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Slotkin (Stanley S.) early printed book leaves collection
SLOTKIN.001.CaTurCSU
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Contributing Institution:
California State University Stanislaus Special Collections and University Archives
Title: Stanley S. Slotkin early printed book leaves collection
Identifier/Call Number: SLOTKIN.001.CaTurCSU
Physical Description:
22 Leaves
Date (inclusive): circa 1150-1715
Language of Material:
Arabic
, English
, French
, German
, Greek, Modern (1453-)
, Hebrew
, Latin
, Persian
, Welsh
.
Container: 1 of 1
Collection is open for research.
Stanley S. Slotkin (1905-1997) was a prosperous Los Angeles businessman. He opened "Abby Rents Inc." rental franchise in
the 1930s. The company would become the largest rental company in the world by 1965, renting a variety of items including
furniture and medical equipment. Slotkin was also an avid collector of antique bibles and other rare books, amassing hundreds
of thousands of books which he also regularly donated to various museums, universities, churches, and libraries across the
United States.
Slotkin had a philanthropic interest in reconstructive surgery, opening up a free clinic to perform plastic surgeries on individuals
with debilitating physical abnormalities and/or who could not otherwise afford treatment. Additional interests included amateur
archaeology and what was at the time the new sport of scuba diving. Diving to a Phoenician ship off the coast of Italy in
1955, he recovered 39 amphorae, earthen jars used to store liquids. Scientists dated them to the 3rd or 4th century. Slotkin
distributed the amphorae to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, UCLA and other museums and educational institutions around
the country.
In the 1960s, Slotkin began to donate individual leaves from books to institutions rather than whole works as a way to provide
greater access to these rare materials. He dismembered a number of books, and donated sets of pages to any institution that
would agree to display them publicly. He contributed philanthropically to a number of causes throughout his life.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Incunabula
Early printed books