Book Notice: Discarded, Discovered, Collected: The University of Michigan Papyrus Collection

People who know me know that my favorite papyrus collection is the one at the University of Michigan. And it's not necessarily because of the papyri in their collection. The people who are involved in the collection are remarkable: the archivists, collection managers, curators, conservationists, and so on. I have edited quite a few Michigan papyri (and am working on several currently) and the assistance I have received has been second to none. When I was beginning to enter the field of papyrology as an editor of texts, Prof. Arthur Verhoogt was especially helpful to me in securing reservations, providing high-resolution photographs, and formal letters of reservation.    

I am excited to announce here his forthcoming book on the history of the Michigan Papyrus Collection, due out this fall: 

Discarded, Discovered, Collected: The University of Michigan Papyrus Collection (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2017).

I think the cover photo is perfect: these are some of the various boxes and containers (e.g., a Kodak film box!) in which the papyri were transported from across the Atlantic in the early twentieth century. Here is the description from the publisher's website:

Description
Discarded, Discovered, Collected: The University of Michigan Papyrus Collection provides an accessible introduction to the University’s collection of papyri and related ancient materials, the widest and deepest resource of its kind in the Western hemisphere. The collection was founded in the early part of the 20th century by University of Michigan Professor of Classics Francis W. Kelsey. His original intention was to create a set of artifacts that would be useful in teaching students more directly about the ancient world, at a time when trips to ancient sites were much harder to arrange.

Jointly administered by the University of Michigan’s Department of Classical Studies and its Library, the collection has garnered significant interest beyond scholarly circles and now sees several hundred visitors each year. Of particular note among the collection’s holdings are sixty pages of the earliest known copy of the Epistles of St. Paul, which are often featured on tours of the collection by groups from religious institutions.

Arthur Verhoogt, one of the current stewards of the University of Michigan Papyrology Collection, provides clear, insightful information in an appealing style that will attract general readers and scholars alike. Extensively illustrated with some of the collection’s more spectacular pieces, this volume describes what the collection is, what kinds of ancient texts it contains, and how it has developed from Francis Kelsey’s day to the present. Additionally, Verhoogt describes in detail how people who study papyri carry out their work, and how papyri contribute to our understanding of various aspects of the ancient Greco-Roman world. Translations of the ancient texts are presented so that the reader can experience some of the excitement that comes with reading original documents from many centuries ago.

Publication made possible in part through the support of Virginia and William Dawson.

Arthur Verhoogt is Professor of Papyrology and Greek and Arthur F. Thurnau Professor at the University of Michigan.

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