New on the Bookshelf: Expanded Narratives

With New on the Bookshelf: Expanded Narratives, the Walters Art Museum invites visitors to our new, permanent book gallery to explore some of the most recent additions to the Walters collection of Rare Books and Manuscripts. This intimate installation showcases new acquisitions on view at the Walters for the first time.

The installation features 17 works, including stunning Judaica, illustrated Japanese books, manuscripts made for children, rediscovered pages from one of our 12th-century manuscripts, Ethiopian prayerbooks, and later manuscripts created during the era of print.

The installation provides an exciting and rare opportunity for visitors to see how the collection is intentionally expanding and celebrates recently acquired books with insights into the curatorial strategy for growing the collection in meaningful ways. Visitors will encounter themes of accessibility, religion and spirituality, fables, and the oftentimes deeply personal nature of books. More, these works introduce new voices into the collection and elevate underrepresented cultures and makers.

Curated by Lynley Anne Herbert, Robert and Nancy Hall Curator of Rare Books and Manuscripts, this installation is part of a series exploring updates to the collection of Rare Books and Manuscripts.