Date: Sunday, September 7th
Time: 1pm to 5pm
Admission: $130 for Small Cabinets / $145 for Bigger Cabinet ( Tickets Here )

The 16th century, a period of increased travel and exploration, gave rise to the wunderkammer (“chamber of wonders”), a miniature museum of sorts for the professional and amateur natural historian alike. A container for curiosities, “monsters,” and more familiar objects from nature, these cabinets became a way to display one’s knowledge of the world and a means of preserving (and probing) its mysteries over time.

This class will cover the history of these cabinets and provide you with the opportunity and materials to start building one of your own. The cost of the course includes a vintage cabinet (22” or 17” high; used, but in sound enough condition for our purposes, see pictures below ) a small glass dome, as well as other assorted materials, including those necessary for making and displaying miniature books.

Students are requested to bring with them a pair of scissors and rubber cement. They may also bring small natural objects (shells, stones, feathers, insect carcasses, etc.) or small mechanical or scientific instruments (compasses, magnifying glass, etc.)
Vimala C. Pasupathi is an Associate Professor of English at Hofstra University, where she has taught Shakespeare and British literature for the past 8 years. She holds an MA in English Literature from The Ohio State University and a Ph.D. from The University of Texas at Austin; she has published more than a dozen articles on sixteenth and seventeenth century books and print and manuscript culture.