A work on English artists from 1879, a copy of the Holy Bible printed in 1560 and Royal Tour in India by Stanley Reed, which saw the light in 1906, issues of Neelecraft, a home and family magazine, from 1930, a book from 1922 deals with Moghul paintings and Photographic Views in Madura (1858) by Captain L. Tripe.
These are some of the antiquarian books on display at the Connemara Public Library in Egmore, as part of an exhibition of rare books.
Organised in commemoration of World Book Day (April 23), the exhibition throws light on the history and culture of ancient and medieval India and other countries. Over 150 books have been showcased.
The exhibition also has books in Tamil, which include those covering the topics of Vedic astrology and Tamil grammar. Around 50 books are in other languages, including Latin, German, French and Japanese.
“The Report of The Education Commission , a work from 1888, is believed to be found only in four institutions — IIT-Madras, Delhi Secretariat and National Library of India in Kolkatta and at Connemara Public Library in Egmore,” says M. Ganesh, Assistant Librarian.
There are also records of meteorological observations made in 1894 from different stations in India; a 1909 catalogue of coins in the PhayreProvincial Museum and a 1906 monograph of stone-carving and inlaying in the Bombay Presidency.
“Books, especially the old ones, are prone to damage by silverfish. Transparent chiffon material from Kashmir has been used to laminate the pages of these centuries-old works. This kind of preservation was in practice before digitisation,” adds Ganesh.
Following a good response from the public, the exhibition which was supposed to end on April 23, has been extended up to April 29.
