Online Resources

The internet is a vast free library of resources, continually growing at an unprecedented pace. More and more libraries and museums are opening up their collections with online catalogues with high-quality digital images, and some organizations are devoted to creating free online libraries of books. Not to mention an untold number of high quality blogs generously disseminating original research. So I have decided to list the gems I come accross on this page – as much for my own reference as for my readers –  because the problem I find is, how do you keep track of all that you find; and how do you store that information so that you can later access that half-remembered site that you once stumbled accross! So here goes:

Catalogues of digitized images and museum collections

  1. British Library Digitized Manuscripts http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/
  2. The Museum of the History of Science, Oxford, online exhibits  http://www.mhs.ox.ac.uk/exhibits/
  3. Jami al-Tawarikh of Rashid al-Din At Edinburgh University Library, Luna digital facsimile  https://images.is.ed.ac.uk/luna/servlet/detail/UoEsha~4~4~64742~103064?page=221&qvq=lc:UoEsha~4~4&mi=221&trs=318
  4. Open Culture, The best free cultural and educational media on the web  http://www.openculture.com/2014/02/15000-colorful-images-of-persian-manuscripts-now-online.html

Books, manuscripts and conservation

  1. British Library blog: Asian and African Studies with list of digitized Persian manuscripts http://britishlibrary.typepad.co.uk/asian-and-african/persian.html
  2. Persian literature in translation at the Packard Humanities Institute http://persian.packhum.org/persian//
  3. The Book of Curiosities, Medieval Islamic views of the cosmos http://cosmos.bodley.ox.ac.uk/hms/home.php
  4. Heather Ravenberg’s blog: The Book and Paper Gathering http://thebookandpapergathering.org/ 
  5. Fiona McLees’ blog: Filigranes and Fibres https://filigranesandfibres.wordpress.com/

Harmonograph Drawing Machines, Mechanics and Mathematics

  1. Azimuth – celebrated blog about climate science and maths by Prof. John Carlos Baez https://johncarlosbaez.wordpress.com/
  2. Capturing Infinity: The Circle Limit Series of M. C. Escher A fantastic online article about Escher and hyperbolic geometry by Professor Thomas Wieting:  http://www.reed.edu/reed_magazine/march2010/features/capturing_infinity/index.html
  3. An online museum of geared curiosities http://geararium.org/
  4. A comprehensive educational resource of mechanical concepts from museum collections: http://kmoddl.library.cornell.edu/model.php?m=reuleaux
  5. Desmond Paul Henry, 1960s artist who made drawing machines: http://www.desmondhenry.com/

Metals, Minerals and Chemistry

  1. Extraordinary photographs of burning sulphur at the Kawah Ijen volcano in Java by Olivier Grunewald http://www.funzug.com/index.php/miscellaneous/the-sulphur-mines-in-indonesia.html
  2. Theodore Gray’s periodic table – the very best resource about elements http://theodoregray.com/periodictable/index.html

History Blogs

  1. Ballandalus – Mohamad Ballan’s erudite blog about the history of medieval Iberia and North Africa https://ballandalus.wordpress.com
  2. Nimira’s Blog – well written and researched articles on Ismaili history https://nimirasblog.wordpress.com/
  3. Alamut, Bastion of Peace and Information  http://www.alamut.com/subj/ideologies/alamut/_indexNotes.html
  4. Photographer Olivier Grunewald has recently made several trips into the sulfur mine in the crater of the Kawah Ijen volcano in East Java, Indonesia
    Read more at http://www.funzug.com/index.php/miscellaneous/the-sulphur-mines-in-indonesia.html#KArzbROjVRyIMEDy.99
  5. Photographer Olivier Grunewald has recently made several trips into the sulfur mine in the crater of the Kawah Ijen volcano in East Java, Indonesia
    Read more at http://www.funzug.com/index.php/miscellaneous/the-sulphur-mines-in-indonesia.html#KArzbROjVRyIMEDy.99
  6. Photographer Olivier Grunewald has recently made several trips into the sulfur mine in the crater of the Kawah Ijen volcano in East Java, Indonesia
    Read more at http://www.funzug.com/index.php/miscellaneous/the-sulphur-mines-in-indonesia.html#KArzbROjVRyIMEDy.99
  7. A blog rich with collected images of vintage sci-fi and retro-futurism http://www.darkroastedblend.com/
  8. BBC Nes article – a history of the TATA family: The men of steel with a softer side http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-31057308