Jay T. Last Collection of Religion Prints and Ephemera, approximately 1828-approximately 1921, bulk 1850-1900

Summary

Creators:

Last, Jay T.

Abstract:

The Jay T. Last Collection of Religion Prints and Ephemera contains approximately 60 printed items related to beliefs and practices usually involving devotional and ritual observances concerning God, creation of the universe, spirituality, and the moral conduct of human affairs. The materials were made and used in the United States from approximately 1828 to 1921, with the bulk of the content dating from 1850 to 1900. Certificates pertaining to biblical societies and other theological organizations are represented, as are items relating to baptism and other formal or ceremonial rites and initiations in religious use. Images of sacred scenes, verses, and parables; portraits of saints or spiritual leaders; and views of houses of worship are also found here. Most items are lithographs, but engravings and woodcuts are also included.

Extent:

approximately 60 items

Language:

English.

Background

Scope and content:

The Jay T. Last Collection of Religion Prints and Ephemera contains approximately 60 printed items related to beliefs and practices usually involving devotional and ritual observances concerning God, creation of the universe, spirituality, and the moral conduct of human affairs. The materials were made and used in the United States from approximately 1828 to 1921, with the bulk of the content dating from 1850 to 1900. Certificates pertaining to biblical societies and other theological organizations are represented, as are items relating to baptism and other formal or ceremonial religious rites and initiations. Images of sacred scenes, verses, and parables; portraits of saints or spiritual leaders; and views of houses of worship are also found here.

Materials are arranged in two series: small-size items (11 x 14 inches or less) and large-size items (more than 11 x 14 inches). Small-size items are described broadly at the series level; large-size items and select small-size items are fully inventoried with printers, artists, and publishers indexed by name. The collection includes 29 large-size items comprised mainly of baptismal certificates and lithographs of Christian scenes and imagery. Especially noteworthy are eight woodcut and hand-colored Pennsylvania-German certificates of birth and baptism dating from 1837-1853 (priJLC_002917-002923 and priJLC_004970), mostly printed and/or handwritten in German. They relate to illuminated Fraktur drawings popular in Pennsylvania-German culture during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Small-size items number approximately 30 and contain a variety of materials, including tickets, leaflets, certificates, and printed letterheads (with manuscript text).

The collection supports various fields of research related to religion and Christianity in the United States in the 19th and early 20th centuries. This includes regional baptism records, places and patterns of worship, and Christian iconography. The images also provide a rich visual resource for studying American interpretations of Bible stories and figures common during this period. As graphic materials, the collection highlights developing techniques and trends in printmaking while documenting the artists, engravers, lithographers, printers, and publishers involved in the creative process.

Acquisition information:

This collection forms part of the Jay T. Last Collection of Graphic Arts and Social History, which was donated to the Huntington Library by Jay T. Last in 2005 as a gift in progress. The bulk of the Religion prints and ephemera were transferred to the Library between 2010 and 2012 .

Arrangement:

The collection is arranged in the following two series:

• Series I. Religion Prints and Ephemera (small size)
• Series II. Religion Prints and Ephemera (large size)

Rules or conventions:

Finding aid prepared using Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Note:

Finding aid last updated on February 5, 2018.

Related resources

Related material:

• Jay T. Last Collection of Printing and Publishing: Louis Prang Archive

Includes greeting cards and other ephemera related to religious holidays such as Easter and Christmas.

Alternative form available:

Visit the Huntington Digital Library: Jay T. Last Collection to view digitized items from this collection.

Indexed terms

Subjects:

Angels -- Pictorial works.
Animals -- Pictorial works.
Apostles -- Pictorial works.
Babies -- Pictorial works.
Baptism -- Pictorial works.
Baptism.
Bible stories -- Pictorial works.
Birds -- Pictorial works.
Bishops -- Pictorial works.
Camp meetings -- Pictorial works.
Cherubs (Art)
Children -- Pictorial works.
Church architecture -- Pictorial works.
Church buildings -- Pictorial works.
Clergy -- Portraits.
College campuses -- Pictorial works.
Convents -- Pictorial works.
Couples -- Pictorial works.
Crosses -- Pictorial works.
Deathbeds -- Pictorial works.
Devil -- Pictorial works.
Flowers -- Pictorial works.
Hell -- Pictorial works.
Last Supper -- Pictorial works.
Men -- Pictorial works.
Missionaries -- Pictorial works.
Mothers -- Pictorial works.
Noah’s ark -- Pictorial works.
Prayer -- Pictorial works.
Prayer.
Priests -- Pictorial works.
Reading -- Pictorial works.
Reformation.
Saints -- Pictorial works.
Theological seminaries -- Pictorial works.
Women -- Pictorial works.
Certificates.
Chromolithographs.
Ephemera.
Ephemera -- United States -- 19th century.
Ephemera -- United States -- 20th century.
Engravings.
Intaglio prints.
Leaflets (printed works)
Lithographs.
Printed ephemera.
Prints.
Relief prints.
Views.

Restrictions:

Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department. For more information, contact Reader Services.

Location of this collection:

Huntington Library, Prints and Ephemera Collections

1151 Oxford Road

San Marino, CA 91108, US

Contact:

(626) 405-2191

reference@huntington.org

Website