about the rare books collection. The girls and several parents had a chance to see manuscript pages from the 1300s, a miniature set of Shakespeare with its own small bookcase, first editions, and a selection of artists’ books, where the design of the book can be fanciful, reflecting the book artist’s vision and creativity.

The head of Special Collections, Anne Baker, also made sure they saw her favorite book in the library: Edward Topsell’s The Historie of Foure-Footed Beastes, a 1607 volume with all the mammals they thought existed in the world at that time. (And it includes the unicorn, because the creators weren’t quite sure!)

A tour of the storage area gave visitors a sense of the size and vast range of materials collected at MSU, then the students had the opportunity to look at some of the books close up. Researchers wanting to learn more about the collection should contact Anne Baker, head of Special Collections, at AnneBaker@missouristate.edu or 417-836-4299.