Based on the dramatic events of a real family's overland crossing
Mary Rockwood Powers reluctantly left her comfortable life as a doctor's wife in Wisconsin in 1856, one of the many women whose destiny as a settler of the West was determined by her husband's wishes. Trading in her home for canvas roof and wheels, Mary, her husband, and their three children set out on the arduous trek westward to California.
When Dr. Powers' increasingly unstable mental state threatens the family's safety, Mary is forced to leave her ideals of femininity behind. She takes fate into her own hands-stepping in as head of the household to help her family outlast the trail.
In Outlasting the Trail author Mary Barmeyer O'Brien uses Mary Rockwood Powers' letters as a starting point to further illuminate this remarkable woman's story. It is a story full of dangers, misfortunes, and an appreciation for the smallest of blessings. By constructing a rich inner life for her characters, O'Brien seeks greater truths about what it meant to be a woman, a girl, or a husband facing the obstacles and trials of the trail to California. Based on the heartrending struggle of a real family, this novel brings to life a fascinating slice of American history.

About one in three people in North America and Europe collects something. Collecting is clearly an important social phenomenon and yet surprisingly little is known about how and why we collect. This work explores the nature of collecting both in Europe and among people living within the European tradition elsewhere. The way people collect tells us about their notions of themselves and others, about their relationship to objects, and helps us understand people as consumers. Susan Pearce addresses many of the issues surrounding the practice of collecting. She considers how European collecting practice is part of an essentially European mentality, how collected objects have cultural value and how the individuals who collect them help to affect the society they live in. The text should be of value to museum professionals and students, cultural historians and anyone interested in the phenomenon of collecting.

The Adjustable Spanner is the product of thirty years' collecting and original research, fired by Ron Geesin's acquisition of the SLIK adjustable spanner that hung in his father's garage. At the core of this book is a concise history of this much-maligned tool. Serious and comical observations parallel its chequered life, from its bent beginnings in the blacksmith's shop to over-designed and lovingly engineered treasures from the small Birmingham machinist. Around this core are discussions and findings about components and construction on the practical side, and patents, registered designs and trade marks on the design protection side. Emerging from history, we take a closer look at uses and especially abuses, immerse ourselves in an analysis of types and styles, and dive deeply into the histories of the inventors and makers. You will be amazed at the engineering diversity required to produce these most fanciful but essential supports to the Industrial Revolution.

This volume, the first of three volumes describing the major facets of Ancient Egyptian Science, concentrates on the origin and development of hieroglyphic writing, the scribal profession, and quasi-learned institutions in ancient Egypt. Professor Clagett has paid particular attention to the so-called Palermo Stone, the earliest annals composed in Eygpt.

Flathead spoken here. From stock rebuilds to high-horsepower modified engines, this book delivers instructions on every facet of rebuilding your flathead V-8. Crystal-clear photos make every step easy to understand and follow, including block reconditioning, new oil seals, manifolds, superchargers and electronic ignitions. Contains essential details on how to install later-model flatheads into early model chassis, plus where to buy parts.

A catalogue of Chinese belt toggles in the Bieber collection.

By the turn of the 20th century, Paris was the capital of the art world. While this is usually understood to mean that Paris was the center of art production and trading, this book examines a phenomenon that has received little attention thus far: Paris-based dealers relied on an ever-expanding international network of peers. Many of the city's galleries capitalized on foreign collectors' interest by expanding globally and proactively cultivating transnational alliances. If the French capital drew artists from around the world-from Cassatt to Picasso-the contemporary-art market was international in scope. Art dealers deliberately tapped into a growing pool of discerning collectors in northern and eastern Europe, the UK, and the USA. International trade was rendered not just desirable but necessary by the devastating effects of wars, revolutions, currency devaluation, and market crashes which stalled collecting in Europe. Pioneers of the Global Art Market assembles original scholarship based on a close inspection of and fresh perspective on extant dealer records. It caters to an amplified curiosity concerning the emergence and workings of our unprecedented contemporary-centric and global art market. This anthology fills a significant gap in the expanding field of art market studies by addressing how, initially, contemporary art, which is now known as historical modernism, made its way into collections: who validated what by promoting and selling it, where, and how. It includes unpublished material, concrete examples, bibliographical and archival references, and appeals to students, academics, curators, educators, dealers, collectors, artists and art lovers alike. It celebrates the modern art dealer as transnational impresario, the global reach of the modern-art market, and the impact of traders on the history of collecting, and ultimately on the history of art.

This authoritative work was, at the time of its first publication, the first full-length book to cover in detail the collecting of Pennsylvania "Dutch" furnishings and crafts. It was subsequently redesigned and enlarged, to make it again available in this more ample format it deserves. The Pennsylvania Dutch country may be said to have been "discovered" by collectors in the 1920s and 1930s. These unique people, with their old-world customs and colorful folk art, have created in America an authentic genre, with a flavor much in vogue among experienced decorators, as well as amateur collectors. Earl F. Robacker, a native Pennsylvanian and a collector himself, introduces this volume with a general discussion of characteristic Dutch country art forms and craftsmanship, emphasizing its authentic "peasant" quality in contrast to the more elegant styles of other early American furnishings. Chapter by chapter he discusses typical pieces of furniture, china, kitchenware and other articles, giving careful descriptions of each important piece, its availability, and most important, the rules for a collector to keep in mind when on the trail of real Pennsylvania Dutch "stuff." This volume offers a thorough orientation in Pennsylvania Dutch country antiques and makes fascinating reading for anyone interested in the general subject of old furnishings. As the first volume to assemble the scattered and fragmentary information on the subject, it is an invaluable guide for those who merely want to achieve authentic atmosphere in home decoration. Many fine illustrations supplement the text, and a partial list of museum collections gives additional guidance. The book contains a full discussion of the basic principles of Pennsylvania Dutch decoration, and an appraisal of the quality of reproductions available on the market.

From priceless eighteenth-century dining tables hidden away in decaying farm sheds to tattooed travellers with a penchant for Wedgewood china, professional auctioneer Philip Serrell has seen it all. In An Auctioneer's Lot he brings to life a world in which the most valuable antiques frequently turn up in the most unlikely places - and accompanied by the most unlikely people. For over twenty years he has uncovered a huge range of priceless (and occasionally worthless) antiques, and he has met, done business with and befriended people from some odd corners of English life. Funny, startling and sometimes poignant, these stories of ordinary people with extraordinary possessions are also the perfect inspiration for anyone who's ever wondered whether they might just be sitting on a fortune . . .

This beautifully illustrated collector's guide lists and describes over 300 timeless cameras at all levels of development--from the early plate cameras of c. 1900 to the pocket cameras of today. Informative captions provide dates of production, specifications, and current values for each camera. A helpful introduction to the hobby provides information about the development of photographic technology, the history of important manufacturers, and an overview to the whole spectrum of photographic collectibles. Also included are many useful tips for the care, repair, and preservation of these classic cameras. Photography enthusiasts and collectors alike will enjoy this fascinating look at some photographic gems.

Record covers are a sign of our life and times. Like the music on the discs, they address such issues as love, life, death, fashion, and rebellion. For music fans the covers are the expression of a period, of a particular time in their lives. Many are works of art and have become as famous as the music they stand for-Andy Warhol's covers, for example, including the banana he designed for The Velvet Underground. This edition of Record Covers presents a selection of the best rock album covers of the 60s to 90s from music archivist, disc jockey, journalist, and former record-publicity executive Michael Ochs's enormous private collection. Both a trip down memory lane and a study in the evolution of cover art, this is a sweeping look at an underappreciated art form. About the series Bibliotheca Universalis - Compact cultural companions celebrating the eclectic TASCHEN universe!

The Message in the Bottle helps those who feel alone in their struggle with the drinker in their life find peace and hope. Is the drinker in your life making you crazy? Do you find that your thoughts and free time are consumed by ideas and plans to fix things so they won't want to drink? Do you feel like you can't talk with anyone about what's really going on, because they won't get it or because you can't believe the situation you're in? Stephanie McAuliffe shares her journey of growing up in a family where cocktails started by 5:00 p.m. She reveals her marriages to two alcoholics, and shows how she navigated life being surrounded by alcohol and alcoholics-and broke an unhealthy family cycle that went back at least four generations. Full of stories of survival, The Message in the Bottle is packed with support to help children and spouses of alcoholics find peace amidst the chaos.

Discover the tools used by professional appraisers to evaluate your own antiques and make educated decisions in the antiques market.

Now the information once held by a select group of professional appraisers is available for all levels of collectors. With great wit and wisdom, Joe L. Rosson and Helaine Fendelman -- hosts of the popular television show Treasures in Your AtticTM, seen on PBS stations nationwide -- will help you identify, understand, and determine the potential value of any type of antique or collectible. Price It Yourself! not only explores all the basic concepts and skills that you must know in order to value an antique ACCURATELY, it is also filled with practice appraisals to help you develop an "eye" for value.

Price It Yourself! is truly the most comprehensive antiques appraisal and research guide available, covering furniture, glass, pottery and porcelain, silver and other metals, household collectibles, and much more.