Announcements

Get to Know RBSC!

Have you ever been curious about what we do or what we have at RBSC? Join our weekly tour of Rare Books and Special Collections at the University of British Columbia Library for an introduction to our space and our unique materials and collections. Tours are free and open to the general public, as well […]

New exhibition: The Illustrated Alice

The Illustrated Alice: Celebrating 150 Years of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland October 6 through October 31, 2015 “And what is the use of a book,” thought Alice “without pictures or conversation?” ~ Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland Join us for a sesquicentennial celebration of one of the most beloved books ever written. This year […]

New exhibition: Harry Potter and the Rain City

We are delighted to announce a new exhibition curated by Rare Books and Special Collections at UBC Library, Harry Potter and the Rain City! Vancouver enjoys a number of profound and surprising connections to the beloved Harry Potter book series. Kidsbooks in Vancouver was the first Canadian bookstore to carry Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s […]

Silent Book Exhibition

Rare Books and Special Collections at UBC Library is proud to host a new exhibition, The Right of Every Child to Become a Reader, sponsored by the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY). In response to the waves of refugees from Africa and the Middle East arriving in the Italian island, Lampedusa, IBBY […]

RBSC has what?!

When I introduce folks to our collections here at RBSC, I love to pull out some materials that might be considered more obscure or outside of our usual collecting area, just to hear people say, “I can’t believe we have that right here at UBC!” Possibly the objects that get the biggest reaction are our […]

RBSC mentioned on CBC’s Windsor Morning

More great press on our papyri from Roman-age Egypt! Professor Max Nelson, who earned his Ph.D. at UBC and is now an Associate Professor at the University of Windsor, was interviewed on the CBC program Windsor Morning about the papyri. Professor Nelson is currently collaborating on an article about the papyri with UBC’s own Professor […]

RBSC on Global News

Global News watchers may have been pleasantly surprised to see our own Katherine Kalsbeek, acting head of Rare Books and Special Collections, on T.V. yesterday evening. Two pieces of papyri dating back to Roman-age Egypt about 1,800 years ago that had previously been uncatalogued have now been rediscovered by UBC scholars, and Global News was […]

RBSC remembers Leonard Guy McCann

This past spring, Rare Books and Special Collections at UBC Library lost a dear friend, and Vancouver’s museum, historical, and archival communities lost a leader. Leonard Guy McCann, who was curator of the Vancouver Maritime Museum for 45 years, and a contributor to our own collections, passed away in late March at the age of […]

New exhibition: Papal Parchments and Blackletter Books

Rare Books and Special Collections at UBC Library announces a new exhibition! Papal Parchments and Blackletter Books: How the Middle Ages Shaped the Way We Read, 1245 AD to UBC This fascinating exhibition tells the medieval and early modern story of the written word using RBSC’s fantastic collection. Two recent acquisitions are of particular note: […]

Views of Yokohama Exhibition

An exhibition of Yokohama woodcut maps from the Tokugawa period is on display at Rare Books and Special Collections from April 1st to 30th, 2015.  This exhibition is part of a series of events to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Vancouver’s sister-city relationship with Yokohama. The exhibition is free and open to the public, and […]